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1
Heat the oven as hot as it goes (500-550) with a pizza stone in the lower third for 1 hour.
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2
While the oven is heating, nestle the tomatoes in a small fry pan. Pour in the olive oil, and sprinkle in the thyme, a generous sprinkle of salt, and the sugar. Place on the stove over medium low heat for an hour, turning once or twice. (Alternatively, you can do this in the oven at 350 for about two hours if you are preparing in advance)
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3
Once the tomatoes are done, pour in a bowl tearing in large pieces. Leave about 2 TB of olive in the pan, reserve the rest. Turn the heat up to medium high and add the mushrooms. Sprinkle with salt and cook for 7-10 minutes until the oil is sucked up and the mushrooms are golden brown.
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4
Roll out the pizza dough very thin on top of a piece of parchment paper. Brush with some of the leftover tomato oil
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5
Spread with the ricotta and dot with the tomatoes and mushrooms. Season with salt and red pepper flakes to taste.
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6
Slide onto the pizza stone, parchment paper and all. Bake for 10 minutes until golden brown and crisp. If you have a convection oven, I typically turn it on as soon as I put the pizza in the oven.
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7
To make the ricotta: Mix the ingredients in a medium pot over medium heat. Stir occasionally until the curds begin to separate between 175-200 degrees. Pour into a colander lined with two layers of cheesecloth for about 5 minutes. Then gather up the cheesecloth and hold up and let drain for another minute or two. Dump into a bowl and season to taste with salt.
