tomato and olive pizzettas with aged goat cheese

makes 18 mini pizzas;
Serves 6 to 8

Flour for the work surface
1 lb. pizza dough, store-bought
or homemade
Extra-virgin olive oil, for
brushing
Kosher salt and freshly ground
black pepper
2 tsp. fennel seeds, coarsely
chopped
1 1-inch-thick slice Bûcheron
(about 6 oz.), cut into
36 thin wedges (if the cheese
crumbles, let it warm to room
temperature), or a log of fresh
goat cheese, cut into thin
rounds
14 pitted Kalamata olives,
quartered
18 cherry or grape tomatoes,
sliced into 1/4-inch rounds,
ends discarded
Crushed red pepper flakes
11/2 tsp. sambuca or Pernod®
Sambuca or Pernod makes a nice, sweet contrast with the salty cheese, and it
brings out the flavor of the fennel.

1. Heat a gas grill to medium high or prepare a medium-hot charcoal fire with
   the coals banked to one side to provide a cooler area on the grill.
2. On a well-floured surface roll out the pizza dough with a rolling pin until it’s
   1/8 inch thick. If the dough is very elastic and resists rolling, cover it with plastic
   and let it rest for about 5 minutes. You may have to repeat this step a few
   times until the dough is relaxed and willing to roll. Using a 3-inch round cookie
   cutter, cut the dough into 18 rounds. Discard the excess dough.
3. Brush the top of the dough rounds with oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper,
   and fennel seeds, pressing gently to make sure they adhere. Transfer the
   rounds to a baking sheet, fennel side up.
4. Working with half of the pizzettas at a time, grill them fennel side down
   (covered on a gas grill, uncovered on a charcoal grill) for 1 minute. Check the
   pizzettas: If they have puffed up, flatten them with a metal spatula. Brush
   the floured sides (which are facing up) with oil. Grill until the bottom is nicely
   browned and crisp, about another 1 minute. Loosen with a metal spatula, if
   necessary, and return the pizzettas, grilled side up, to the baking sheet. (If using a gas grill, turn the heat down to medium.)
5. Working quickly, top each with 2 wedges of Bûcheron, 3 olive pieces,
   3 tomato slices, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Use a small spoon to sprinkle
   each pizzetta with a few drops of sambuca or Pernod.
6. Return the pizzettas to the medium-heat gas grill or to the cooler side of a
   charcoal grill. Continue grilling, covered, until the pizzettas are crisp and the
   cheese is melted, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a platter and serve while you
   repeat with the remaining dough rounds. —Allison Ehri Kreitler