Prawn, avocado and bocconcini pizza

SERVES 2

PIZZA SAUCE

olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2–3 tablespoons tomato paste (concentrated purée)

2 x 400 g (14 oz) tins chopped tomatoes

125 ml (4 fl oz/½ cup) water

pinch of oregano

PIZZA DOUGH (FOR 4 PIZZAS)

pinch of sugar

2½ teaspoons olive oil

230 ml (7¾ fl oz) warm water

2 teaspoons dried yeast

400 g (14 oz/2²/₃) ‘00’ flour

½ teaspoon salt

TOPPING (FOR 1 PIZZA)

2 garlic cloves, crushed and soaked in 3 tablespoons olive oil

about 4 tablespoons pizza sauce

1 handful of basil leaves

6 bocconcini (fresh baby mozzarella dcheese) balls, sliced

12 raw prawns (shrimp), peeled, deveined, and tails removed

1 avocado, sliced

pinch of chilli powder or dried chilli flakes

grated parmesan cheese

For the pizza sauce: Heat a splash of olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Fry the onion and garlic until translucent, then add the tomato paste and fry for a couple of minutes. Add the tomato, water and oregano and bring to the boil, season with salt and pepper. Simmer for 30 minutes. This makes enough for six pizzas — store the leftover in the fridge for up to 1 week or freeze it.

For the pizza dough: Put the sugar and a splash of olive oil into the warm water and then add the yeast. Give it a stir and let it sit for 10 minutes while the yeast gets itself going. Put the flour in a large bowl and mix in the salt. Slowly add the yeasty water to the flour and mix until you get a ball of dough — you may or may not use all the water; if you do use it all and not all the flour is combined then just add some more water to the dough. Turn the dough out on to a floured kitchen bench and give it a good kneading for 10 minutes until you feel the texture change to a smooth consistency.

Get another bowl large enough to fit the dough, spray with olive oil and sprinkle flour. Put the dough in the bowl — and cover the top with plastic wrap that you have sprayed and floured. Put the bowl in a warm place and let the dough rise for as long as it takes, 1–1½ hours.

When the dough has risen take it out of the bowl, roll it into a log and cut into six equal portions. Roll each portion into a ball, dust with flour and cover with a tea towel (dish cloth) until ready to roll out into a pizza base.

Preheat your oven to its highest setting. Brush a 30 cm (12 inch) pizza pan with the crushed garlic olive oil. Roll out one portion of your dough and place on the pizza pan. Brush the outside of the dough (which becomes the crust) with the same olive oil. Prebake the pizza base until it starts to colour and become slightly crisp, remove it from the oven. Lightly cover the pizza base with the sauce. Lay the basil leaves around the base. Top with the bocconcini, raw prawns followed by slices of avocado in between the prawns. Sprinkle with the chilli powder and then lightly sprinkle freshly grated parmesan cheese over the top. Finally, using a pastry brush or a spoon flick or dot the garlic and oil mixture around the pizza to add that last bit of flavour.

Return the pizza to the oven and cook for 8–10 minutes, or until the prawns are cooked to your liking. Remove from the oven and eat!