Small Tomato Pizzas

For the dough: crumble yeast and sprinkle with sugar. Add 4 tablespoons of warm water and whisk until smooth. Add 4 tablespoons of flour and let rise, covered, in a warm place for 30 minutes.

Pile the rest of flour on the work surface and make a well in the center. Add yeast mixture to the well, sprinkle with salt. Add about 200 ml (approximately 3/4 cup) of lukewarm water and quickly knead into smooth dough. Add more flour or water, if necessary. Cover and let rise for about 1 hour in a warm place (or until dough has doubled in bulk).  

For the topping: rinse tomatoes, cut out stalks and cut into 1/2-1 cm (approximately 1/5-1/2 inch) thick slices. Drain olives. Drain mozzarella and cut into small cubes.

For the pesto: toast pine nuts in a dry pan, shaking gently, until light brown and fragrant. Remove from the heat and cool. Set aside approximately 1 tablespoon of almonds. Rinse basil, shake dry, chop coarsely some leaves and add to reserved pine nuts. Place the rest of basil with remaining pine nuts, peeled garlic and Parmesan in a blender. Puree well and gradually add oil to make creamy pesto. Season pesto with salt and pepper.

Divide dough into 12 pieces and roll out each on a floured surface to round small pizzas about 10-12 cm in diameter (approximately 4-5 inches), making the edges slightly thicker. Arrange on a lined with parchment paper baking sheets. Spread with tomato slices, olives and mozzarella cheese. Season with salt and pepper and bake in preheated oven at 200°C (approximately 400°F) for about 10-12 minutes.