Pizza Party!

Kids love to make homemade pizza!

Pizza is so easy to make at home

It was Danielle's birthday! So Gianna came over to be babysat so that Danielle, Cameron, Joe and Neian could go out to dinner. We made pizza, with some whole wheat flour added, and Lilah and Gianna each got to make their own pie. So did I--guess which one that was!!

Here's the recipe.

Easy as Pie--Pizza!

(we doubled the ingredients to get the 3 big pies that we made)

Dough:

1 package (.25 oz) yeast

1 cup warm water (about 110 degrees F)

2 teaspoons honey

2 and 1/2 cups AP unbleached flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons olive oil

Dissolve the yeast in a large bowl with the warm water and the honey. Let it rest for 10 minutes, until it gets foamy and bubbly. In a medium bowl, combine the unbleached flour and the whole wheat flour with the salt. Add the olive oil to the liquid ingredients and then add the dry to the wet and stir to make a stiff dough. Cover and let rise for 30 minutes in a warm place until the dough has doubled in  size.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface and knead until the dough is smooth. Then roll or pat it out into a round for a large pizza pan (or 2 cake pans or free form on a baking sheet.

Toppings:

8 ounces pizza sauce

2 cups shredded mozzarella

3 to 6 ounces pepperoni

1/2 cup grated Parmesan

Assorted sauteed vegetables like onion, pepper, mushrooms, zucchini--whatever you have on hand

Optional: pesto sauce, fresh mozzarella, olives, anchovies

Olive oil spray

The secret to this pizza is that the mozzarella goes on the dough before the sauce or the toppings. It helps to keep the cheese from getting too hot and overcooked into a solid slab that slides down your chin when you take a bite. So--lightly oil the pan with olive oil spray and shape the dough however you want it. Put on the shredded mozzarella, then the sauce and then any other toppings you want.  Top with the grated Parmesan and bake for 20-25 minutes until the crust is brown and crisp on the bottom.

When the parents came back, they said that it smelled better at home than it did at the restaurant!