I love pizza, it is as simple as that. Now that the weather is warming up and the BBQ is going, I can find a reason to include pizza with almost every meal. It makes a great side dish to many BBQ menus. I have so many different types of pizza’s I like to make in the summer, thin crust, think crust, margarita, veggies, potato and garlic – the possibilities are endless. As we move through the spring and summer, you will see pizza pop up in my posts more often. One of my favorites is Cherry tomato pizza. I like this recipe because you need to prepare the pizza in a slightly different way. Instead of the traditional, roll the dough and place all the ingredients on it, you actually prepare your ingredients on a baking sheet and place the dough on top so, essentially you are cooking the pizza upside down. It is a great pizza that I am sure you will enjoy!

Here is what you will need:

For The Topping

• 1-2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 quart cherry or grape tomatoes
• 2 garlic clove, pressed
• 1/2 an onion diced
• 1 package of diced pancetta
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
• Diced bocconcini
• Fresh thyme and oregano
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil leaves plus small leaves for garnish

For The Pizza Dough

• 1 cup (250 ml) warm water
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) instant yeast
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) sugar
• 2 cups (500 ml) all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) salt

How To Make The Pizza:

For The Topping

• In a frying pan over medium-low, heat the olive oil.
• Add the onion and pancetta, cook for a couple of minutes before adding in the garlic.
• Add the white wine, herbs and chili flakes and cook for a few minutes until the alcohol has cooked off and a nice sauce has formed.
• Take off the heat and stir in the cherry tomatoes.
• Place tomato mixture on a non stick rimmed backing sheet and set aside.

For The Dough
This pizza dough recipe is really simple and only takes a few minutes to prepare. I make mine in the food processor, but it is not essential. If you don’t have a food processor, you can use an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook or you can make the dough by hand by making a well in the flour and salt and pour the liquids to the center. Work with your fingers gradually adding dry ingredients to the liquids until it forms a soft dough.

•  In a bowl, combine the water, yeast and sugar. Let stand until the mixture foams approx. 5 minutes.
• In a food processor, fitted with the plastic blade, combine the flour and salt. With the machine turned on low add the yeast mixture until a soft ball forms.
• Remove the dough from the bowl and knead for a few minutes on a floured surface to prevent sticking.
• Place in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a clean cloth or plastic wrap.
• Let the dough rise in a warm place draft free place for at least 30 minutes.
• Cut the dough in half and freeze one half for another day or you can use both.
• Once the dough has risen, on a lightly floured surface roll the dough to the shape of the rimmed baking sheet.
• Place dough over rimmed baking sheet and cover the tomato and pancetta toppings with the dough.

• Place dough in a preheated 425° oven and bake for 20 minutes.
• Let cook for 5 minutes and turn pizza out on a cutting board.
• Cut into squares and serve.

I hope this recipe inspires you to be creative in your kitchen – enjoy!