Oct 27, 2021

Spooky Pizza

This spooky pizza recipe is perfect for a Halloween-themed dinner.

Adorned with mozzarella ghosts and black olive spiders, this spooky pizza makes a wonderful dinner on Halloween before sending the little ones out trick or treating. It also makes a great 'spookified' main dish for holiday parties.

The base is a nice crispy thin crust with my homemade tomato pizza sauce. To get the crispiest crust, I highly recommend picking up a pizza stone. A decent pizza stone is not expensive and will last many years if treated properly. If going the pizza stone route, a pizza peel is also needed to transfer pizzas to and from the stone. Try to pick a sturdy pizza peel with a folding handle for better storage.

Ingredients

(Makes 6 servings, or 2, 12-inch pizzas | Serving size = 2 slices)

crust:

1 cup warm water (~105°F / 40°C)
1/2 an envelope active dry yeast
1/4 teaspoon monk fruit sweetener (or granulated sugar)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups 00 flour + additional as needed
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

toppings:

1, 14oz can San Marzano tomatoes, whole, drained
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
12 slices mozzarella cheese
24 slices pepperoni
16 large black olives
1 cup cheddar, grated

Directions

In a large mixing bowl add 1/2 cup of warm water, sugar, and the yeast. Mix and let stand for about 5 minutes until the surface starts to become foamy. Add the remaining water along with the salt, then begin mixing in the flour. As the dough forms begin mixing it with your hands until all the flour is incorporated. Sprinkle a flat work surface with flour and turn out the dough. Knead the dough, adding flour as required until it becomes soft and silky. Use a pastry scraper to help form the dough into a smooth ball.

Add the olive oil to the mixing bowl and coat the bottom and sides. Transfer the ball of dough into the oiled bowl and turn it over a few times to spread the oil across the surface of the dough. Cover the bowl with clingwrap and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight.

Prepare a sheet pan by lightly oiling the surface, then set aside.

Punch down the dough then split it into two equal pieces. Form each half into a ball, coat with a little olive oil, and set them on the sheet pan. Drape a piece of clingwrap over the balls and set aside in a warm spot to rise for an additional hour.

If using a pizza stone, begin preheating it as per manufacturer's instructions. Typically, in a 500°F / 260°C oven for 30 to 45 minutes. Otherwise, if using pizza pans, or sheet pans, preheat the oven to 450°F / 230°C and lightly flour each pan to prevent the dough from sticking.

To make the pizza sauce, add the San Marzano tomatoes to a food processor and pulse several times to help break them down. Add the olive oil and spices then blend until smooth. Prepare the rest of the toppings and set aside.

Taking each ball of dough, stretch them out on a floured surface until they reach about 12-inches in diameter. Transfer to the pizza pans (or to a floured pizza peel if using a pizza stone) and spread each round of dough with a layer of the tomato sauce leaving about 3/4 of an inch from the outer edge sauce-free.

Add 12 slices of pepperoni to each pizza, spreading them evenly around in a single layer. Sprinkle each pizza with half the grated cheddar. Cut the mozzarella slices into ghost shapes distributing 6 onto each pizza, positioned so that each slice will get one ghost when cut. Position 4 whole olives on each pizza. Slice the remaining olives into rounds and the cut the rounds in half. Reserve several half-round slices of olive and use the remaining to create legs on the spiders. Chop up the reserved olive slices into small bits and use as eyes and mouths on the mozzarella ghosts.

Bake until the cheese is melted, the pepperoni and olives are cooked, and the edges of the dough are golden brown (about 15 minutes).

Remove from the oven and cut each pizza into 6 slices and serve.

Nutritional Information Per Serving: