Homemade Pizza

There is nothing like the taste of homemade pizza.  The smell,  the crispy base and the delicious toppings.  Yum,  yum.  Yes,  I've had many pizzas over the years.  Darren's first job after we were married was as a delivery driver for a well known pizza chain.  He was there for five years eventually becoming a store manager.

As you can imagine,  we went off pizza for many years.  We'd just eaten too many during those five years.  When we tried the takeaway pizzas again about two years ago ,  we were disappointed.  The topping were scarce,  you now pay extra for pineapple and no matter how quickly you pick them up,  they are lukewarm by the time you eat them.

We started off making our own pizzas years ago using pita bread as the base.  They are cheap and ready made.  As our girls got older we needed something more filling.  I went to a demonstration class at a local shop called The Mixing Bowl where I learnt to make bread,  rolls,  hot cross buns and pizza bases from scratch.  Here's Anne's recipe from The Mixing Bowl -

2 teaspoons of dry yeast
450 grams of unbleached bread flour - I use no name plain flour
2 teaspoons of bread improver
1 1/2 teaspoons of salt
1 teaspoon of sugar
300 - 310 mls of warm water
2 teaspoons of olive oil.

Mix all dry ingredients together in a bowl or with a mixer
Add the warm water and oil and mix until combined
Tip the dough onto a floured bench / board and knead for 30 seconds to a minute.
Place back into a bowl and cover with a plastic bag. 
Put the bowl in a warm place until it has risen and doubled in size.
While the dough is rising,  prepare the toppings
Tip the dough onto a floured surface and divide into two.
Roll out into a circle keeping it floured and place onto a lightly greased pizza tray.  Press the dough out to the edges of the tray.
Put your sauce and toppings on.
Cook for approx 20 minutes at 220 degrees Celsius until brown underneath.

NOTES -

*  I make two double batches of the dough which gives me dough for eight pizzas.  Six are frozen for future use

*  Dough can be frozen after the first rising.  Cool the dough down first then wrap in cling wrap and freeze

*  My girls and I like a mixture of tomato and bbq sauce on the base with mixed herbs,  cooked chicken,  cheese,  tomato,  pineapple and cheese.  Darren likes capsicum,  chilies,  mushrooms,  chicken and cheese.

*  When we see ham at a cheap price,  we freeze into 300 gram lots in snap lock bags.

*  Pizza trays with lots of holes in the base are excellent for a crispy base.

The finished product

Mixing the dough

Letting it rise

The dough has doubled in size