Step 1

Follow the Best Pizza Dough recipe to prepare the dough. (This takes about 15 minutes to make and 45 minutes to rest.)

Step 2

Place a pizza stone in the oven and preheat to 500°F. OR preheat your pizza oven (here’s the pizza oven we use).

Step 3

Make the 5 Minute Pizza Sauce.

Step 4

If using fresh mozzarella cheese, slice it into 1/4 inch thick pieces (see the photo). If it’s incredibly watery fresh mozzarella (all brands vary), you may want to let it sit on a paper towel to remove moisture for about 15 minutes then dab the mozzarella with the paper towel to remove any additional moisture.

Step 5

When the oven is ready, dust a pizza peel with cornmeal or semolina flour. (If you don’t have a pizza peel, you can use a rimless baking sheet or the back of a rimmed baking sheet. But a pizza peel is well worth the investment!) Stretch the dough into a circle; see How to Stretch Pizza Dough for instructions. Then gently place the dough onto the pizza peel.

Step 6

Spread the pizza sauce over the dough using the back of a spoon to create a thin layer. Add the mozzarella cheese. Top with a few pinches of kosher salt.

Step 7

Use the pizza peel to carefully transfer the pizza onto the preheated pizza stone. Bake the pizza until the cheese and crust are nicely browned, about 5 to 7 minutes in the oven (or 1 minute in a pizza oven).

Step 8

Dollop with the basil pesto. Slice into pieces and serve immediately.