Homemade Pizza!

We love pizza, especially a homemade one!

Ok... who doesn't like a homemade pizza?

I love making bread, and pizza dough is no exception. There is just something about the aroma of the dough as it sits there rising... *sigh*
I'll get to the recipe I use for the dough, a little later.

We make our pizzas a bit different that the ones you might find at your local pizza parlor. For one thing, we rarely (by rarely, I mean pretty much never) use a sauce. Instead, we combine a bit of olive oil, some fresh basil or dry Italian seasoning (whichever we have on hand), a little fresh minced garlic, and a bit of salt. After we've adequately stretched, tossed, & rolled the dough, we brush some of the olive oil mixture onto the dough. We, then, top it with CHEEEEZE!!!
Yum! We usually use a ton of shredded mozzarella and we love adding some shredded asiago,  and smoked provolone to the mix.
For the kids, that's it. Just cheese...

...and for the grown-ups... we add various toppings: olives, bell peppers, red onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, etc.

This time, we just used olives red onions, and bell peppers.

 This year, the night before Halloween, I plan on making pizzas again. We usually carve our pumpkins the night before, and I think pizza will just add to the fun. I am going to let the kids make their own individual pizzas... with a twist! Patricia from Worst Mom Ever shared the her Pumpkin Pizza (not what you are thinking... check it out!) that she and her genius daughter made. I love the idea sooo much, that I want to make them with my kids! We will buy ham and veggies and cut them in a way that the kids can make Jack-O-Lantern faces, then let them get creative! I can't wait!

Here's my recipe for pizza dough:

Pizza Dough
What You Need:
2 cups warm (not hot) water
3 TB olive oil (or other veg oil, but I like olive, but have used canola with no problems)
1 tsp sugar
2 1/2 tsp salt,
2 1/4 tsp (or 1 package) yeast (You can use regular, rapid rise or bread machine yeast. It really doesn't matter. Regular just might need a little more rising time, is all.)
5-6 cups flour (you can use all purpose- I do all the time. Bread flour is better. You can sub a couple cups of whole wheat flour for 2 cups of the white, if you like, too.)

Cornmeal for dusting (optional)

What You Do:
Well, you can take the easy way out, and dump everything in a bread machine on the dough cycle in the order of the manufacturer's directions. Just start with 5 cups of flour and peek at it as it mixes the dough. Adjust the amount as it goes, adding a bit more while it is still mixing, if the dough looks sticky.
 ~or~
You can do it the fun, hands on way!

1. Get a large bowl. Add the warm water, olive oil, sugar, salt, and yeast. Try to add the salt in a separate side, away from the yeast. Add 1-1/2 cups of the flour.
2. Stir until everything is well mixed. 
3. Add about 1/2 cup of flour at a time until you can no longer stir, then start kneading in the rest, just until the dough is manageable and no longer sticky.
4. Cover the dough and let it rise in a warm spot for around 45 minutes, or until double.
5. Punch the dough down and divide it into 3-4 pieces, depending on how thick or thin you will want your crust and what size you will want your pizza. (As a reference, it will make 3 med/large pizzas with an average thickness crust.)
6. Let the dough pieces sit, or if you are making them ahead, wrap tightly and refrigerate or freeze. If using now, let the sough sit, covered, for about 20 minutes while you shred your cheese, cut your toppings, and prepare your sauce (or olive oil & herb mixture). Oh, and preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
7. Once that's finished, stretch and toss (if you are brave enough) your dough, or just roll it out. Then top it. 
8. Sprinkle a bit of cornmeal on your pizza pan or pizza stone, and stick it in the oven.
9. Bake approx. 15 minutes, or until it is finished and the dough is yummy and bubbly. 
10. Remove, let it cool a bit (so the cheese doesn't come off when you try to slice it), slice, and serve.
11. Enjoy!

How do you like your pizza? Sauce? No Sauce? Veggies? All meat? What crust variations do you like?
Oh, and if you have a copycat recipe for Round Table's sauce... I'd love for you to share!


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