Η συνταγή και στα ελληνικά στο τέλος της ανάρτησης!
I have a confession to make; I love, love pizza. I could eat this thing almost every day in several variations of shape and materials. I believe pizza is one of the most versatile meals in the international kitchen, in the sense that it has a bread base on which you can add anything your heart desires without any problem.
Modern type of Pizza comes from Italy and more specifically from Napoli. What you don’t know is that the word pizza comes from the Latin verb pinsere, which means to press and from the Greek word pektos, which means solid and is Greek in origin.
In ancient Greece, people made bread and covered it with herbs and cheese. They also poured oils on top of these. Later in Byzantine period the word transformed to become pita which means pie. Although pizza is an Italian “naturalized citizen” in everyone’s mind, truth is that all Mediterranean people have in their local kitchens different types of ‘pizzas’ according to their customs and local products. This is because of the strong bonds created among the different civilizations around the Mediterranean Sea during the ancient years.
In modern Greece, in Kimolos a Greek island in Aegean Sea, they make a pizza style dish called Ladenia which is close to what we know today as pizza. It is made with a dough crust and topped with tomatoes, onions and olive oil.
I was craving for some pizza lately. Because of the diet program I follow, I do not have the chance to taste my beloved dish as much I want it. But this Sunday I decided to make one according to my liking and add on top of the crust all these ingredients I so much enjoy in a good Greek salad. I made the crust from the previous day and I stored it in the fridge. So, Sunday morning I started chopping and baking.
A couple of months ago, I visited an exhibition of Greek products in downtown Athens and I received some beautiful gifts from Mr. Baxevanis, owner of Selesia. It is a company that sells traditional Greek products such as olives, olive oil, honey etc. You can check their site at www.selesiagreen.gr. Among other things I got a vase with olives in olive oil aromatized with garlic. With this pizza, I found the perfect opportunity to use these deliciously flavored olives. It was a pure dream. I can tell you one thing, it was the first time in my blogging history, that I rushed to take the pictures so as to sit down and enjoy my slices, so please be linear with my photos. Usually, it is my husband and son who make me anxious to finish my shooting, but this time it was my angry self who was chasing me haha! I am not going to tell you how many pieces I ate, that ashamed I feel. Take a guess!
Greek Style Pizza
Ingredients
For the Crust
241 gr. / 1 cup sourdough starter, unfed straight from the fridge
113 gr. / ½ cup hot tap water
298 gr. / 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
½ tsp instant yeast
½ tsp dried oregano
½ tsp dried basil
½ tsp onion powder
½ tsp garlic powder
For the Topping
4 tomatoes, chopped and seeds removed
½ tsp dried oregano
½ tsp dried basil
½ tsp dried thyme
½ tsp sugar
½ to 1 onion, sliced thinly
2 peppers, sliced
20 olives, pitted
2 tsp sugar
½ tsp oregano
270 gr. / 9.5 oz. feta cheese (you can increase to 300 gr / 10 oz.), cut in small cubes
Olive oil
Instructions
For the Crust
I made the crust the previous day as follows:
Put all the ingredients for the crust in the mixer bowl and mix with the hook for 7 minutes.
After this time a soft somewhat elastic and slightly sticky ball will be gathered around the hook.
You can either place it in an oiled glass bowl in the fridge overnight or you can let it rise for several hours until it doubles its volume at room temperature. The choice is yours.
For the Topping
Preheat oven to 200° C / 400° F.
One to two hours before making the topping, take the dough out of the fridge to arrive at room temperature.
In a small pot add the tomato pieces, the ½ tsp of dried oregano, thyme, basil and sugar.
Drizzle some olive oil and let them boil at medium temperature for about five minutes.
Remove and drain them in the strainer.
Take a pan rectangular or cyclical and cover it with parchment paper.
I made my pizza in a rectangular mode and it had dimensions about 50cm. / 20 in. X 30cm. / 11 in.
I like my crust thin so I tried to extend the dough as much as I could.
If you like your dough thick, then make it smaller.
Scatter the chopped, drained tomatoes and the onions.
Add the feta cheese, the ½ tsp of dried oregano and throw the peppers and olives.
Drizzle with olive oil and bake in a preheated oven for about 20 minutes or until the crust is golden and the toppings have melted.
Remove from the oven let it cool for 5 minutes and serve.
- 241 gr. / 1 cup sourdough starter, unfed straight from the fridge
- 113 gr. / ½ cup hot tap water
- 298 gr. / 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp instant yeast
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp dried basil
- ½ tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 4 tomatoes, chopped and seeds removed
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp dried basil
- ½ tsp dried thyme
- ½ tsp sugar
- ½ to 1 onion, sliced thinly
- 2 peppers, sliced
- 20 olives, pitted
- 2 tsp sugar
- ½ tsp oregano
- 270 gr. / 9.5 oz. feta cheese (you can increase to 300 gr / 10 oz.), cut in small cubes
- Olive oil
- I made the crust the previous day as follows:
- Put all the ingredients for the crust in the mixer bowl and mix with the hook for 7 minutes.
- After this time a soft somewhat elastic and slightly sticky ball will be gathered around the hook.
