ASPARAGUS, TALEGGIO & SPECK PIZZETTA Taleggio is one of those cheeses with a smell that announces its arrival before you see it. It has a strong and pungent aroma but a reasonably mild and fruity flavour. Its soft and yielding texture means that it melts particularly well, too. We love using Taleggio as a base for pizza and it works marvellously with asparagus and speck; the sweetness of the cheese contrasts with the salty tang of the smoked ham. Speck is a cold-smoked, de-boned ham and is available in good Italian delicatessens. You should ask for it to be sliced very thinly indeed. For one pizzetta: 2 asparagus spears 1 large golf-ball-sized piece of pizza dough – see page 62 1 small handful of grated block mozzarella – the hard, cheap kind 1 small handful of grated Taleggio 3 very thin slices of speck Extra virgin olive oil Black pepper Preheat your oven to its highest setting (250°C/Gas 9 or above). At the same time put a pizza stone or baking sheet in the oven to heat up. Blanch the asparagus spears in salted boiling water for 2 minutes. Remove them and plunge into ice cold water for a minute before slicing each of the spears into 5 pieces on the diagonal. Roll out the dough to around 20cm in diameter. Evenly distribute the cheeses over the base. Scatter the cut asparagus pieces onto the surface. Place the pizzetta on the pizza stone or baking sheet in your very hot oven for around 5–7 minutes. When the pizza is done, lay the thinly sliced speck over the top with a few folds to create some height and just before serving, sprinkle a little olive oil onto the surface and grind over a little pepper.
72
BREADS
BREADS
73