Merguez Pizza with Olives & Parsley Salad

    Pile on the parsley to make this hearty Italian pizza.
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    merguez pizza with olives parsley salad

    Recipe by David Nayfeld, chef at Che Fico in San Francisco

    Start to Finish: 1 hour, 15 minutes

    Servings: 4

    Ingredients

    • Semolina flour, for dusting

    • 8 to 9 oz. store-bought pizza dough, left at room temperature for 30 minutes

    • 2 tbsp. EVOO

    • 1/4 cup canned crushed tomatoes

    • 1/2 tsp. dried oregano

    • 1/4 tsp. kosher salt

    • 1/3 cup shredded caciocavallo cheese or provolone

    • 10 pitted Picholine olives, halved

    • 4 oz. fresh merguez (spicy lamb sausage), rolled into 1-inch balls

    • 1 1/4 cups grated Parmesan

    • 1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

    • 1 1/2 tsp. fresh lemon juice (from 1/2 lemon)

    • 1 tsp. chopped preserved lemon from a jar

    Preparation

    1. Place a pizza stone or an inverted baking sheet in the oven; preheat to 500°.

    2. Lightly dust a large rimless baking sheet with semolina. Stretch the dough out into a 12-inch round on the sheet. Brush the edges of the crust with 1 tbsp. oil. Spread the crushed tomatoes over the dough, leaving a 1-inch border. Sprinkle with the oregano and kosher salt. Top evenly with the caciocavallo, olives, merguez, and half the Parmesan. Slide the pizza from the rimless baking sheet onto the hot pizza stone. Bake until the crust is crisp and charred in spots, 10 to 12 minutes.

    3. In a small bowl, mix the parsley, lemon juice, preserved lemon, and the remaining 1 tbsp. oil. Season the parsley salad. Cut the pizza into 8 pieces. Top with the parsley salad. Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan all over the pizza, including the crust.