The recipe

1 pizza, about 28 to 30 cmabout 25 minutes, plus dough proofing and preheating

Ingredients

  • 250 g proofed pizza dough, ready to bake
  • 100 g green asparagus, trimmed
  • 50 g ricotta, separated whey poured away
  • 60 g mozzarella, well drained
  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • ¼ tsp finely grated lemon zest, peel suitable for eating
  • Salt and black pepper
  • A little flour or fine semolina for shaping

Method

  1. Preheat to 250°C with conventional top and bottom heat. Heat a suitable stone or steel according to its instructions. Keep the dough covered until supple.
  2. Wash and dry trimmed asparagus. Slice lengthways into strips about 2 mm thick, halve the tips lengthways and shorten long ribbons if needed. Toss with the oil.
  3. Stir a little salt and pepper into the ricotta. Cut up the mozzarella.
  4. Open the dough to about 28 to 30 cm and check that it slides on a lightly dusted peel. Distribute ricotta thinly, followed by mozzarella and loose asparagus strips.
  5. Bake for approximately 8 to 12 minutes, checking from minute six. Watch both the asparagus tips and the underside.
  6. Remove, scatter over the lemon zest, slice and serve immediately.

Slice green asparagus thinly lengthways

Use 100 g trimmed green asparagus. Remove the woody ends first and peel any tough skin from the lower third. Cut the spears lengthways into strips approximately two millimetres thick. For thicker spears, a vegetable peeler works well with the spear resting flat on a board. Halve the tips lengthways. Cut particularly long ribbons across if that makes them easier to arrange. These thin pieces go onto the pizza raw and cook during the bake.

White asparagus is not a direct replacement at the same thickness because its skin and cooking characteristics differ. Keep to green asparagus for this method. Pat it dry after washing and toss the strips with a teaspoon of olive oil. Arrange them loosely between the cheese. A dense bundle in the centre cooks less evenly and can pull the topping apart when sliced. The tips can take on a little colour but should not dry out.

Use a light ricotta layer and lemon finish

Stir 50 g ricotta with a little salt and black pepper, pouring away any separated whey first. Spread it thinly over the dough and add 60 g well-drained mozzarella. These quantities leave space for the asparagus and keep the centre relatively light. If the ricotta is particularly firm, distribute small flattened spoonfuls instead of pulling and tearing the dough while trying to spread it.

The lemon is needed only after baking. Wash it and use peel suitable for eating. Start with a quarter teaspoon of finely grated yellow zest, leaving the white pith behind. This version does not include lemon juice, avoiding extra liquid over the base. Allow for dough proofing and full preheating in addition to the approximately 25 minutes stated for the recipe. Have a fully proofed dough ball and a hot baking surface ready before adding the asparagus topping.