Olive Tapenade Panini and Sun Dried Tomato Pesto Pizza

Olive Tapenade Panini

Adapted from Patio Pizzeria by Jareb Adler & Judith Fertig

1 8oz loaf French bread

4T rosemary olive oil, divided

4T olive tapenade

1 medium tomato, thinly sliced

6 slices provolone cheese

Preheat a grill pan over medium high heat.  Cut the loaf in half  the long way.  Brush each inside with a tablespoon of olive oil.  Place the halves oiled side down on the preheated grill pan.  Place a panini press (or large heavy object wrapped in aluminum foil) on top of the bread.  Let toast for about 5 minutes or until grill marks appear.  Spread each half with 2 tablespoons of the olive tapenade.  On the bottom half, arrange three slices of cheese over the tapenade.  Arrange the tomatoes over the cheese.  Arrange the remaining 3 slices of cheese over the tomatoes and top with the other half of the bread.  Heat the remaining two tablespoons of olive oil in the grill pan.  Place the assembled sandwich in the pan and smash it with the press.  Cook sandwich for 5-10 minutes per side or until grill marks form on the outside of the bread and the cheese has melted.

     We cut the sandwich into 6 pieces, so we each got a small piece.  It far exceeded my expectations for a vegetarian dish.  The sharp tang of the tapenade was tamed by the provolone (I used mild, because that is all I could find at Cub).  The tomatoes provided a little bit of juiciness and added a little sweetness to the whole thing.  This was a very simple, but completely delicious sandwich!

Sun Dried Tomato Pesto Pizza
Adapted from The Haeger NaturalStone Pizza Cookbook

Dough:

3-1/3 + 1/2 cups bread flour

2-1/2t active dry yeast

1T brown sugar

1T fine sea salt

10oz warm water

2T olive oil

1/2 cup sundried tomatoes in oil

1/2 cup baby arugula

1/2 cup baby spinach

4 ounces fresh mozzarella

4 ounces smoked fresh mozzarella

2 ounces Pecarino

2 ounces pancetta

Dough:  Place the flour in the bowl of a large stand mixer fitted with the dough hook.  Combine the yeast, brown sugar, and salt with the flour.  With the mixer running, add the water and olive oil. Beat at a medium speed until the dough begins to cling to the hook.  Remove the dough and knead until it becomes smooth and elastic (you may need to add a little flour to keep it from sticking to your hand or the counter).  Spray the mixer bowl with cooking spray and place the dough ball back into it.  Lightly oil the top of the dough ball and cover it with plastic wrap.  Let it rise in a warm place for 1-1/2 hours or until doubled in size.  Punch the dough down and divide it into two equal sized balls.  Wrap one up and freeze for later or use for another recipe.  Allow the remaining ball to rest for about ten minutes.  On a cornmeal dusted pizza peel or board, roll the dough out to a 15 inch circle.  

The rest of the story:  

     Place a pizza stone on the center rack of the oven.  Preheat the oven to 500 degrees Ferenheit for about a half hour.  Poke the dough all over with a fork.  Slide the dough onto the preheated stone.  Bake for about 5 minutes or until the dough becomes a little golden and starts to puff a little bit.  Remove the dough from the oven and set it aside until ready to assemble the pizza.

     Meanwhile, place the sun-dried tomatoes into the bowl of food processor.  Run the processor on high until the tomatoes form a smooth paste, adding some of the oil as needed to facilitate this process.

     Spread the sun-dried tomatoes over the par-baked crust.  Scatter half of each the arugula and spinach over the tomatoes.  Add the panetta. Break the two mozzarellas into small pieces and scatter over the arugala and spinach.  Season with salt and pepper.  Sprinkle the Pecarino over the top.  Slide the pizza back onto the stone and bake for about 10 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling and the edges of the crust start to brown.  Remove it from the oven and allow it to  stand for a minute or so.  Scatter the remaining arugula and spinach over the top.  Slice and serve.

       I didn't have high hopes for the "pesto" on this pizza - I mean, it's really just tomatoes and oil, right?  But it was a little sweet and a little zippy (must have been from the seasoning that was already in the tomato oil).  The slight bitterness of the arugula and spinach were a great contrast.  The earthy, smokiness, of the cheese rounded out the flavors, and the pancetta added a nice, fatty saltiness to the slice.