11 June 2006

All hail Queen Margherita of Savoy

If you've been reading my editorials on foodieblogs.net (and I know you have--and all of you have signed up (hint hint)) you know that I read Sarah Dunant's The Birth of Venus during my recent week off.

That book was the reason I chose pistachio ice cream as my first scoop of summer as it brought back memories of my Italian vacation from a few years ago.

That book--and those hot Tuscan July memories-- also inspired what is probably my last
Pizza Sunday until the autumn, a pizza Margherita.

I think the whole wheat dough was probably the best dough (whole wheat or white) I've made in a couple of years. It was one of those days where everything aligned--the yeast produced a lovely foamy head, the flour absorbed all the liquid and eggs perfectly, and the dough was so soft and tender--it was a shame to bake it.

On that lovely crust I layered diced tomatoes, mozzerella and torn, fresh basil leaves. A drizzle of olive oil along with sprinklings of black pepper and sea salt finished it off.

So simple and so yummy.


cheers!
jasmine

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8 comments:

K and S said...

that looks great! I really should learn how to make pizza dough from scratch!

Kat

Saffron said...

Hi!Amazing blog!I've just come back from Napoli where I ate a wonderful Pizza Margherita!
Kisses from Rome

Sara said...

sounds wonderful. tomatos and basil are my very favorite combination.

Susan in Italy said...

I used to make my own pizza and ice cream before I moved to Italy. Now they are so inexpensive and soo good, I just go to the corner gelaterie and pizzerie and pig out!

Anonymous said...

But wait ... where is my slice of this delicious pizza?

Thank you for the book recommendation. I'm at that stage where I'm hunting around for some literature to inspire me during the summer. I believe I have found just the thing!

Erin said...

I have that book! I bought it a few weeks back along with another book, but have started about 4 books before picking it up. I want to take my time reading it, the others are pretty much fluff to distract my stressed mind. Anywhoo, food and reading are such great things, I read Peter Mayle's "A Year in Provence" and fell in love with both the book and the food. Also "Under the Tuscan Sun" was another good food book for me.

Sorry to ramble, but I'm making pizza this week as well, goat cheese and carmelized onions. Funny how sometimes bloggers will eat the same things at almost the same times.

Anonymous said...

Oh, yum. Sounds delicious!

jasmine said...

Hi all

Kat: Pizza dough is really easy to make and I think you'll find that once you start, you'll have a hard time going back to store-bought.

Saffron: Welcome--thanks for the kind words. I visited your site and surprisingly enough I could understand a good deal of the bits in Italian.

Sara: Hello my dear :) I love roasting tomatoes with fresh basil leaves. I can just eat them like that, without pasta or rice...

Susan: Welcome! I can still remember the porcini (no pun intended) pizza I had from the pizzeria around the corner from my hotel in Florence...absolutely amazing!

Ivonne: It's a wonderful book. As for your slice...let's blame Beanie :)

Mochene: I've read Mayle as well--I loved the British mini-series based on the book. Unfortunately this year I can't afford to travel abroad, so I must do it in books...which is good because it saves me from building a time machine too :)

Rorie: It was :)