White pizza margherita

My blogger friend Amanda gave me this idea to make a #dirtypizzaparty to get all of our guilty pleasures on top of one base (or two. or three). This pizza party is transatlantic btw so i had this 12″ margherita to myself. She reiterated the pizza had to have your favourite, guilty food as a topping. And loads of it. Consequently cheese, which means the topping is pure cheese with a touch of cherry tomatoes.

Pizza for me is all about simplicity, the way to my heart is a thin crispy margherita, simple and crunchy. The base in my opinion can make or break a pizza.

This challenge by Amanda push me outside of my comfort zone because I rarely make bread and have never made a pizza base before. No, correction – I have attempted it before but ti doesn’t even bear thinking about it.

The shape on my white pizza base turned out very “rustic” but the texture was really amazing, when rolled to half an inch it bakes like heaven.

White pizza margherita (makes 2 12” pizzas)

for the base:

300g plain flour

7g dried active yeast

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp olive oil

200ml warm water

1. Mix the flour, yeast and salt. Make a well in the centre. Add the oil and water to the centre and start to stir the wet and dry ingredients with a fork. The dough will be wet and soft.

2. Dust a surface with flour ad knead for 5 minutes. cover and set it to one side. Move on to make the sauce

For the sauce:

500ml full fat milk

70g grated parmesan

30g cheddar

45g butter

1/2 tsp lemon juice

1 tbsp cornflour

2 small eggs

1 garlic clove

Black pepper to season

1. Beat all ingredients in a blender, take to hob stirring constantly until thickened

To assemble:

250g cherry tomatoes

Fresh basil

Grated cheddar

1. Preheat oven to 180c fan

2. Divide dough into two, at this point you can freeze one of the bases. Roll the pizza to about 1/2 inch of thickness, pour white sauce over with a spoon spreading it up to the edges. Top it with sliced cherry tomatoes. Finish with a generous serving of grated cheddar and a sprinkle of fresh basil. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the pizza base starts to become golden.

Check out #shittypizzaparty on Instagram to find more over the top pizza recipes.