1 teaspoon kosher salt I use Diamond brand kosher salt; use half of other brands
1 teaspoon instant yeast
1 cup lukewarm water 100° to 115°F
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 thick or thin scallions trimmed, sliced
2 garlic cloves minced
4 ounces spinach leaves baby spinach is fine
1 Red pepper flakes to taste
1 olive oil
14 ounces quartered artichoke hearts drained and patted dry
0.5 lemon (zest and juice)
6 ounces mozzarella diced from a block or perlini
0.5 cups grated parmesan
0.5 cups grated fontina or asiago cheese
Equipment
large bowl
plastic wrap
spoon or dough whisk
cast-iron skillet or cake pan
food processor or high-speed blender
Directions
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and yeast. Add the water and olive oil and use a spoon or dough whisk to bring it together, stirring the mixture a few times to ensure there are no unmixed pockets of flour. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise until it doubles and moves a lot when jiggled, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours at room temperature.
If you won’t need the dough until later, you can transfer it to the fridge a little before it’s fully doubled and let it finish there for a few hours or overnight.
Heat your oven to 450°F (230°C). Coat a 12-inch (30-cm) round cast-iron skillet or a 9×13 cake pan with 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil. Scrape dough into the pan, then turn it over once so it’s oiled on both sides. Dip your fingers in the oil to coat them and dimple the dough out to the edges as best as you can; it’s okay if it doesn’t fully stretch at this point. Set it aside, loosely covered, for 30 minutes to finish proofing.
In a food processor or high-speed blender, combine the scallions and garlic for the spinach pesto. Add spinach and pulse the machine until it’s well-chopped. Drizzle in olive oil until the mixture looks thick but loosened — usually it needs 4 to 6 tablespoons. Season well with salt and red pepper flakes to taste.
Being careful not to deflate the dough, use oiled fingers to gently dimple the dough out to the edges of the pan if it’s not there already. Spoon half of the spinach pesto mixture over the dough, and use the back of the spoon to gently spread it out. The toppings should go all the way to the pan’s edge when making this pizza, i.e. do not leave an empty border. Arrange the artichoke hearts over the spinach pesto, then finely grate some of the lemon zest over. Sprinkle mozzarella, parmesan, and fontina, then season the pizza with salt, red pepper flakes, and a little more lemon zest.
Bake the pizza for 25 to 30 minutes, until deeply golden brown at the edges and toasty on top.
Finish with lemon juice before serving. Leftovers reheat fantastically. Heat leftover slices on a foil-covered sheet pan at 350°F or 375°F for 15 minutes. Leftover spinach pesto keeps for up to 5 days in the fridge.