I wanted to give y'all a little update on homemade pizza-making:The other night some friends and I got together to go over some information for an upcoming Periodontics exam...and hey! the girls gotta eat so we got some Whole Foods dough, a giant 12oz chunk of fresh mozzarella, and a jar of pasta sauce (because I find marinara to be a little too bland at times and didn't have enough time to doctor it up). Nishal brought some olives and mushrooms for toppings and in about 40 minutes we had a delish dinner.
Here's what you do:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
Dust your rolling area with flour
Cut the dough in half and roll each into a rectangle using more flour so the dough doesn't stick
Lay each half onto a baking sheet and poke holes with a fork
Blind bake (as in, throw the dough into the oven with no sauce yet) until they have almost cooked through - about 15 minutes. The crust will clearly be cooked on the outside - it'll be hard, like crust should be) and a light brown color - you'll also be able to slide it around when you shake the pan. Just don't go too crazy with this step or you're dinner will end up on the floor.
Take the crusts out and spoon over the sauce, layer on the fresh cheese, and sprinkle the toppings.
Bake until the cheese is melted - about 10 more minutes. When you take it out, throw on some chopped fresh herbs - we used oregano - but basil would also be nice. This adds a great freshness and POP.
Let rest for a while, then cut into squares and serve!
OOOO I just love homemade pizza! But, you can keep the perio studying...lol...I hear enough of it here while the hubby is studying that I could probably take the exam too!
ReplyDeleteOne of the best things I've found for "pizza sauce" is pesto. Classico makes 2 good ones: sun-dried tomato pesto & traditional basil pesto. You can get it at Wal-Mart. The little jar lasts me a long time cuz about 1-2Tbl will do the trick. They're good enough to spread on without any other sauce, mixed with some tomato paste, or added to any pizza sauce. I prefer either alone or with tomato paste - only cuz I'm too much of a bargain cook :)
Hi Sarah! So happy to have a new reader - and a commenter, too! That's a great idea: pesto on pizza. I've done that a few times and I always put a ton on the bread because I like how the olive oil soaks through.
ReplyDeleteBargain cooking is always a great thing with me - I will look for the Classico sauce next time I am at the store.
Thanks for your comments!