Margarita Pizza

Ingredients

• 8  basil (see Note, following)
• 8 ounces mozzarella fresh drained cut into 6 chunks (not slices)
• 2 servings olive oil extra virgin extra-virgin for drizzling
• 0.3 cup pecorino cheese grated
• 1 ball pizza dough 
• 2 servings pepper black freshly ground
• 1 tablespoon semolina flour for the pizza paddle
• 0.5 cup tomato sauce 

Equipment

• frying pan
• oven
• pizza pan
• baking pan
• grill
• spatula
• tongs
• cutting board

Directions

1. Preheat the grill on high heat.
2. Dust a counter with the 2 tablespoons flour. Stretch the dough by rotating on your knuckles into a 12- to 13-inch diameter round.
3. Sprinkle the semolina on a wooden pizza paddle or on the back of a baking pan large enough to hold the dough round. Set the dough on the semolina.
4. Brush the top of the dough with the olive oil.
5. Slide the pizza onto the hot grill and cook until grill marks appear and the dough is set, about 2 minutes. Carefully flip the dough over with a large spatula or tongs or your hands; brush the top with olive oil, and cook until the dough is firm but not completely cooked and grill marks appear, another 3 to 4 minutes. Slip the pizza paddle under the crust and remove from the grill. Set a large cast-iron griddle on the grill to heat or place a pizza pan in the oven and preheat to 500°F.
6. To build the pizza, spread the tomato sauce over the partially cooked crust. Distribute the mozzarella over the pizza and sprinkle on the pecorino romano. Season with salt and pepper.
7. Slip the pizza off the paddle onto the griddle on the grill or onto the pizza pan in the oven and bake until bubbly, 15 to 20 minutes.
8. Remove and set the pizza on a cutting board. Scatter on whole or snipped basil leaves and drizzle with the extra-virgin olive oil.
9. Cut into 6 to 8 wedges and serve.
10. Note: Genovese basil is the most common variety in our grocery stores. As alternatives, look for these other basil varieties (or grow them yourself) that are favorites of mine: Greek basil has very small leaves and little bursts of concentrated basil flavor; opal basil has purple leaves that look gorgeous on pizza, with more licorice notes; lemon basil blends the flavor of basil with lemon balm in a very delicious way.
11. Reprinted with permission from Cooking off the Clock: Recipes from My Downtime by Elizabeth Falkner, copyright © 201
12. Published by Ten Speed Press, a division of Random House, Inc.Elizabeth Falkner is the founding chef and owner of Citizen Cake and Orson in San Francisco and is currently opening a new restaurant in Brooklyn, NY. She was a finalist and runner-up on The Next Iron Chef in 2011, competed on Top Chef Masters and has judged Top Chef Masters and Top Chef. Elizabeth was Bon Appétit's pastry chef of the year in 200
13. Her first book, Demolition Desserts, was published in 2007.