Grilled Pizzettes with Whipped Ricotta and Roasted Radishes
So fresh. So good.
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On Saturday night, we had friends over for dinner, and it was the best. I hadn’t realized how much I missed sitting down with other people for a simple meal. Just a couple of friends, and we ate outside, but still. We had some chili I made with Rancho Gordo beans and country-style pork ribs. It was perfect for the rather chilly evening. I had frozen half a loaf of sourdough the week before; I revived it back to its fresh-baked state with a quick trip to a hot oven. And I roasted local asparagus right alongside the bread. My friend Kathryn and I gushed back and forth by text the next day about how lovely the evening was. It wasn’t just the food we were excited about; it was that we actually got to hang out without the fear that has accompanied every human interaction for the past year. I’m looking forward to more small gatherings and weekend guests as spring turns into summer.
Sharing good food is such a treat for the cook. It’s why we do it, right? Since you’re here, dear reader, I’m guessing we are on the same page about that. Today’s recipe is especially good for entertaining, because it looks impressive, tastes “delicious,” and is actually quite simple when you break down the steps.
You can make this easy on yourself by buying pizza dough, either fresh or frozen. But I hope I can persuade you to make the pizza dough yourself. It is so much better when you make it at home. Frozen doughs often fall flat, literally and figuratively, when you bake them. Homemade dough is simple to make; my recipe requires no kneading and can be made one hour ahead or up to two or even three days ahead. Most recipes for yeast-risen pizza doughs don’t tell you how flexible they are. By the way, in my book Open Kitchen I give Timing Tips which tell you exactly when you can prepare ahead, making it easier to fit the recipe into your schedule.
In the case of pizza dough, you can let it rise at room temperature for an hour or two and then bake it right away. OR if you are a planner, like me, you can make it, stash it in the fridge, and punch it down when you see that it has expanded greatly in size, and leave it to continue rising slowly in the cold. It will only gain flavor and texture during this long, cold rise. Like when I bake sourdough, instead of actually “punching it down” I pick up the pizza dough, give it a fold or two, and form it back into a neat ball to rise again. This adds some structure to the dough, plus it’s a fun move. If you’ve taken this get-ahead approach, the work of making these delightful pizzettes is greatly reduced!
If you’ve ever tried to make grilled pizza, you know it can be tricky. It takes some experience, courage, and deftness to get a soft piece of dough weighed down by toppings onto a hot grill successfully. And then it’s a challenge to get the dough baked through to the middle without the toppings being overcooked or undercooked. In this recipe the result is similar to grilled pizza. But since you’re topping it AFTER grilling, you just flop the dough onto the grill with your hands, move it around the fire, flip it to cook both sides, and thus ensuring that these beauties are evenly and thoroughly cooked. The resulting organic shapes only adds to their rustic charm. The whole thing is done in about six minutes. A gas grill works best for this, since you can control the heat. But if you are an experienced live fire griller, go for it. Just make sure the coals aren’t TOO hot, and that you have a cool spot for indirect grilling to cook the pizzettes through without burning them. You’ll be covering the grill to emulate an oven.
Once you’ve grilled the dough, it’s time to top them. I can't seem to get enough Spring-y things these days. It is the most exciting season, isn’t it? Especially after the last year, it’s a moment that feels so full of hope. That’s why I have chosen to top these little grilled pizzettes with whipped ricotta and roasted radishes. The radishes not only look super pretty with their pale pink hue, but their soft texture and mellow flavor is perfect atop the cloud of creamy ricotta (not really whipped so much as pureed until smooth) and under a shower of herbs. A drizzle of a green and slightly sharp oil is made with some of the radish greens finishes them off. That said, you can top these withwhatever you want. I highly recommend the whipped ricotta as a base though; it can be put on while the pizzettes are still warm without melting too much and sliding off. I also like topping them with dribbles of store-bought pesto and/or Calabrian chili paste, for a zero-prep version.
If you make a double batch of dough, you can grill both batches off at once and stash the extras in the freezer to be pulled out and reheated for last-minute nibbles for guests, using whatever you have on hand for toppings. No one will be the wiser. Your guests will be ecstatic, and you will be regarded as a kitchen goddess (or god).
Party on!
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Grilled Pizzette with Whipped Ricotta, Roasted Radishes, and Herbs
Click here for a printable version
Serves 6-8
There are a lot of moving parts to this recipe, but most of the work can be done ahead of time, and you can top the pizzette with whatever you want! No need to turn on the oven to roast the radishes. You can slice them thinly on a mandoline instead, or use any cooked or easy-to-eat raw vegetable, or even drizzle with Calabrian chili paste and/or pesto. If you buy the frozen pizza dough instead of making it, there’s very little work involved.
For the Dough:
¾ teaspoon active dry yeast
¾ cup warm water
½ teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
1¾ cups/224 g all-purpose flour or Italian “00” pizza flour
For the Roasted Radishes and Radish oil:
1 bunch French breakfast radishes, or other small radishes, with their greens
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for the radishes
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
For the Assembly:
1 cup (8 ounces) fresh ricotta
Zest of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon lemon juice
A handful of fresh soft herbs, like chervil, tarragon, chives, parsley
Flaky sea salt, to taste
In a large measuring cup, dissolve yeast in water. Stir in sugar and olive oil. Combine flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix briefly to combine and slowly pour in the yeast mixture on medium low speed until well-combined. Mix for about 5 minutes until smooth and stretchy. Scrape into an oiled bowl, and turn to coat the dough with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until doubled in size, 1-2 hours. Alternatively, refrigerate for up to two days, punching the dough down once a day to let it rise again.
Heat oven to 400°F. Trim the radishes, leaving about ½ inch of the stem attached, and reserving the greens. Halve lengthwise and toss the radishes with enough oil to coat, and season lightly with salt and pepper. Spread out on a baking sheet and roast, stirring once or twice, for 15 to 20 minutes until just starting to turn golden brown on the cut sides. Transfer to a small plate. Wash and spin dry about 1 cup of the greens and combine with ½ cup oil in a food processor until smooth. Add salt to taste. And transfer to a small bowl. Rinse out the food processor.
Process ricotta with lemon zest and juice in a food processor until smooth. Keep chilled until ready to use.
When dough is ready, heat one side of a gas grill to medium. If using a charcoal grill, make sure to leave a cool side of the grill. Use a folded sheet of paper towel soaked with oil and a pair of tongs to oil the grill grates.
Turn the dough onto a lightly oiled baking sheet and divide into two pieces using a bench scraper. Using oiled hands, stretch the dough into rounds or ovals and lightly oil them. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 10 minutes. Stretch a little larger as you transfer the pieces of dough to the oiled grill, and don’t worry about them landing in a wonky shape.
Cover grill, watch carefully, and turn flatbreads after 2 to 3 minutes. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes longer, until charred in places but not burnt. They may be done at this point; tear off a little corner to check. If needed, move to the cooler side or the upper rack of a gas grill, until cooked through, another 2 to 3 minutes.
Spread with ricotta, top with radishes, drizzle with the radish oil, sprinkle herbs and flaky salt, and serve immediately, cut into serving pieces.
Note: You can substitute 1 pound thawed, frozen pizza dough in place of the homemade dough.
Absolutely delicious. I made mine in the Ooni (no grill here) including the radishes and it turned out great! Wonderful summer meal. I did need to add a little more flour to the dough but otherwise followed exactly as written. Wonderful summer meal.