PIZZA
Kinda strange to have a pizza recipe on a site devoted to spice! But (just about) Friday night at our home is Pizza night! I start off the bread in the morning before I head out to the studio and tackle it when I get back home to the kids in the afternoon.
The toppings are pretty standard as well… 1x lots of cheese, 1x classic pepperoni, 1x with “the works” which includes pepperoni, chorizo, artichokes, olives, jalapenos, mushrooms, red onions & capsicum. And of course – a drizzle of our scrumptious Hot Stuff!
DOUGH
Warm water 1.5 cups
Yeast 1 capful (about 1 heaped tbsp)
Sugar 1/2 tsp
Salt 1/1 tsp
Olive Oil – a generous splash
* Plain Flour 4 cups
SAUCE
Crushed tomatoes in juice 1 can
Crushed garlic 2 tbsps (about 5-6 large cloves)
Basil 1 tsp
Oregano 1 tsp
Fennel Powder 1/4 tsp
Salt 1/2 tsp
Olive Oil – a splash
Mix it all up. (I don’t even bother cooking this sauce most times as I’m that lazy!)
Add some paprika to liven things up a bit.
– In a large bowl, add the yeast, sugar, salt & olive oil to the warm water.
– Stir and let sit till the yeast bubbles into a nice fragrant mass.
– Add the flour and mix with a wooden spoon till it all nearly comes together.
– Spray some oil onto your hands and knead a few times to make sure that everything is well mixed.
– Using the same bowl, spray the sides and put the ball of kneaded dough. Cover with a Samp tea-towel and let sit in a warm, comfy spot. (In the winter months, I have been known to leave the light on in the oven and sitting the ball of dough to proof there.)
– When nice and fluffy and about doubled in size, pull out the bowl and knead a few times on an oiled surface.
– Divide into 4 portions for nice, large pizzas, or 8 smaller individual ones.
– Sprinkle some flour onto the kitchen bench and using your fingers shape into a flat disk. (I find that hand thrown / molded pizzas to be waaaaay softer and fluffier than rolled ones. They also hold the sauce better.)
– Slather with sauce.
– Sprinkle grated cheese and dollops of mozzarella for extra stretchy gooey-ness.
– Add toppings of choice.