Wednesday 5 November 2014

Pizza Romano

I love Paris. It has to be one of my favourite cities and a place where N and I go back to again and again. It's just so easy. Hop on a train from St Pancras and a few hours later you're in one of the most beautiful cities in world. A decade ago the thought of going back to a place time and again sounded so boring but as I've got older I relish the familiarity. Once you've found a great hotel, wonderful sights to see and exquisite restaurants serving delicious food why would you not want to go back? The other advantage with revisiting great cities is that you've already seen all the sights, so you can pick and choose what you go back to. The first time N and I visited Paris together was the middle of winter. We dressed up in coats and hats and boots and gloves and set out first thing in the morning to see the sights of Paris. We walked all day. By the time we got to dinner at 9pm I was exhausted and before my salmon main course arrived I was nodding off at the table!

So now when we go to Paris we take things at a slower pace.  We amble around the streets near the delightful boutique hotel we stay at in the 9th arrondissement. We venture out and see a sight per day, my favourite being the beautiful gardens of the Musee de Rodin. And in fact sometimes we don't even see a whole sight. I mean who could imagine covering the whole of the Louvre in a day! But the most wonderful part is that we visit the same restaurants and often order the same dishes each time we go. They're not fancy restaurants. Just good honest food and great service. And in fact one of those isn't even French. We found a great pizza place just round the corner from our hotel. Pizza Romano. I can still taste the thin, slightly crispy base, drenched in garlic oil, fresh chillies, sweet vine ripened tomatoes, sprinkled with fresh peppery rocket and covered in salty Parma ham. In the absence of another trip to Paris I've had to recreate it at home. It's pretty amazing but not quite Pizza Romano. N pack your bags we're going to Paris! 

Pizza Romano 
(Serves 2 | total prep and cooking time 25-30 mins + 1 hour if you make the dough in a bread machine) 


Ingredients
- Ingredients for pizza base or ready-made pizza base
- 2-3 tomatoes - sliced
- 3 garlic cloves - finely chopped or crushed 
- Black olives - finely sliced
- Spring onions - sliced
- Chilli oil
- Rocket leaves
- Pack of Parma ham 
- Black pepper 

Method
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees fan
- Make the dough as per the bread machine instructions and roll on a floured surface
- If using the ready made bases remove from package and place on a surface
- Sprinke on the garlic cloves and drizzle with chilli oil
- Spread evenly the olives, spring onions and sliced tomatoes onto the base
- Sprinkle with cracked black pepper and top with rocket leaves
- Place in the oven for 12 minutes or until the base is cooked
- Remove from the oven and top with Parma ham slices 
- Return to the oven for 5 minutes
- Drizzle with more chilli or or plain olive oil 
- Slice and serve 

1 comment:

  1. Hmm. This looks good. I quite often buy pizza dough in a tin (available here in the refrigerrated section) which is very good and VERY easy. I top it with some passata, whole cloves of garlic, good mozzarella and a good bit of parmesan (naturally!) and then, once it's all cooked and the cheese is melted, add fresh basil, olive oil and some ground pepper. I must try your version with the rocket and ham. I am currently growing some rocket on my balcony so in a few weeks, I should have both that and basil available outside my window. Only two pathetic tomatoes on my three tomato plants, though, but I live in hope!

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