- You can either place it in an oiled glass bowl in the fridge overnight or you can let it rise for several hours until it doubles its volume at room temperature. The choice is yours.
- Preheat oven to 200° C / 400° F.
- One to two hours before making the topping, take the dough out of the fridge to arrive at room temperature.
- In a small pot add the tomato pieces, the ½ tsp of dried oregano, thyme, basil and sugar.
- Drizzle some olive oil and let them boil at medium temperature for about five minutes.
- Remove and drain them in the strainer.
- Take a pan rectangular or cyclical and cover it with parchment paper.
- I made my pizza in a rectangular mode and it had dimensions about 50cm. / 20 in. X 30cm. / 11 in.
- I like my crust thin so I tried to extend the dough as much as I could.
- If you like your dough thick, then make it smaller.
- Scatter the chopped, drained tomatoes and the onions.
- Add the feta cheese, the ½ tsp of dried oregano and throw the peppers and olives.
- Drizzle with olive oil and bake in a preheated oven for about 20 minutes or until the crust is golden and the toppings have melted.
- Remove from the oven let it cool for 5 minutes and serve.
- 241 γρ. προζύμι κατευθείαν από το ψυγείο
- 113 γρ. ζεστό νερό της βρύσης
- 298 γρ. αλεύρι για όλες τις χρήσεις
- 1 κ.γ. αλάτι
- ½ κ.γ. μαγιά
- ½ κ.γ. ρίγανη
- ½ κ.γ. ξηρό βασιλικό
- ½ κ.γ. κρεμμύδι σε σκόνη
- ½ κ.γ. σκόνη σκόρδου
- 4 ντομάτες, ψιλοκομμένες χωρίς τους σπόρους
- ½ κ.γ. ρίγανη
- ½ κ.γ. ξερό βασιλικό
- ½ κ.γ. ξερό θυμάρι
- ½ κ.γ. ζάχαρη
- ½ έως 1 κρεμμύδι, ψιλοκομμένο
- 2 πιπεριές, κομμένες σε φέτες
- 20 ελιές, χωρίς κουκούτσι
- 2 κ.γ. ζάχαρη
- ½ κ.γ. ρίγανη
- 270 γρ. τυρί φέτα, κομμένη σε κυβάκια (εγώ χρησιμοποίησα την πολύ μαλακή σαν βούτυρο η οποία έλιωσε πολύ όμορφα και απλώθηκε σε όλη την πίτσα)
- Ελαιόλαδο
- Έκανα τη βάση από την προηγούμενη ημέρα ως εξής:
- Βάλτε όλα τα υλικά για τη βάση στο μπωλ του μίξερ και ανακατέψτε με το γάντζο για 7 λεπτά.
- Μετά από αυτό το χρόνο μια μαλακή μπάλα κάπως ελαστική και ελαφρώς κολλώδης θα συγκεντρωθεί γύρω από το γάτζο.
- Μπορείτε να την τοποθετήσετε είτε σε ένα λαδωμένο γυάλινο μπολ στο για την επομένη, ή μπορείτε να την αφήσετε να φουσκώσει για αρκετές ώρες μέχρι να διπλασιαστεί όγκο σε θερμοκρασία δωματίου. Η επιλογή είναι δική σας.
- Προθερμένετε το φούρνο στους 200° C.
- Μία ώρα με δύο ώρες πριν από το ψήσιμο, βγάλτε τη ζύμη από το ψυγείο, να φτάσει σε θερμοκρασία δωματίου.
- Σε μια μικρή κατσαρόλα, ρίξτε τα κομμάτια της ντομάτας, το ½ κουταλάκι της ρίγανης, το θυμάρι, το βασιλικό και τη ζάχαρη.
- Ρίξτε λίγο ελαιόλαδο και αφήστε να βράσουν σε μέτρια θερμοκρασία, για περίπου πέντε λεπτά.
- Βγάλτε από τη φωτιά και στραγγίστε σε σουρωτήρι.
- Πάρτε ένα ταψί ορθογώνιο ή κυκλικό και καλύψτε το με χαρτί ψησίματος.
- Έκανα την πίτσα μου ορθογώνια και είχε διαστάσεις περίπου 50 cm.X 30 cm.
- Μου αρέσει η ζύμη να είναι λεπτή και έτσι άνοιξα τη ζύμη, όσο περισσότερο μπορούσα.
- Αν σας αρέσει η παχιά ζύμη, κάντε τη πιο μικρή σε διαστάσεις.
- Ρίξτε από πάνω τις ντομάτες και τα κρεμμύδια.
- Προσθέστε τη φέτα, το ½ κουταλάκι ρίγανη, τις πιπεριές και τις ελιές.
- Ρίξτε λίγο ελαιόλαδο και ψήστε σε προθερμασμένο φούρνο για περίπου 20 λεπτά ή έως ότου η ζύμη πάρει ένα σκούρο χρυσό χρώμα και τα υλικά από πάνω έχουν ενσωματωθεί.
- Βγάλτε από το φούρνο αφήστε τη να κρυώσει για 5 λεπτά και σερβίρετε.
