1. Crust:
2. In a medium mixing bowl (the deeper the better), mix warm water with instant dry yeast and the salt. You don’t need to wait for it to bubble but will know immediately by the smell if it’s active. Stir in 2 cups spelt flour with a wooden spoon, then add the remaining ½ cup flour in ¼ cup increments until dough is cohesive enough to knead. Turn out onto a lightly floured (with more spelt flour) counter or board and knead vigorously for a few minutes, adding more flour if the dough remains sticky, until it forms a smooth ball that’s only a little sticky. Drizzle the olive oil into the mixing bowl, add the ball of dough, turn to coat (adding a little more oil if needed), and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Set in a warm place to double in size, one to two hours. If you don’t have a really warm spot, the dough may take a little longer to double, but it should still rise.
3. Turn the doubled dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead a couple times. Either refrigerate the ball, wrapped in plastic wrap, until ready to use, or shape into two 12″ pizzas (or save half the dough, if you’re only feeding 2 to 3). Press and stretch the dough on a floured baking sheet or peel (if using in conjunction with a pizza stone) until it’s as thin as you can get it without tearing. I use a rolling pin towards the end to even everything out.

Pizza

1. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil, then add the unpeeled sweet potato. Boil 15 to 20 minutes, until just tender. When pierced with a skewer or paring knife, you should meet some resistance in the middle. Drain and peel. When cool, slice very thin, then cool between sheets of wax paper, storing in the fridge if making ahead of time.
2. Preheat oven to 450. If using a pizza stone, make sure you’ve already heated it gradually so it will withstand high temperatures without cracking. Mix pesto and olive oil in a small dish and brush onto the crust(s), almost to the edge. In order, top with red onion, olives, Gruyere, and sweet potato slices, slightly overlapping the potato. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake on the baking sheet or transfer carefully to the pizza stone, for about 15 minutes, until crust is crisp and slightly browned and cheese is bubbling around the edges. Sprinkle with parmesan and black pepper, then serve asap!