Do you do that on Fridays? Friday Night Pizza Night? I have some friends who have made it a weekly thing. It’s something for the family to look forward to on Friday nights, and it can be fun to come up with some different varieties of pizza. It doesn’t have to be difficult either. You can certainly make your own pizza dough (it’s easy), but if you’re not into that then you can find balls of pizza dough at a lot of markets (check Trader Joe’s).
Tonight’s pizza was inspired by the beach and the last lazy days of summer. White pizza with clams and garlic and parmesan cheese may seem a little bit unusual for Italian-style pizza purists, but I insist that you must give it a shot. It’s delicious!
I made this for a cookout that we were sharing with some neighbors. There were a lot of kids at that cookout, and guess what? The kids all LOVED the pizza. I brought it as an appetizer, and they all completely gobbled it up. So I guess you can call it a kid-friendly kind of pizza too. It was nice to see that kids were totally willing to try it, and then to discover that they totally liked it too. I love kids like that! So what kind of pizza will you be making for Friday Night Pizza Night?? White Clam Pizza Yield: 1 pizza Prep Time: 25 min Cook Time: 17 min Print Recipe Ingredients: TOPPING: 2 tablespoons butter 1 large shallot, peeled and minced 1 large garlic clove, peeled and minced 1 cup chopped clams, drained 2 to 3 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley freshly ground black pepper cornmeal for dusting olive oil for brushing 1/3 cup grated fresh Parmesan 1 pizza dough ball (store bought or your favorite recipe) Instructions: 1. Place your oven rack on the bottom rack, and preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. 2. Prepare the topping: In a medium skillet, melt the butter over medium-heat. Add the shallots and saute for 4 to 5 minutes, until softened. Stir in the garlic and saute for another minute. Turn off the heat and stir in the clams and parsley. Let cool. 2. Roll out pizza dough into a circle. Move to a cornmeal-dusted baking sheet or pizza stone. Brush with olive oil and give it a few pricks with a fork. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, just until the pizza begins to get golden brown (how quickly it browns will be based on how thin you rolled the dough). You really want to check the middle and make sure that is somewhat baked through…because there is nothing worse than soggy, uncooked dough in the middle of a pizza! Pull out the pizza dough and set it on the heat-resistant surface. Use a slotted spoon to add the clam mixture to the top of the partially-baked pizza and spread evenly around almost to the edges. Sprinkle on the Parmesan cheese, and finish it off with a few grinds of pepper. Return to the oven to bake for an additional 7 to 8 minutes, or until the pizza is sufficiently golden on the edges and the dough is cooked through. Remove from the oven, let sit for a few minutes, then slice and serve. SOURCE: RecipeGirl.com 1 pizza dough ball (store bought or your favorite recipe) 2. Prepare the topping: In a medium skillet, melt the butter over medium-heat. Add the shallots and saute for 4 to 5 minutes, until softened. Stir in the garlic and saute for another minute. Turn off the heat and stir in the clams and parsley. Let cool. 2. Roll out pizza dough into a circle. Move to a cornmeal-dusted baking sheet or pizza stone. Brush with olive oil and give it a few pricks with a fork. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, just until the pizza begins to get golden brown (how quickly it browns will be based on how thin you rolled the dough). You really want to check the middle and make sure that is somewhat baked through…because there is nothing worse than soggy, uncooked dough in the middle of a pizza! Pull out the pizza dough and set it on the heat-resistant surface. Use a slotted spoon to add the clam mixture to the top of the partially-baked pizza and spread evenly around almost to the edges. Sprinkle on the Parmesan cheese, and finish it off with a few grinds of pepper. Return to the oven to bake for an additional 7 to 8 minutes, or until the pizza is sufficiently golden on the edges and the dough is cooked through. Remove from the oven, let sit for a few minutes, then slice and serve.
