For the Love of Food (and Eating): Summer Pizza Night

Last night we got some much needed relief from the heat we've been having. What better way to celebrate but to have a homemade pizza night? Making bread dough from scratch has become a bit of a passion of mine, and pizza dough is no exception. I don't own a fancy stand mixer, mixing and kneading dough by hand happens to be a great stress reliever and the results are delicious. I used a basic New York style thin-crust recipe, and doubled it so everyone could make individual pizzas. Pizza night is a great way to get the kids in the kitchen. Giving kids the option to customize their dinner is a great way to interact while giving them healthy choices, and besides, who doesn't love pizza?

Pizza at home might seem like a daunting task, but here I've broken it down into manageable steps to minimize the workload.

Step 1: Acquiring ingredients- I always like to go into pizza making with a game plan, and thinking out what kind of toppings I want on my pizzas before heading to the store to pick up ingredients. For the kids, I pick up their favorite pizza toppings: pepperoni, Canadian bacon, black olives, pineapple, mushrooms, green bell peppers. I also get some special ingredients like fresh mozzarella, Andouille sausage, jalapeños and baby arugula. Don't forget your pizza sauce and cheese! I knew that some of my pizza toppings would be sourced from my own garden, I chose some zucchini and basil, plus some cherry tomatoes from the Farmer's Market and a sweet onion out of my pantry.

Step 2: Starting your pizza dough- Pizza dough requires 2 rises, and thus is the most "demanding" ingredient of the pizza making process. Whether you make your dough by hand or in a machine, I use bread flour to get a nice chewy crust. Here is my basic pizza dough recipe:

Thin-Crust Pizza Dough
Makes 2 12" pizzas

1 packet (2 1/4 tsp.) active dry yeast
2 tsp. sugar
1 cup warm water
3-4 cups bread flour
1/4 c olive oil, plus 1 Tbsp.
2 tsp. kosher salt

There are different methods to mixing your dough, but here is the way I do it by hand. Dissolve the sugar in the warm water and sprinkle the yeast in, allowing the yeast to activate. Start with 3 cups of flour, add your olive oil and salt and mix until most of the lumps are removed, incorporating the oil into the flour. After your yeast has bloomed (it should look foamy on the top) pour into the flour mixture and mix well, adding more flour until it comes together without being sticky. Let your dough rest on a floured board while you clean out your bowl and oil it with about a tablespoon of olive oil. Knead dough on a floured board for about 5-7 minutes until you can form it into a ball, then transfer it into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap and set it in a warm corner of your kitchen to allow to rise to double its volume. This may take anywhere from 45-90 minutes depending on how warm your kitchen is and how active the yeast is. While the dough is doing its first rise, lets move on to step 3.

Step 3: Clean up and mise en place- While your dough is rising, take the time to clean up and transition from dough to toppings. I use a large butcher's block cutting board to work my dough, so I scrape the excess flour and dough off with a metal bench scraper and set it aside for later. Then I wash and cut my vegetables, slice or set out my meats and put out all the rest of the toppings in bowls and create a pizza-building assembly line. This is also a good time to set the pizza stone in the bottom of the oven and crank it up high, typically around 475 degrees. The hotter your oven, the faster your pizza will cook, which minimizes soggy crusts.

Hopefully by the time you have gotten yourself organized for pizza making your dough has completed its first rise and is ready to be punched down and divided. By doubling the recipe we hade enough dough for a dozen breadsticks, a large pizza, and 3 small pizzas.

Step 4: Ready your dough for its second rise- Punch down your dough and set it out on your board, using your metal bench scraper to divide it into 2 or 3. Fold the ends under to form a ball and roll on your board to create a tight skin. Set aside and cover with plastic or a floured towel and let rise about 20 minutes. To create breadsticks divide your dough into 12 pieces and roll into logs, then let rise about 20 minutes before brushing with olive oil and baking.

Step 5: Stretch your dough and decorate- After its second rising, your dough is ready to be made into pizzas. Stretch your dough into a relatively thin disc and place on a pizza peel dusted with corn meal. The corn meal helps your crust slide off your peel and onto your stone, as well as prevents the crust from sticking to your pizza stone. Add your sauce, cheese, and toppings, being careful not to overload your pizza. Balance is key for a great pizza.

Step 6: Bake, cut and enjoy!- Bake your pizza on the pizza stone for 10-15 minutes until the crust is crispy, brown, and delicious. Remove using your pizza peel, let rest for a few minutes before slicing with a pizza cutter. Careful, it will be hot! Your patience will be rewarded. Too many times have I been overly anxious to bite into a fresh hot pizza to singe the flesh off the roof of my mouth instead of waiting a few moments for it to be a more friendly eating temperature. After baking is a great time to add heat-sensitive ingredients like fresh tomatoes, basil, or dressed lettuces.

And that's it! You've made pizza at home!