cover image Napoli on the Road: Classic & Seasonal Recipes for Neapolitan-Style Pizza Plus Antipasti, Desserts & Drinks

Napoli on the Road: Classic & Seasonal Recipes for Neapolitan-Style Pizza Plus Antipasti, Desserts & Drinks

Michele Pascarella. Ryland Peters & Small, $29.99 (176p) ISBN 978-1-78879-644-6

In London restaurateur Pascarella’s inspiring debut, he divulges the unique approach to the classic pizza of his native Naples that won him World’s Best Pizza chef in 2023. Step-by-step photos accompany his signature dough recipe, which takes approximately 20 hours to complete including resting and fermentation times. Classic sauces and pizzas follow, distinguished by his preference for seasonal fare and “British ingredients.” Springtime recipes include a pizza topped with pea cream, prosciutto, and Parmesan. Summer is the season for “ortolana,” a crispy-crusted pie with zucchini, eggplant, and red bell peppers, and “tonno e cipolle,” which calls for tuna fillets, red onion, escarole, and homemade black olive powder. Autumnal toppings include a pumpkin cream with pancetta, and roasted potatoes. The winter chapter leads off with a pie based on his grandmother’s Neapolitan ragù, a slow-cooked tomato sauce with shredded beef shank. Once dough and sauces have been prepped, recipes are relatively simple thanks to Pascarella’s consistent method, which starts with baking the crust directly on the floor of the oven with a base layer of sauce followed by adding cheeses and toppings for a quick broil, and finishing off with garnishes. Recommendations for supplies (a stand mixer is useful, but a rolling pin can suffice), tips for using a “pro pizza oven,” and a smattering of recipes for appetizers, desserts, and drinks round out the collection. Pizza lovers will be thrilled. (Mar.)