Italian-American · Sandwiches & Pizza

Hot Honey Prosciutto and Arugula Pizza

Serves 2 to 3 · Prep: 20 minutes · Cook: 8 to 12 minutes · Total: 28 to 32 minutes

There’s nothing quite like hot honey pizza. Top it with fresh arugula and thin slices of prosciutto, and you’ve got an unbeatable dinner. To keep it fresh, don’t add the prosciutto until after the pizza comes out of the oven. The heat from the pizza will warm it without making it dry or tough. Add the arugula at the end too, so it wilts slightly but keeps its peppery bite.

Store-bought pizza dough works perfectly well here. I use regular mozzarella with a little smoked mozzarella or scamorza, but all mozzarella is fine if that is what you have.

Ingredients

Instructions

1. 1

   Heat the oven

   Place a pizza stone or steel in the oven and preheat to 500°F, or as hot as your oven will safely go. Let the stone heat for at least 30 minutes. A full 45 minutes is even better. Take the pizza dough out of the refrigerator while the oven heats. Room-temperature dough is easier to stretch and less likely to spring back.

2. 2

   Make the hot honey

   Stir the honey and Calabrian chili paste together in a small bowl. Start with 1/2 teaspoon of chili paste, taste it, and add more if you want a stronger kick. Warm the mixture for about 10 seconds in the microwave if the honey is too thick to drizzle.

3. 3

   Stretch the dough

   Lightly flour the counter and your hands. Press the dough into a round, then gently stretch it into a 12- to 14-inch pizza. Leave the outside edge slightly thicker to form the crust. Transfer the dough to a floured pizza peel or a sheet of parchment paper.

4. 4

   Add the sauce and cheese

   Spread the pizza sauce over the dough, leaving about a 1-inch border around the edge. Scatter the regular mozzarella and smoked mozzarella evenly over the sauce. Do not cover every inch. Leaving a little sauce visible keeps the pizza from becoming too heavy.

5. 5

   Bake the pizza

   Slide the pizza onto the hot stone or steel. Bake for 8 to 12 minutes, until the cheese is bubbling and the crust is browned around the edges. If the crust needs more color, turn on the broiler for the final 30 to 60 seconds. Watch it closely.

6. 6

   Add the prosciutto and arugula

   Remove the pizza from the oven. To keep it fresh, don’t add the prosciutto until after the pizza comes out of the oven. Tear the slices into loose pieces and arrange them over the hot cheese. Add the arugula, then grate the pecorino over the top. Finish with hot honey and a small drizzle of olive oil. Slice and serve while the crust is still hot.

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