Who doesn’t love pizza night? Our nearest pizza joint is forever away and they don’t deliver to the sticks, so homemade pizza is the only option. Well, I guess there are box pizzas, but once you realize how delicious and easy making your own pizza is, really, there are no other options. The beauty of homemade pizza is anything goes with toppings. Ang usually makes 2, so we have leftovers for school lunches. 3 cheese for the littles and an everything but the kitchen sink for the rest of us, with extra veggies in the middle for mama. Give yourself about 1.5 hours for this recipe so you can get 2 rises in on the dough. In a pinch, it still works well with just one rise. The crust will just be a little more dense.
INGREDIENTS – DOUGH
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon instant yeast
¼ cup ground flax
1 ¼ cup warm water (but not boiling)
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 teaspoon sat
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 ½ cups all purpose flour
METHOD
In a small bowl, combine whole wheat flour, yeast and ground flax.
In a large bow, combine sugar, salt, oil and warm water. Stir to ensure sugar and salt are fully dissolved. Add whole wheat flour mixture, stir to combine. It will be somewhat soupy. If your mixture is dry, add a bit (up to ¼ cup) of more warm water.
Add all purpose flour and mix until fully incorporated. You may have to mix by hand if not using a stand mixer. Knead several times until a smooth ball forms. It may be a bit tacky yet, but as long as the dough doesn’t stick in large globs to your hands, it will be good.
Cover and place in a warm location to rise for 15 minutes. In the oven with the light on is perfect.
Prepare your pizza pan. We prefer a pizza stone, but an aluminum pan with an edge works well. If using a stone, coat in a thin layer of cooking spray or oil. A thin piece of parchment paper on the aluminum pan save the oil step and some of the cleanup.
Turn risen dough onto a prepared pan and gently work it into the shape of the pan, leaving enough for an edge. Cover and return to the warm oven and rise for another 15 minutes. In these short rises, you will not see huge dough gains, but the dough will become more manageable. At the end of the 15 minutes, remove the shaped pizza dough from the oven and preheat oven to 450F.
Prepare your toppings. Here is a list of some of our favourites. It varies based on season and what we have on hand.
Low Sodium Tomato Sauce
Lazy SV Polish Sausage
Lazy SV Farmer Sausage
Bell Peppers
Kale
Spinach
Basil
Bacon Bits (real bacon bits, no simulated ones here!)
Mozza Cheese
Cheddar Cheese
Parmesan Cheese
Ang is not allowed pineapples, olives, fried onions or pickled pepperoncinis on the pizza, but loves them! So she will add them after her pieces are served!
Once your pizza is dressed, place in preheated over and bake for 24 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Let rest for a few minutes before slicing. Goes great with a Caesar or leaf salad.
