Homemade Carbonara Pizza

Carbonara pizza is a delicious Italian-on-Italian lunch or dinner, that highlights delicious bacon and cheese, pretty much everything great about pizza. Making the base at home isn't great just for better health, but for delicious, fresh, slightly chewy flavour and texture. It seems like a lot of work when it is written out, but in reality it's a lot of passive time that frees you up for other, equally delicious things. 

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast 
• 1 1/2 cups warm water (45°) 
• 3 1/2 - 4 cups all-purpose flour 
• 2 tbsp olive oil 
• 1 tsp salt 
• 1 tsp sugar 
• 100g of bacon, our suggestion is Voodoo Bacon (either streaky or shortcut), cut into 1cm pieces 
• 1 cup grated mozzarella 
• 1/4 cup of grated parmesan 
• 1 large egg 
• Kosher salt 
• Cracked black pepper

Method Part One: Making the Dough

1. In the stand mixer bowl, combine the warm water, sugar, and yeast. Let it sit for about 5-10 minutes until the mixture becomes frothy. 
2. Attach the dough hook to the stand mixer. Add 3 1/2 cups of flour, olive oil, and salt to the yeast mixture.
3. Start mixing on low speed until a rough dough forms. If the dough is too sticky, gradually add more flour, a little at a time, until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
4. Once the dough comes together, knead it with the stand mixer on medium speed for about 5-7 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. Pull the dough away from the dough hook and see if you can pull it to the edge of the bowl without tearing or light escaping through the panel.
5. Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover it with a clean kitchen towel, and let it rise in a warm place for about 1-1.5 hours or until doubled in size.
6. Preheat the oven to the desired temperature for baking your pizza. Once the dough has risen, punch it down to release the air.
7. Roll out the dough into your desired pizza shape and thickness.

Method Part Two: Make Pizza

1. Preheat the oven to 250°C
2. Cook Voodoo Bacon. In a large pan over medium heat, cook the Voodoo Bacon until mostly crisp but still slightly bendy. Place the cooked bacon on a paper towel-lined plate to drain excess oil.
3. Prepare Pizza Toppings. Place the pizza dough on a pizza tray. Top the pizza base with an even layer of mozzarella and parmesan leaving the center clear for the egg and a couple of centimeters clear of the crust. Sprinkle the cooked bacon over the pizza.
4. Bake Pizza. Place the pizza in the preheated oven and bake for approximately 10 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted. Crack the egg into the center of the pizza and return the pizza to the oven and bake for an additional 2-3 minutes until the egg white is set but the yolk is still runny. 
5. Season and Serve. Season the egg with salt and pepper. Break the yolk and drizzle it over the pizza.

Enjoy your delicious homemade pizza with a perfectly cooked egg on top!