Mushroom and prosciutto pizza

Hospobaby's dislike of mushrooms was overriden with this pizza. She worked on the pizza dough and she learnt about the role of yeast and proving the dough. The different kinds of mushrooms we used intrigued our Hospobaby and instead of the usual tomato sauce on the base, we opted for a bechamel sauce.

*”Hospo”, short for hospitality, is a term used regularly in the hospitality industry. Chand and Sid own the restaurants Sidart and Cassia, so Zoya has been part of the hospitality industry from day one, hence the term “hospobaby”.

PIzza dough

125 ml	Water, lukewarm
½ tsp	Active dried yeast
1 pinch	Sugar
200 g	High grade flour
50 g	Semolina, fine
½ Tbsp	Olive oil
½ tsp	Salt

Bechamel sauce

2 Tbsp	Butter
2 Tbsp	Flour
1 ¼ cups	Milk, warmed
1 serving	Grated nutmeg

Toppings

50 g	Oyster mushrooms, torn (Main)
50 g	Button mushrooms, sliced (Main)
50 g	Shiitake mushrooms, sliced (Main)
2	Sweetcorn, kernels removed and blanched
1 bunch	Fresh basil
100 g	Mozzarella cheese, grated
100 g	Prosciutto (Main)
1 serving	Olive oil, to season

Directions

Pizza dough

1. In a medium size bowl, mix the water, yeast and sugar.Place this mixture in a warm place, like the top of the oven or the hot water cupboard, for 10 minutes or until the mixture is bubbly and frothy.
2. Either using the dough attachment of your mixer or by hand, knead together flour, semolina, olive oil, salt and yeast. Place the dough in an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Place this bowl once again in a warm place to allow the dough to prove or double up in size for about 45 minutes.
3. Remove the dough and knead it a bit again, divide into 2 equal pieces. Dust your workspace with flour and roll out the dough into a rectangular slab for your pizza base.

Bechamel sauce

1. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until the flour cooks and forms a smooth paste, but don't let it brown.
2. Add the warm milk slowly, whisking as the sauce thickens. Bring to a boil. Add salt and pepper to taste, lower the heat, and cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes more. Grate in some fresh nutmeg and remove from the heat.

To assemble the pizza

1. Heat the oven to 250C and place either 2 pizza stones or baking trays lined with baking paper in the oven to heat up.
2. Place a pizza base on each tray and bake for 3-4 minutes to cook the base slightly but not to colour it.
3. Remove from the oven. Spread bechamel sauce on each base. Top the base with mushrooms, corn, half the basil and grated cheese. Season with a little olive oil and salt and bake for 8-10 minutes. The base should be crisp and the toppings caramelised.
4. Remove pizza and top with prosciutto and remaining basil leaves. Slice and serve hot.