Tarancutei pizza

The first pizza of my life was a true culinary adventure! It all started when I stepped into the kitchen of a pizzeria in Verona, where I had the opportunity to observe how to prepare the perfect dough, the kind that makes your mouth water just thinking about it. I asked about that tall and fluffy dough that I often saw on Italian tables, and the people in the kitchen were kind enough to share a few secrets with me. I learned that the process includes two stages of kneading and rising, and that instead of oil, lard is used, which gives it a unique taste and perfect texture.

Although I noted all the details, the courage to reproduce the recipe left me for a while. But, full of ambition, I decided to try, making a few modifications. Instead of kneading by hand, I used a bread machine, and instead of special yeast, I used the yeast I had on hand, along with store-bought flour. As for the water, I followed the advice I received in Italy, which sounded vague but intriguing: "as much flour as needed, as much water as needed." So I started adding water gradually until I obtained a promising mixture.

After putting all the ingredients in the machine, I let it knead and rise for the first time. Then, I repeated the process. It was fascinating to see how the dough grew before my eyes; during the second rising, its volume had almost tripled! From this amount of dough, I managed to form four large pizzas, each promising an explosion of flavors.

For the first pizza, I decided to let inspiration take over. I prepared a sauce from minced meat, then added slices of fresh tomatoes, grilled eggplant and zucchini, savory mushrooms, sweet and hot peppers, green onions, olives, and of course, mozzarella. The combination was delicious, and the aroma that spread throughout the house was irresistible. However, honesty led me to admit that it could not compare to the original Italian, but it was a successful and satisfying attempt. Thus, I realized that although I did not manage to reproduce the exact recipe from Verona, I created a personalized version that brought me joy and beautiful memories. This was my first experience with pizza, but it certainly will not be the last!

 Ingredients: Dough: 500 g flour, 1 packet of dried yeast, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1/1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander, 15 g lard, 2 eggs, Water as needed, Filling: Minced meat sauce, 2 fresh tomatoes, 4 mushrooms - grilled, 1 zucchini - grilled, 1 eggplant - grilled, Red bell pepper, Green bell pepper, Hot pepper, Green onion, Slices of olives, Mozzarella.

 Tags:  eggs onion meat tomatoes pepper flour zucchini mushrooms sugar olives eggplant pizza