Homemade Pizza

Homemade pizza. Toppings are bacon, cremini mushrooms and kumato tomatoes.

The following makes two thin crust pizzas. The original recipe can be found in the book “Cooking: A Commonsense Guide”.

Dough

• 1 sachet dry yeast (about 8 grams)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 2.5 cups all purpose flour
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup warm water

Two pizza doughs. Roughly shaped into a rectangle.

1. In a small bowl add the yeast, sugar and salt to the warm water. Cover. Leave for ten minutes or until foamy.

2. In a large bowl, add flour and make a well.  Add the yeast mixture to the hole and gradually add flour to yeast mixture to form dough.

3. Place dough on a clean floured surface. Knead the dough for several minutes.

4. Split the dough into two halves. Roll each dough ball into approximately 1/4 inch thickness. (Flour your rolling device, be it a rolling pin, jar, glass tumbler, etc.)

5. On a lined baking sheet, brush 1 tbsp of oil to prevent dough from sticking and to help form a golden crust. Place pizza dough on tray and tuck in edges to form a crust. Repeat for other pizza dough.

Sauce:

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 14 oz crushed tomatos
• 1 tsp basil
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp sugar

Pizza sauce.

1. In a pot, add onions and oil. Cook until onions are soft (about 5 minutes).

2. Add in remaining ingredients. Simmer on low to medium heat until sauce thickens to a consistency similar to pizza sauce (about 15 to 20 minutes).

3. Spread half of the sauce onto each pizza dough.

Pizza dough with sauce.

Assembly:

1. Add a layer of cheese to the pizza and sauce. (I used a mixture of grated cheddar and mozzarella.)

2. Add the toppings of your choice (e.g. pepperoni, pineapple, feta cheese, olives, shrimp, ham, bacon, mushrooms, green peppers, tomatoes, onions, ground beef, etc.). TIP: Do not overload pizza with toppings to allow for more even baking in the oven.

3. Top with a light layer of more cheese.

4. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in a 415º oven or until cheese is melted, bubbling and golden brown.

5. Let cool at least 5 minutes before eating.

Pizza imediately before baking.

Pizza immediately after baking.

The second pizza, which has bacon, green peppers, onions and tomatoes as its toppings.

A special thank you to Andrew who made much of the pizzas.

Hot Cocoa

Hot cocoa.

The following recipe makes one mug of steaming hot cocoa.

• 1.5 cup skim milk
• 1.5 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1.5 tbsp sugar (brown or white)
• a pinch of cinnamon
• a tiny splash of pure vanilla extract
• a few marshmallows for extra sweetness

Milk with cocoa powder, vanilla, sugar and cinnamon simmering in a pot.

1. Add all the ingredients (except for the marshmallows) into a pot and bring to a boil. Stir often as milk burns rather easily.
2. Pour hot cocoa into a big mug.
3. Add in a few marshmallows.
4. Sprinkle a tiny amount of  cinnamon on top of the marshmallows.
5. Let cool for a few minutes before taking the first sip.