A Neapolitan Style Pizza with Fresh Buffalo Mozzarella and San Marzano tomatoes.
Stretch the Margherita Pizza Dough
A true margherita pizza must be made on an authentic Neapolitan pizza dough. See the dough recipes on this website for making a truly wonderful Neapolitan style pizza dough (see links below). There are two separate recipes, one for a wood-fired pizza oven and one for a conventional oven. If you are baking this on a pizza stone in a conventional oven, then pre-bake the pizza dough, after it has been shaped, for two to three minutes.
Flatten the dough ball by pressing down with your fingertips in the center working out towards the edges. When the disc is about 8″ in diameter, hold it vertically and gently stretch the edge of the crust until the dough forms a disc about 12″ in diameter. Sprinkle some coarse semolina flour on a wood pizza peel and place the stretched dough onto the peel. The coarse flour acts like little ball bearings that help the pizza slide right into the oven without sticking.
Make the Sauce
Add the San Marzano tomatoes and juices to a blender with fine sea salt. Pulse the blender several times until the tomatoes break up and form a purée. Brush the prepared pizza dough extra virgin olive oil making sure to coat edge to edge.
Spread a scant 1/4 of the sauce on top of the olive oil to within 3/4″ of the edge.
Sprinkle the Parmesan or Pecorino Romano on top of the sauce then add sliced Buffalo Mozzarella on top.
Cook the Margherita Pizza
Bake for 90 seconds or so in a 900 degree wood-fired pizza oven, turning every 20 seconds. If using a conventional oven, cook the pizza on a pre-heated pizza stone (for about 6 – 9 minutes). There is no need to turn the pizza in a conventional oven. Remove when the cheese has melted and the crust is golden brown.
Add the Basil to Finish the Margherita Pizza
Basil does not handle heat very well and will wilt and turn brown if added to the pizza before cooking. My preference is to have fresh, green basil on my pizza. Let the pizza cool for a moment after taking it out of the oven, then add the basil. For a special treat, drizzle a teaspoon of white truffle oil over the entire margherita pizza before serving.
More Great Pizza Recipes
- Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza in a Wood-Fired Oven
- Mushroom and Goat Cheese Pizza with Fresh Basil
- Wood-Fired Oven Pepperoni Pizza
- Overnight Pizza Dough for a Conventional Oven
- Overnight Pizza Dough for a Wood-Fired Oven
Watch How to Make Margherita Pizza on YouTube
Margherita Pizza with Buffalo Mozzarella
Equipment
- Pizza stone or Pizza oven
Ingredients
- 3 balls pizza dough
- 28 oz tomatoes Whole San Marzano
- 1.5 tsp fine sea salt
- 8 oz Buffalo Mozzarella Fresh. Sliced 1/4" thick. A wire cheese slicer works wells.
- 1 tbsp Parmesan or Pecorino Romano grated
- 12 leaves basil fresh
- 1 tsp white truffle oil optional
Instructions
- See separate recipe for making the pizza dough. If you are baking this on a pizza stone in a conventional oven, then pre-bake the pizza dough, after it has been shaped, for two to three minutes. Flatten the dough ball by pressing down with your fingertips in the center working out towards the edges. When the disc is about 8" in diameter, hold it vertically and gently stretch the edge of the crust until the dough forms a disc about 12" in diameter. Sprinkle some coarse semolina flour on a wood pizza peel and place the stretched dough onto the peel. The coarse flour acts like little ball bearings that help the pizza slide right into the oven without sticking.
- Add the San Marzano tomatoes and juices to a blender with fine sea salt. Pulse several times until the tomatoes break up and form a purée. Brush the prepared pizza dough extra virgin olive oil making sure to coat the dough edge to edge. Spread a scant 1/4 of the sauce on top of the olive oil to within 3/4" of the edge.
- Sprinkle the Parmesan or Pecorino Romano on top of the sauce. Spread the Buffalo Mozzarella on top.
- Bake for 90 seconds or so in a 900 degree wood-fired pizza oven, turning every 20 seconds. If using a conventional oven, cook the pizza on a pre-heated pizza stone (for about 6 – 9 minutes). There is no need to turn the pizza in a conventional oven. Remove when the cheese has melted and the crust is golden brown.
- Let the pizza rest a few minutes to setup. Then add the fresh basil leaves and slice.