Another new pizza recipe, celebrating the flavors of SPAIN and PORTUGAL, using the same techniques that I’ve used in the past but with different toppings and some modifications to get the Iberian flavor balances just right ! A balance between smokiness, spiciness, sweetness, acidity, freshness, crispiness & gooeyness. What’s not to love ?
My favorite pizza has always been the Montreal-style all-dressed pizza (see recipe here) with pepperoni sausage, green peppers, mushrooms, mozzarella and an especially vibrant pizza sauce (see recipe here) but I must say that one of the best versions of this pizza we would enjoy was always in Cornwall (1 hour away from Montreal) when we visited my wonderful godparents (George & Anna) and would drop by their restaurant, at the end of the day, to enjoy an extra-large all-dressed pizza. It was still a Montreal-style pizza but far away from home and enjoying that pizza there, after spending time with our godparents, as well as uncles and aunts and all their kids, was a part of that short road trip experience that we loved and remember fondly. They were and remain happy childhood moments.
The funny thing is, once I figured how to make that pizza at home in Paris, I perhaps started making it too often, for us as well as our guests, who loved it too and requested it again and again. Sometimes every weekend, every 2 weekends, once a month and so on. It was just as good each time but it’s important to miss things too and enjoy them less often. Perhaps this is why that pizza in Cornwall seemed so special and memorable, because it was only once or twice per year, as opposed to having it in Montreal regularly and more often.
All of this, just to say that I do have several pizza recipes. Another favorite is the summery beefsteak tomato and mozzarella pizza (see recipe here) that I only make once or twice per year in the height of the summer and others too, but another new favorite pizza is this one right here and it took a few trials to get the flavor balances just right.
The pizza dough is the same as usual (see recipe here) but adding some (about ⅓ of the total) wholewheat flour in the mixture makes it even better, the pizza tomato sauce is the same too, of which I always have a reserve of 3-5 jars but to which I add an extra amount of sweet and smoked paprika or pimenton. The cheeses are three in number, still mostly mozzarella, but with manchego cheese too and a hint of grated parmesan. The chorizo sausage replaces the pepperoni and is, by far, my favorite cured sausage because it compares to nothing else (which by the way, exists in poultry version but it’s not the same but can be a replacement). And of course, the red onions and the red peppers both play an important role and are both partly baked in the oven before adding them to the pizza, so you don’t end up with a soupy pizza because home ovens are never hot enough to bake the pizza quickly enough while evaporating any extra liquids efficiently, but they’re not in equal parts. After several trials, I realized that ½ red onions and ½ red peppers was not as tasty and well balanced as ⅔ onions and ⅓ peppers. Trust me on this. And then it’s all topped with some fresh herbs like parsley and coriander leaves and sprinkled with some chili pepper seeds, if you can handle the extra heat.
It’s definitely a thin-crust pizza with the flavors of both Spain and Portugal and what an Iberian delight it is indeed ! … :)
