Smoked Salmon Pizzas

Ina Garten

"Cooking for Jeffrey: A Barefoot Contessa Cookbook"

"This pizza is inspired by Wolfgang Puck, the founder and chef of Spago and many other spectacular restaurants around the world. He made a smoked salmon pizza for Joan Collins one night and she insisted on having it whenever she came to dinner. Crisp warm pizza, creamy mascarpone, and smoked salmon on top? If I were Joan Collins, I’d insist on having it, too!"

Yield

6 small pizzas (serves 12 for appetizers or 6 for lunch)

Ingredients

Pizza Dough:
1 1/4 cups warm (100 to 110°F) water
Two 1/4-ounce packages active dry yeast
1 tablespoon honey
Good olive oil
4 cups all-purpose flour, divided, plus extra for kneading
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Fine cornmeal

To serve:
8 ounces Italian mascarpone
1 tablespoon minced chives, plus extra for garnish
1/2 to 3/4 pound thinly sliced smoked salmon, preferably Scottish or Norwegian
Salmon roe, for garnish (optional)

Method

For the dough, combine the water, yeast, honey, and 3 tablespoons of olive oil in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook. Add 3 cups flour, then 2 teaspoons salt and mix for about 10 minutes, slowly adding up to 1 more cup of flour to just keep the dough from sticking to the bowl. When the dough is ready, turn it out onto a floured board and knead by hand a dozen times. It should be smooth and elastic. Brush a medium bowl with olive oil, place the dough in the bowl, and turn it several times to cover lightly with oil. Cover the bowl with a clean, damp kitchen towel and set aside at room temperature for 30 minutes, until doubled in size.

Divide the dough into 6 equal parts and roll each one into a smooth ball. Place the balls on a sheet pan and cover them with the damp towel. Allow the dough to rest for 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Sprinkle 3 sheet pans with cornmeal.

If you’ve chilled the dough, leave it at room temperature for 30 minutes to allow it to come to room temperature. Press each piece of dough into a circle with your fingertips. Stretch the balls of dough into rough 8-inch circles and place them on the prepared sheet pans.

Brush the dough with olive oil and bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until lightly browned and crisp, rotating the pans to bake evenly. Set aside to cool slightly.

Whisk the mascarpone with 1 tablespoon chives, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Spread the mixture on the pizzas, place one layer of smoked salmon on top, sprinkle with chives, and add a large mound of salmon roe in the middle, if using. Place the pizzas on a serving board, cut them into wedges, and serve immediately.

https://www.jamesbeard.org/recipes/smoked-salmon-pizzas