There’s nothing better than pizza made right in your own oven. It’s a satisfying and easy experience that will delight your family and your guests. No more waiting for a lukewarm dinner to be delivered late to your door, or running to the nearest pizza parlour to wait in a line of hungry and grumbling patrons. Or even worse, pulling a tasteless and frozen supermarket pizza out of the freezer, and waiting for it to cook. When you make your own, you can ensure everything is fresh as you are in control of the contents and you can time it to be cooked and ready to eat when you have planned.
Many supermarkets have ready-made pizza dough in their freezer or deli sections. But it’s easy to make from scratch too, and so much more delicious made fresh.
Easy Pizza Dough
Makes two 10 inch pizzas
- 1 ½ cups warm water
- 1 package of active dry yeast
- 3 ½ cups flour
- 2 tbsp olive or vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
In your large mixer bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water and set aside for five minutes. Using your mixer paddle attachment, or a wooden spoon and your hands, add the oil, flour, sugar and salt. You may need to change to your kneading paddles, or you can knead with your hands on a lightly-floured board for 10 minutes. When smooth, place in an oil-coated bowl, turning to ensure the entire ball of dough gets covered, then place plastic wrap or a tea towel on top and set aside to rise, about 1 to ½ hours, giving you lots of time to relax with a cup of tea before getting your toppings ready.
When the dough has doubled in size, pre-heat your oven to 450 degrees F. Punch down the dough, then divide into two. Let rest another ten minutes, then roll out, working with one at a time, stretch and turn the dough until it fits your pizza pans. Now add your choice of toppings, starting with a thin layer of oil, then tomato or pizza sauce spread liberally over the entire crust. Add mozzarella or jack cheese, followed by pepperoni slices, mushrooms, olives, green peppers, pineapple and ham chunks, crumbled pre-cooked ground beef – the options are endless and you can put whatever you want on them. Add more cheese after the toppings, then sprinkle spices or herbs. Cook separately for 10 to 15 minutes.
For those who prefer the healthiest pizza possible, 2 cups of the flour can be substituted with whole wheat flour. And there are endless topping possibilities if you prefer a vegetarian variety as well. Slices of broccoli, mushrooms, peppers, red onion, olives, capers, pine nuts, eggplant, and asparagus tips are just a few choices you can consider.
It’s probably a good idea to experiment first on yourself or a small group of family or friends before hosting a dinner party for several guests. You’ll want to get confident about actual cooking times, what toppings work best, and other details. But once you have the process perfected, you will find you never want to go back to a purchased pizza again!
