Pizza Tonda
Cracker-thin Roman round, rolled out and baked crisp.
Tonda Rossa
The Roman round at its plainest: a thin smear of hand-crushed tomato, torn fresh mozzarella, basil after the bake. Thin sauce on a cracker-thin base — anything heavier makes it soggy.
Open recipe →Pesto Pie
Bright summer pizza: pesto base, fresh mozz, cherry tomatoes, pine nuts. Apply pesto thinly — too much and it burns black under the broiler.
Open recipe →Tonda Bianca con Rosmarino
The Roman round at its plainest white: garlic oil, a little mozzarella, rosemary and flaky salt. Closer to a focaccia than a pizza, and the one to make when the tomatoes are bad.
Open recipe →Tonda Boscaiola
The woodcutter's pizza: sausage and mushrooms on a white base. No tomato, so the mushrooms have to be cooked dry first or they flood the thin crust.
Open recipe →Tonda Fiori di Zucca e Alici
Rome's summer pizza: courgette flowers laid over mozzarella with anchovy tucked underneath, on a white base. The flowers wilt into the cheese and the anchovy melts to seasoning.
Open recipe →Tonda Patate e Salsiccia
Potato and sausage on the thin Roman round: paper-thin slices under crumbled pork sausage and rosemary, on a white base. Heavier than most tondas, so the potato has to be thin enough to see through.
Open recipe →Tonda Ortolana
The greengrocer's pizza: grilled courgette, aubergine and peppers over tomato and mozzarella. Everything is cooked before it goes on, so the thin base only has to warm it through.
Open recipe →Tonda Fichi, Gorgonzola e Prosciutto
Sweet figs, soft gorgonzola and salty prosciutto on a cracker-thin round, with a thread of honey at the end. Fresh figs if you can find them; fig jam spread thin if not.
Open recipe →Tonda Carbonara
Rome's carbonara on Rome's thin pizza: crisp guanciale over mozzarella, then a yolk-and-pecorino cream spooned on once it's out so the heat of the pie just thickens it. Pancetta works if you can't find guanciale.
Open recipe →Tonda Cacio e Pepe
The Roman pasta as a pizza: mozzarella and a lot of pecorino, with black pepper toasted in a dry pan first so it's fragrant rather than harsh. More pecorino when it's out. It's simple, so grind the pepper fresh.
Open recipe →Tonda Amatriciana
Amatriciana on a thin Roman round: tomato, crisp guanciale, a little chili and plenty of pecorino. It's carbonara's red cousin, and there's no mozzarella, so the guanciale fat does the work.
Open recipe →Tonda Puttanesca
The pantry pasta as a pizza: tomato, anchovy, olives, capers, garlic and chili, and no cheese at all. Salty and loud, and you've probably got everything for it already.
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