Pizza

I love pizza, and I especially like making it at home because I'm a fairly picky eater. For a long time I was looking for that perfect pizza dough recipe, one that would make a wonderfully thin, springy pizza with a crisp crust. And a few months ago, I found it - THE recipe.

This recipe calls for a slow rise in the fridge over several days to improve the flavour of the dough. However, instant yeast must be used for this method, and I prefer active yeast, so I skipped the whole fridge thing and let the dough rise traditionally in a warmed oven a couple of times. To modify the recipe, I used 2 tsp of active yeast, activating it in warm water (instead of ice cold) with a couple spoonfuls of sugar in it. I mixed the dough in a Kitchen Aid mixer, which makes the whole process ridiculously easy and results in a perfectly soft and elastic dough.

I also made the pizza sauce, not following any particular recipe, just adding what I wanted to the pan. I briefly fried some sliced onion and garlic in a couple glugs of olive oil, then added a tin of whole San Marzano tomatoes, a bit of white wine and a bay leaf. I let that simmer away, then pulsed it a few times in a blender with fresh basil from the garden, salt, pepper and a bit of sugar. I can't wait until our tomatoes are ripe so that I can use them future sauces.

The recipe made three balls of dough, so I froze the two I didn't use. For toppings, I just used what we had in the fridge/garden: grilled zucchini, leftover chicken, feta cheese, fresh basil, and chopped spinach from the garden. I baked the pizza at 425 degrees F until it was golden brown on top, about 12 minutes. Everything I've read says that pizza should be baked at the highest temperature possible, but in my experience, if you're not using a pizza stone (which I wasn't), the super hot temperature crisps the crust and browns the cheese before the interior of the pizza is fully cooked. 425 degrees was perfect, and the pizza was just right.