1ballpizza doughstore bought or homemade (rise on a counter 2-6 hours in advance for best fluffy pizza crust results)
1tbspflourall-purpose
1tspolive oil
1.5cuppizza saucesubstitute pasta sauce
1mediumtomatobeef steak, sliced in discs
2cupsmozzarella cheeseshredded
¼cuppestobasil
¼cupparmesan cheeseshredded
Instructions
Rise dough for hours ahead of time. I personally set pizza dough on the counter to rise during the day for 4-8 hours.
Preheat the oven (with a pizza stone in it) to 475 degrees F. Note: check this temperature is safe for your pizza stone. Adding the pizza stone to the oven at this time allows it to come up to temperature slowly.
Stretch pizza dough. Sprinkle half the flour on a large cutting board or another work surface. Put half the flour to the side of the board to pick up here and there as you stretch the dough. (Beginners to homemade pizza, watch my pizza dough stretching tutorial on Sip Bite Go for extra guidance on this step.) Here’s an overview of how to stretch dough: I first push the pizza dough ball against the floured cutting board, turning it to cover it in flour. Then I pinch the outside 1” of pizza dough, to make a clear area for the pizza crust and to start forming a round pizza shape. (I don’t recommend forcing a perfect circle, which may lead to holes forming. If holes form, just patch them up with an extra layer of dough). At this point I press the center of the dough against the cutting board, and begin using the back of my knuckles to stretch the dough from underneath to expand the size. I always add a little extra flour as the dough stretches, so it holds a bigger circle shape and doesn’t shrink back together. I sometimes use a rolling pin to help stretch the dough.
1 tbsp flour, 1 ball pizza dough
Par bake pizza crust first. Carefully remove pizza stone from the oven - leave the oven on - and brush half the olive oil on the top of the pizza stone. Add pizza dough to the oiled pizza stone. Brush the rest of the olive oil on the outside inch of the pizza dough (the crust) and bake pizza dough “naked” for 8 minutes on the middle or top oven rack. This step will help the dough fluff up, and will help the pizza cook evenly. Remove par-baked pizza from the oven and leave the oven on.
Add pesto pizza toppings. Leave an inch around the outside of the dough for the crust while adding toppings. First, add spoonfuls of tomato sauce to the parbaked dough and spread it around in a thin layer. Add a layer of mozzarella cheese and place sliced tomatoes on top. Finally, add spoonfuls of pesto over the tomatoes. If desired, add a sprinkle of parmesan cheese on top.
1 tsp olive oil, 1.5 cup pizza sauce, 1 medium tomato, 2 cups mozzarella cheese, ¼ cup pesto, ¼ cup parmesan cheese
Bake pesto pizza in the oven at 475°F for 8-12 minutes. Pizza is done with the cheese has melted and starts to bubble. The bottom crust on the pizza will be golden brown.
Cool pizza and serve it. Transfer pesto tomato pizza to a cutting board to slice. Enjoy when pizza is cool enough to eat.