Pizzas (Again):

I was watching a recent Wine Spectator Podcast about matching wine with pizza and realized we hadn't had a homemade pizza in a while. In fact, the last really great pizza we had was on our recent trip to Japan, where we had two really incredible pizza experiences. Most people might not think of Japan as a pizza mecca, but from my point of view they do an incredible job on pizzas with these incredibly thin crusts, pay careful attention to using only the best toppings, and never overload the pizzas. Add to that what seems to be an incredibly loose legal code where open flames are concerned, and you get a wood fired pizza oven in even the smallest local pizza joint. I don't have one of those, but it doesn't stop me from trying to make that crispy, thin crust pizza that I love so much. Anyway, we had a pizza lunch at a little place on a side street in Shibuya, and then my brother- and sister-in-law took us to a fantastic place called La Piccola Tavola in Eifukucho, which apparently has quite a reputation. Here is a Japanese blog posting about it with some pictures: http://blog.goo.ne.jp/fujisawamix/e/7c8c72916cb60f6c8edf9e6228a28217

Anyway, I am always trying to replicate that thin, crispy crust, and this time, I got closer than I ever have. One of the pizzas is something I would call a sausage carbonara pizza (it resembles a recipe for sausage carbonara pasta that I found in a Jamie Oliver cookbook, I think). Brush a liberal coating of olive oil onto your pizza crust and top with shredded asiago cheese. Next comes your sausage; I used hot Italian chicken sausage. If you have a pizza stone, heat it in the oven at 450 for 10 minutes or so, then slip the pizza in. About halfway through your cooking time (6 minutes for me), pour one scrambled egg over the pizza. When the crust is done to your liking, remove the pizza from the oven and top with some freshly cracked black pepper.

The second pizza I made was a pretty traditional Margherita. I brushed some olive oil onto the crust and topped with a thin layer of tomato sauce. I followed this with a little asiago cheese and some fresh, shredded mozzarella. When the pizza comes out of the oven, top with torn basil leaves and, if you like (I do), a torn up slice of prosciutto. Don't let the pizzas sit around too long, though, or all your hard work in rolling out a sublimely thin crust will be lost!

It was hot today, so I went with a chilled rose from Italy with these pizzas. The one I picked up was a Centine 2005 Rose, which is a blend of sangiovese, cabernet, and merlot (http://www.banfistore.com/product.php/catID/4/prodID/11). I found it a nice option for the price. It was crisp, stayed out of the way of the flavors on the pizzas, and has a relatively low 12.5% alcohol content, which makes it nice for hot summer nights when you might want to have more than...2 or 3...glasses...