Sunny’s Avenue J Pizza

  4.7 – 22 reviews  • Tomato
Level: Easy
Total: 1 hr 10 min
Prep: 20 min
Inactive: 25 min
Cook: 25 min
Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

  1. 1 cup water
  2. 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
  3. 1/2-ounce dehydrated porcini mushrooms
  4. 1 (8 by 14-inch) piece focaccia
  5. 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for preparing pan and garnishing
  6. 1 1/2 cups canned whole tomatoes with basil
  7. 8 ounces fresh Buffalo mozzarella
  8. 1/2 cup shredded aged mozzarella
  9. 4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
  10. 18 to 20 thick pepperoni slices
  11. 1/3 cup shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano
  12. 2 cups fresh basil leaves
  13. Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. In a small saucepan, bring 1 cup water and white wine vinegar to a simmer. Remove from heat and add mushrooms. Cover and let mushrooms sit, 15 minutes. Strain.
  2. Slice bread horizontally to create 2 pizzas. Lightly oil a baking sheet and place pizzas crust side up. Brush top with 1/4 cup oil. In a bowl, squeeze tomatoes to break up slightly. Place on pizza halves. Pull pieces of Buffalo mozzarella from the ball and place on halves. Top with porcini mushrooms, shredded mozzarella, garlic and pepperoni. Bake until cheese has melted and crust is crispy, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven, drizzle with oil, sprinkle on Parmesan and spread with cut basil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and serve.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 of 6 servings
Calories 327
Total Fat 25 g
Saturated Fat 10 g
Carbohydrates 8 g
Dietary Fiber 2 g
Sugar 2 g
Protein 17 g
Cholesterol 50 mg
Sodium 646 mg

Reviews

Jordan Gill
What part of this disgusting concoction is reminiscent of “Avenue J”, ” Brooklyn”, or “DiFara’s”? More importantly, how is it you have a cooking show?
Dorothy Gonzales
Mozzarella di bufala (also called buffalo mozzarella) is the most prized of the fresh mozzarellas. Most buffalo mozzarella available in the United States is made from a combination of water buffalo milk and cow’s milk. Wow.. Maybe just go with mozzarella I already like!! And maybe smoked mozzarella cheese….
Chase Anderson
I made this one night for my husband because he is a HUGE pizza lover. It turned out SO good. The only thiong I did different was used a pizza dough. I also squeezed the tomatoes over the pizza which made it a little watery. Other than that, it was great! Will definitely make again!
Christopher Davis
I remember DiFara’s pizza very well. Down in Florida it is hard to find good pizza. Your recipe is as good as any pizza down here. Not as good as Dom’s but there are few that are. Will make do with this till I can get back up to Brooklyn..Thanks Sunny
Michael Zhang
Outstanding! I forgot the mushrooms, so I’m sure the flavor was altered a bit, but my family and I loved it! Reminded me of the first time I had sicilain pizza in Bridgeport, CT. in the 1970’s! Lower oven temp, though. 400 degrees worked for me.
Noah Durham
my kids loved the pizza they like to try new things and this one was a good one
Ms. Victoria Vazquez
This pizza was awesome! I love it and my kids do too. The combination of tasty tomatoes, mushrooms, cheeses, on that lovely bread…unforgetable!
Connie Adams
This was an excellent recipe, but I can’t give 5-stars due to the high cost of ingredients and difficulty in locating some. My Italian market did not know what “Aged Mozzarella” was and didn’t carry Buffalo Mozzarella. I was able to get imported tomatoes in basil for a good price. The deli at the market provided fresh pepperoni. My grocery charged $7 for porchini’s and $3 for the vinegar. Don’t skip fresh basil at the end, but I think 2 cups is too much. I know the pizzeria on Ave J this recipe is based on and if this is what the owner pays for his ingredients, it’s no wonder he charges $5.00 a slice!
Ann Malone
To: Chef#517639… I think Sunny meant “aged mozzarella” as in sharp mozzarella. When cheeses age they become sharp and have a stronger flavor. Sharp cheddar is a good example of of aged cheese.
Donna Sanchez
Will not bring down the rating b/c have not made yet and plan to. BUT I have researched “aged mozzarella” and have found no product as named (not on line or in any grocery store. Wonder what she meant by aged mozz and if she just used a “regular” block of the cheese? Anyway a bit frustrated and would like anyone’s help if they actually used or found this product as named. Thx.

Update – made pizza – very very good ! Just used packaged shredded mozz, which is what she probably means by “aged”.

 

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