Ciro Verde of Da Ciro restaurant in New York makes great thin, crispy-crust pizzas. One Saturday at i Trulli restaurant Ciro gave us a pizzamaking lesson. He told us how he had learned to make pizza in Naples and gave us pointers on how best to use a wood-burning oven and how to improve our technique. A highlight of this session was Ciro's recipe for this tasty pie stuffed with robiola cheese and drizzled with truffle oil, which he claims to have invented.
First, the dough is flattened with a rolling pin to elminate air pockets. Then the dough is pierced with a docker, an instrument that punctures the dough and helps to prevent it from puffing up too much in the oven. The flattened disk of dough is baked without any topping. When it is partially done, it is removed from the oven, split in half, and spread with cheese, then baked a second time until brown. Just before serving, the pie is drizzled with truffle oil. Since it is so rich, we like it best cut into wedges as an appetizer.
Robiola is creamy cow's milk cheese. Soft fresh goat cheese is a good substitute. If you don't have truffle oil, which is available at many gourmet shops, the pizza will taste great anyway.
Recipe information
Yield
Makes 1 pizza
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
About 30 minutes before baking the pizza, preheat the oven to 500° or 550°F.
Step 2
Place the cheese in a small bowl and add the garlic. (If using goat cheese, add a spoonful or two of cream or milk to make it spreadable.) Mash the cheese and garlic until blended.
Step 3
Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to an 8- to 9-inch circle. With a fork, pierce the dough all over the top. Dust a pizza peel or the back of a baking sheet with flour. Place the dough on the peel, shaking it once or twice to make sure it does not stick. If it does, lift the dough and dust the peel with more flour.
Step 4
When the dough is browned underneath and slightly puffed, remove it from the oven and place it on a cutting board. Protect one hand with an oven mitt while you split the dough into 2 layers with a serrated knife. Remove the top layer and spread the bottom with the cheese mixture. Replace the top and press it lightly. Slide the pizza back into the oven for 2 minutes more, or until the top is lightly browned.
Step 5
Remove the pizza from the oven and drizzle with truffle oil, if using. Cut and serve.
