Ive hidden it from you guys for a whole year. Journey is potentially one of my favorite guilty pleasures. Perhaps I’m not even feeling guilty about it. Here’s why I love Journey: I love pure emotion in songs, I love ballads and there is an energy in 80’s music that I just don’t feel the same way in other decades. I love songs that you can belt and karaoke to and that you want to sing at the top of your lungs anytime they come on the radio, vinyl, in stores etc. Journey fits this bill.
Walkin’ and talkin’ and laughin’ about
Dreamin’ the things that you want will work out
People and places where you wanna be
I’m lost in the city, who’s got the key?
Whats not to love? It is with pride that I share with you I once asked a live musician to play some Journey. He challenged me and asked me to name five of their songs. Ill let you guess how that ended.
So on this One Year celebration of LPP, I chose an album I thoroughly enjoy and crafted a pizza around it. 99% of the time I usually choose the album after I’ve thought of the dish. Why the switch? Now that you’ve known me a year (and many of you more), I don’t have to hide.
So lets talk pizza. Have you heard of the olive theory? In short, its the idea that for any two partners, one loves olives and the other hates them. I will argue that much of the population falls into this camp when it comes to Journey. The Journey Theory if you will. So I decided to walk a fine line with love and hate for this post. You will most likely either love this album and band or a harbor a strong dislike and you will most likely find the exact same emotions possible for this Olive pizza. Which side(s) do you fall into?
Cavelstrano and Salami Pizza
Serves 2
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon of whole wheat flour
- 1/2 tsp of instant yeast
- 1/2 tsp of sugar
- 1/2 tsp of salt
- 1/3 cup of water at 70-90 degrees F
- 4 tsp of EVOO
- 1/2 cup of Umami Pizza sauce (from the Shiitake and Baby Kale Calzone post)
- 1/2 cup of fresh mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 20-30 Cavelstrano olives, pitted
- 10-12 slices of spicy salami
Instructions
- At least at hour before you plan to bake the pizza, mix the flour, yeast and sugar in a glass bowl. Whisk in the salt after (if the salt has direct contact with the yeast i.e. if it isn’t coated in flour, it will kill the yeast). Pour the water into the center of the bowl and stir until the dough starts to form. The dough will look a little rough, won’t be silky smooth. Caution with over mixing, it can make the dough too sticky.
- Pour the oil into a different glass bowl and place the dough it in. Using your fingers, turn the dough over a few times, coating it in the oil. Let rise for at least 60 minutes at room temperature. This is another dough that the flavor will develop nicely if you let it sit for at 24 hours but tasty regardless.
- Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F. If you have a baking stone, place it in the oven prior to preheating it. Another great option is to use a cookie sheet upside down. Place this in when you heat the oven.
- Let the dough rest for about 15 minutes. Using just your fingers, from the center outward press and stretch the dough to create a round 8-10 inches wide. Place the dough on a floured surface and let it sit for 15-20 minutes. If the dough shrank, using the same motion, expand it once again and place it back on the surface. Let the dough continue to rise until the oven is preheated.
- Top with the dough with sauce (using a spoon, spread evenly) and cheese. Place olives and salami on top in whatever pattern you desire, about 1 layer thick. Both will shrink more than you expect.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes until the cheese is browned in places and the dough is golden brown. Remember with the whole wheat dough, it will be slightly darker than a normal pizza.
- Let cool slightly, 2-4 minutes (the olives retain a lot of heat) and enjoy!