The Baking Project: "Home Made Pizzas!"

Now really...WHO out there doesn't like pizza?!  When Robby and I traveled to Italy for our 25th wedding anniversary, we ate pizza from Venice to Florence to Rome.  And the wonderful thing about pizza in Italy is that they prepare it differently in every region.  And guess what?!  I LOVED all of it!  One year for Valentine's Day, Robby and I stayed home, made home made pizza, opened a bottle of wine and watched The Godfather saga.  I realize that movie choice may appear a little strange to watch on the holiday of LOVE, but it's one of our favorite movies and we beat the crowds and reservations associated with that holiday.  So, what I would like to do today is share with you my love for pizza...

Since Hurricane Isaac had driven most of my family in town for the weekend, we decided that Friday night would be "Pizza Night".  The first thing I needed to do was to prepare the dough for my crusts...

The recipe I use for this pizza dough can be found on the back of the Fleischmann's Pizza Crust Yeast package.

The only change I make is to use the smaller amount of flour listed.  And you can chose to make a whole wheat crust if you'd like; just substitute whole wheat flour for the white.


Make sure you put your dough in a plastic or glass bowl to rise and cover it with plastic wrap.  While the dough is rising, you can get your other pizza ingredients out and begin preparing them.

                                          You can chose any items you like for your pizzas.

                                           Fresh ingredients are best for home made pizzas.

    I use marinara on most of our pizzas but I really like to use pesto on the veggies ones!

While I am preparing my ingredients, my oven is turned up to 500 degrees, with the pizza stone in there heating up too...

I like to use a pizza stone to bake my pizzas on but if you do not have one, you can use a  thick baking sheet.  But try to add one these to your kitchen supplies if you can; they can be found at most kitchen shops or online.

And next, the FUN part begins...creating your pizzas!

Once you have rolled your dough out on a floured surface you can begin to place the ingredients on top of it.  This pizza is a veggie pizza.  It is first topped with pesto and then I added sliced, fresh tomatoes, roasted bell peppers, onions, black and green olives and fresh spinach leaves.  I then topped it with LOTS of mozzarella cheese and then popped it into the oven to bake for about 10 minutes (or until the cheese melts).

YUM!  My family had a Pizza Feast.  I made a pepperoni pizza, pepperoni and sausage, full house (with everything) and a veggie pizza.

And no meal around here is complete without dessert!  Ryan was put in charge of making a coffee flavored gelato. 

It was Ryan who originally asked for a gelato maker a couple of years ago for Christmas.  Robby decided to also purchase himself one...and later bought one for a friend as a present.  This stuff is just ABSOLUTELY YUMMY!

And so the next time you are sitting at home contemplating popping that frozen pizza in the oven or sending out for delivery, think again...try making home made pizzas instead.  The ingredients are fresh and delicious and they taste MUCH better than frozen ones and are less expensive than take out; our family (6 people...) ate four large pizzas (with left-overs...) with a tub of gelato for less than 50 bucks!  AND...It is an activity that the whole family can participate in; Now, what's better than some quality family time?!

                                                        HAPPY BAKING TO YOU!!!