The Hill is Home | Hill Inspired Recipes: Skillet Pizza

Photo by Alexe Colbus

My name is Alexe and I have been a Hill resident for almost three years. I run a little cooking and music blog found here, and I come to THIH to share my kitchen creations using the finest ingredients from Eastern Market. I’m a Northern Virginia native but can proudly say I call The Hill my home and love the culture and sense of community I’ve found here. Coming from an Italian family, I was born with a passion for food and I think that The Hill has some of the best food experiences to offer in the city. Enjoy my recipe below for Skillet Pizza made with local ingredients from Eastern Market.

Ever wanted to recreate restaurant pizza at home? Well, I did and I couldn’t be more excited to share my little secret with you. One of my favorite restaurants on The Hill, 7th Hill Pizza, sells their dough so that you can take it home and whip up any creation you please. I am always on the hunt for dough that I can roll out thin to get a crispy texture, and this one certainly fits the bill. I took a page from this recipe and picked up some pancetta from Canales Deli inside the market and set off to make my first skillet pizza.

I used my quick tomato sauce found in this recipe as my base for the pizza. I plucked some basil leaves from my garden that were on the verge of going south because of the cooler weather, picked out some cheese and was on my way. I made two pies, one vegetarian with just basil and cheese, and the other topped with crunchy pancetta. Pancetta is Italian cured pork and tastes a little like bacon, though it is not smoked like bacon is. I crisped up the pancetta in a frying pan, took out the pieces with a slotted spoon and then fried up my dough in the pancetta fat. Scandalous, I know, but it was worth every ounce of flavor. I can happily say 7th Hill will be my pizza dough go to – I’ve even got a dough ball chilling in my freezer just waiting for my next concoction!

Photo by Alexe Colbus

Recipe: Skillet Pizza with Roasted Tomato Sauce and Pancetta
Ingredients:

1 pizza dough, cut in two

1 pint cherry tomatoes

4 cloves of garlic, smashed but kept in the paper

2 tbs extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

1/2 c mozzarella or your favorite Italian cheese

8 pieces of basil

1/8 lb pancetta, diced into cubes

Photo by Alexe Colbus

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375.

In a bowl, combine tomatoes, garlic, evoo, and salt and pepper.

Place on a sheet pan and roast for 30-40 minutes or until the tomatoes burst the garlic cloves become golden.

Add the pancetta to a frying pan and cook on medium for 5-7 minutes until it is crispy and the fat has rendered.

Roll out each half of the dough to about 1/8 inch thick. Make sure to roll it out in a shape that can fit in your frying pan.

Place the dough into the frying pan with the pancetta fat and cook on medium-high heat.

Add additional olive oil if needed. Fry on each side until golden brown.

Take the tomatoes and garlic out of the oven. Remove the garlic from the paper and mash the tomatoes and garlic together with a fork. Add additional salt and pepper if needed.

To assemble the pizzas, add the sauce, cheese and basil and pancetta.

Bake on in the oven on 375 for 3-5 minutes until golden and bubbly.

Prep time: 20 minutes Cook time: 1 hr Serves: 4

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Hill Inspired Recipes: Skillet Pizza

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