Pepperoni Pizza with Whipped Ricotta and Hot Honey

1. In a mixing bowl combine the lukewarm water, active dry yeast, and sugar. Stir gently and let sit for 5-10 minutes, until a creamy foam forms on top (if foaming does not occur the yeast is dead and the dough will not turn out).

2. Add the flour, diastatic malt powder, and salt to the mixing bowl with the foamy yeast water. Add the extra-virgin olive oil. Mix well with a wooden spoon or your hand until a shaggy dough forms (no flour should be left unincorporated).

3. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let rest at room temperature for 20 minutes. Perform 4 stretch and folds with a rest period of 15-20 minutes in between stretch and folds, covering the bowl tightly each time with plastic wrap.

4. After the final stretch and fold spray a piece of plastic wrap with oil and place directly onto the dough as to cover the entire dough ball. Tightly fit a peace of plastic wrap over the bowl and place into the refrigerator for 24 - 72 hours.

5. Remove the dough from the refrigerator approximately 3 hours before baking. After 2 hours place the dough into an oiled pan and stretch to the corners of the pan. If the dough is shrinking back to the middle, allow it to rest for 10 minutes and then come back to it.

6. Preheat the oven to 550 °F and place a pizza stone or pizza steel on the bottom rack of the oven (if using) and adjust the other rack into the lower third of the oven.

7. Make the tomato sauce add all of the ingredients to a container or bowl and combined using an immersion blender

8. Once the dough is covering the entire pan allow to rest for 60 minutes with a sheet pan covering the baking pan.

9. Top with a layer of the tomato sauce, pepperoni, and low moisture mozzarella - ensuring the cheese makes it to the edge to achieve the signature frico edges.

10. Baked at 550 °F for 16 - 18 minutes. If using a pizza steel or pizza stone transfer the pizza onto it for a 1-2 minutes for a crisper crust. Let cool on a cooling rack for 5 minutes before cutting to prevent the crust from becoming soggy.

11. Pipe on the whipped ricotta, drizzle on the hot honey, and sprinkle with the chiffonade basil.