Cast Iron Pizza

Dear Turkey,

Since I don't have a brick oven in my backyard that was built by a famous French mason (not to mention, my yard is covered in snow for many months out of the year), I love cast iron pizza. Cast iron pans are amazing, you don't have to wash them, they go in the oven, and iron is good for you (I just read that cooking with cast iron is a good way for toddlers to get enough of it).

I've made cast iron pizza before, but I didn't go into much detail (I was distracted by the M&Ms).

First, I want to say that there is no reason that you can't make pizza dough right before you want to have pizza. Yeah, it tastes really sophisticated if it's been in your fridge for a week, but there is also a direct relationship between age and difficulty to work with.

Here is the dough recipe that I used, adapted from King Arthur Flour:

Ingredients:

3 c flour
1 c warm water
2 t yeast
2 t salt
1 T oil
1 T sugar

Directions:

If you are in a hurry, combine the water, sugar, yeast, and oil and stir. Let stand for a minute or two. Then add the flour and salt and knead with your hands until it comes together, and then for another minute or two. Let it rise for as long as you can for a warm place (or, if it's going to be all day or longer, in the fridge, covered). I just let it rest uncovered in a 100-degree oven for 20 minutes or so.

I split the dough in two and stretched it into two disks, which I placed in the bottom of two WELL oiled and salted cold cast iron pans.

Second, if your mom is a tomato-pusher, this is a great way to use up some of the stuff she won't stop giving you (especially if it isn't quite fresh enough for a salad anymore). I topped my pizzas with caramelized (or sautéed if you're in a hurry) onions, arugula, tomatoes, sundried tomatoes, basil, garlic, fresh mozzarella, and shredded parmesan.

Now for the fun part: heat both of the pans on the stove for 3-5 minutes, or until you are so sure they are going to burn that you can't stand it anymore. Then, CAREFULLY put them in a 400 degree oven for 10-20 minutes more, until everything on top is brown.

Enjoy.

- Tofu

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