It’s true that in the last few years, the standard of supermarket pizza has improved, let's face it, we've all eaten some truly terrible ones in our lifetime. You can now buy supermarket pizza with some reasonably interesting toppings that don't resemble Frisbees. Saying that, once cooked the base of the shop-bought offering still ends up being too biscuity and lacks real flavour - as with all good pizzas, it’s all about the base!

You've possibly never heard of Pinsa Romana, but this recipe was invented around the time of the Roman Empire. Pinsa Romana is a different type of pizza that uses three types of flour – wheat, rice and soy flour to create the perfect light and crispy base. In fact, it's a kind of cross between pizza and focaccia.

The beautifully light texture is not only down to the flour, but the dough has a really high level of water added. This means that as it bakes, the water creates steam that then produces the light texture. On a commercial basis, this really wet dough is very hard to handle with the machines that turn out the pizzas you might buy in the supermarket. Every single one of our Pinsa Romana is made by hand by a craft baker.

There are three recipes in this video that will get you started and I’ve no doubt that these Roman flat breads will be a massive hit in your homes. The full recipes, together with the list of ingredients are below...

Pinsa Romana with Olive Oil & Rosemary

Serves 2
1 Pinsa Romana, fully defrosted (about 20-30 minutes)
About 3 tablespoons of a good Extra Virgin Olive Oil
A small handful of fresh rosemary, coated in a little oil
A good pinch of Sea Salt

This is the simplest way to enjoy the pinsa, just cooked with olive oil, salt and rosemary. Get your oven pre-heated to just about as hot as it gets, mine goes to 225°C – so I jacked it up to ramming speed. When you put the pinsa in the oven, you want it to hit something that is really hot, if you have a pizza stone then great, otherwise just use a flat metal roasting tin (turned upside down if needs be) and get that hot in the oven.

All that’s needed here is to drizzle over the extra virgin olive oil, sprinkle with the salt and the rosemary and give everything a little massage. Now place it on the hot tray for 4-5 minutes until lightly golden. This is perfect if you want to serve it as a flat bread with a tapas, antipasti or mezze kind of meal – or simply cut it up and nosh it straight down.

Pinsa Romana with Cream Cheese, Lemon, Garlic, Mushrooms & Rocket

Serves 2
1 Pinsa Romana, fully defrosted (about 20-30 minutes)
2 tablespoons of Cream Cheese
1 Lemon, Juice & Zest
½ Clove of Garlic, finely grated
A good grate of Grana Padano
A 200g punnet of Chestnut Mushrooms, quartered and cooked for a couple of minutes
A drizzle of Fussel's Truffle Oil (optional)
A drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
A bag handful of Rocket
Pinch of Salt

Make sure you have followed the initial steps from above. Then start by frying the mushrooms in a little oil until they have just lost their rawness, turn off the heat and then drizzle with a little truffle oil. Now mix up the cream cheese, lemon zest and juice, garlic, salt and a good grate of Grana Padano. Spread this over the Pinsa Romana, leaving a little gap around the edges. Scatter over the mushrooms and drizzle over a little extra virgin olive oil. Grate over some more Grana Padana, a few twists of black pepper and now it’s ready to slip onto your tray in the oven.

Bake for around 6-8 minutes, until the edges are slightly golden. Remove from the oven, scatter over the rocket, give another good grating of Grana Padano and a drizzle of extra virgin olive. Your done, leave it for a few minutes to cool slightly and enjoy.

Pinsa Romana with Tomato, Mozzarella & Spicy Nduja Paste

Serves 2
1 Pinsa Romana, fully defrosted (about 20-30 minutes)
⅓ Can of Mutti Tomato Polpa
1 Fior di Latte Mozzarella Ball
A few fresh basil leaves
4 or 5 tsps Nduja Paste
A good grate of Grana Padano
A drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
A few Rocket Leaves
A pinch of salt

Make sure you’ve followed the initial steps to defrost the Pinsa Romana and pre-heat the oven. With a really good can of tomatoes, there is no need to cook a tomato sauce. With our cans of Mutti Tomato Polpa, all you need to do is empty the contents into a bowl, season with a little salt and spread the tomato pulp over the Pinsa Romana.

Slice the mozzarella ball and arrange over the tomato sauce, then do the same with the basil leaves. Drop on a few little spoonfuls of Nduja paste, trying to make sure that each slice will have a little nduja hit. Place the Pinsa Romana on your hot tray on the oven and cook for around 8 minutes.

Once the edges are a little golden, remove onto a board, scatter over a few rocket leaved, give it a grate of Grana Padana and a drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. That’s it, give it a few seconds to cool and then enjoy.



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