By Kiley Garrett
I’m a huge fan of pizza to the point where it’s slightly concerning. It is my go-to food and when I can’t decide what to eat, the first thing I think of is pizza. I tend to go for the Jack’s brand frozen pizzas, because they’re good and only $2.50 at Walmart. Occasionally, however, I want something higher quality and this recipe is something that I love to make for date nights or when I have some extra time on my hands. The best thing about this recipe is that you won’t need any special equipment, just your hands, a bowl and a pizza pan.
The first thing you’ll want to do is start on the dough – this process is the longest and you can make the sauce while it’s rising. It’s a fairly simple dough, using only water, flour, sugar, yeast, oil and salt. I like using all-purpose flour because it’s the most common, but you can use most flours to make this dough. If you plan on making a lot of bread items, I would recommend splurging on a jar of yeast as opposed to the packets. It’ll save you money in the long run but tends to expire within a year, so if you know you don’t make a lot of things with yeast just buy the packets. I usually use olive oil, but vegetable oil works just as well and is less expensive.
While your dough is rising, start on the sauce. If you want to make you own sauce, you can make it from fresh tomatoes, but I usually just use a mixture of tomato sauce and tomato paste.
For toppings it’s chef’s choice, but I like to buy a good quality sliced ham or pepperoni from a deli and if they have it, a nice mozzarella. If the deli doesn’t have it, Walmart usually has mozzarella cheese for a reasonable price. Without any further introduction, here’s the best homemade pizza recipe.
Dough Ingredients:
- 2 ½ cups warm water
- ¼ cup Sugar
- 3 tsp yeast
- ¼ cup oil
- 6 cups flour
- 2 tsp salt
Instructions:
First, you want to bloom your yeast. Mix your warm water (about 110 degrees Fahrenheit) with your sugar and yeast and let it sit for about five minutes before adding your oil. Add your flour and salt and mix it by hand or with a wooden spoon until it comes together enough for you to scrape it onto a well-floured countertop to kneed. After seven to 10 minutes, return your now smooth and tacky – not sticky, tacky – ball of dough to an oiled bowl. Cover it for about an hour in a warm place until it’s at least doubled in size and that’ll give you time to prepare your sauce. This is a double portion, so divide it in half before rolling it out onto a pizza pan.
Tomato Sauce Ingredients:
- 1 can tomato sauce
- 1 can tomato paste
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp dried basil
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp crushed red pepper
- 1 tsp black pepper
Instructions:
Combine all your ingredients into a medium pot and bring to a simmer for 30 minutes. Taste and adjust to your preferences. Once your dough is rolled out on the pizza pan, create a small lip around the edge and spoon your sauce on and spread it evenly until you can just barely see the dough underneath. Top with whatever you want and bake at 425 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until the dough is golden brown, cooked through and the cheese is completely melted.
