Recipes Comfort Food Pizza + Calzones Summer Squash-and-Arugula Pizza with Fontina Cheese 5.0 (1) 1 Review For a fantastic white pizza (made with no sauce), Thomas McNaughton tops his amazing crust with creamy fontina, salty Parmigiano-Reggiano, tender squash, spicy chiles and lightly bitter arugula. By Thomas McNaughton Thomas McNaughton F&W Star Chef » See All F&W Chef Superstars Restaurants: Flour + Water and Central Kitchen, San Francisco Experience: La Folie, Gary Danko and Quince, San Francisco Education: Culinary Institute of America What is your favorite cookbook of all time? The Culinaria series from Europe. It’s a great overview of European countries broken down into regions, and they aren’t just about food but also wine and culture. What is one technique everyone should know? Perseverance. Cooking is all about failing and learning from it. Not giving up, and trying to perfect something takes a lot of failure and a lot of work. What is your secret-weapon ingredient? Vinegar. Even in a dish where you’re not looking for an acidic outcome, like a stew or a soup, a good vinegar helps heighten a lot of natural flavors just like salt. What is your dream restaurant to run? If the sky’s the limit, it would be a ridiculously small restaurant with just a couple of seats, a set menu and I’d get to do all of the cooking with a small crew. The food wouldn’t be tied down to any particular style, but it would take full advantage of the bounty of the Bay Area. What ingredient will people be talking about in five years? I don’t know, but I just hope it won’t be pork belly. What is your current food obsession? Natural fermentation. We’ve been experimenting with it at Central Kitchen, making all sorts of naturally fermented products and playing around with them in sauces and condiments. I love the umami factor they bring. Right now we’re making a canapé of cauliflower pâte à chou served with an aioli made with naturally fermented rabe leaves that we let ferment for about two weeks. The aioli’s got a little spice to it, and this acidic funkiness going on that matches the funkiness of the cauliflower. What is your favorite new store-bought ingredient? These might be more available at farmers’ markets than supermarkets, but I’m really excited about the new citrus hybrids that people are coming out with, like limequats—the rind on those is ridiculously aromatic—Buddha’s hand, and citron. These citrus varieties have so many more nuances to them than ordinary lemons or limes. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Updated on October 27, 2016 Print Rate It Share Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: © John Kernick Active Time: 25 mins Total Time: 1 hrs Yield: 1 10-inch pizza Ingredients One portion Perfect Neapolitan Pizza Dough Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, for sprinkling 3/4 cup shredded Fontina cheese 2 ounces thinly sliced summer squash (about 1/2 small squash) 1 teaspoon chopped rosemary 1 or 2 chopped Calabrian red chiles 1/2 cup arugula leaves Directions Set a pizza stone on a rack in the top third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 500° for at least 45 minutes. Meanwhile, remove the dough ball from the refrigerator and let stand for 20 minutes. Working on a floured surface and using your fingers, press and stretch the dough out to a 10-inch round, working from the center toward the edge; avoid pressing on the outermost edge. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured pizza peel. Spread the Parmigiano-Reggiano and Fontina cheeses onto the dough, making sure to leave a 1-inch border around the edge, and top with the squash, rosemary and chiles. Turn the oven to broil for 5 minutes, then return it to 500°. Slide the pizza onto the pizza stone, opening and closing the oven door as quickly as possible. Bake until the bottom is lightly charred and the toppings are bubbling, about 6 minutes for a chewier crust and 8 minutes for a crispier one; avoid opening the oven door during baking. Top the pizza with the arugula before serving. Rate it Print