Focaccia Pizza with Basil and Mozzarella

I have several pizza recipes that I use regularly but I wanted to find something new that what be special. I found one that fits the bill- Focaccia Pizza with Basil and Mozzarella (from The Food Network). It's a little time consuming but definitely worth all the compliments :)

Focaccia Pizza

Ingredients

Dough:

· 2 cups warm water, about 110 degrees F

· 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus 4 tablespoons for greasing the baking pan

· 1 tablespoon dry yeast

· 1 tablespoon honey

· 6 ½ cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling dough

· 1 ½ tablespoons kosher salt

Pizza:

· 18 Roma or Italian plum tomatoes, thinly sliced (can use pizza sauce)

· Basil

· mozzarella

· pepper jack cheese

· Salt and pepper-

- Sausage

- Diced red and green peppers

R Directions

1. Preheat a convection oven to 325 degrees F or a regular oven to 350 degrees F.

2. To make the dough: In the bowl of a standing mixer, combine the water, 5 tablespoons olive oil, yeast and honey. Allow the yeast to proof for 5 minutes.

3. Add the flour and salt, and mix with a dough hook on medium speed until the dough is pliable and elastic, about 5 minutes. If the dough is a little wet, you may need to add a little more flour. The dough should be moist, but not stick to the hands.

4. Cover with plastic wrap, and allow the dough to rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 20 minutes.

5. Brush the remaining olive oil on a rimmed baking sheet about 18-by-26-inches.

6. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to about 1/4-inch thick and prick the dough all over with a fork or rolling docker.

7. Brush off any excess flour and transfer to the prepared baking sheet.

8. Bake the dough until lightly browned, about 6 minutes. Cool.

9. When the dough has cooled, evenly top with focaccia with the tomato slices, covering the entire surface and lightly season with kosher salt and pepper. I added diced red and green peppers and sausage to half the pizza, so yummy!!!

10. Sprinkle with the basil and lightly top with the mozzarella. You should be able to see the tomatoes through the cheese.

11. Return to the oven and bake until the cheese is melted and slightly colored.

We ate by candlelight to make the meal extra special :)

Note: The crust is pretty thick and contains more carbs than one should eat normally, but it is great for a special treat.