How to Make Really Good Homemade Pizza

The key to good homemade pizza is starting with really good pizza dough (I recommend trying our 'Best Pizza Dough' recipe) and following with good toppings. Technique is important here as well. Bon Appetit!

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• 18" pizza screen for baking
• 16"-18" metal pizza pan for cutting and serving.
• Pizza wheel
• Room temperature tomato sauce
• Shredded pizza cheese
• Dry oregano
• Grated parmesan cheese (any variety depending on taste)
• variety of toppings
• Cool pizza dough (not cold and not warm)

1. 
    
   Pizza dough ready to be stretched.

   Flour surface that you'll be working on. Place pizza dough on floured surface and dust with flour to prevent sticking. Create a fist with your hand. Using your fist, pound the middle of the dough, in a circular motion to compress the middle of the pizza dough, pushing the dough out toward the ends, creating what will be the crust.

2. 
    
   Stretched pizza dough.

   Gently lift dough from surface. Return both hands to fist formations and gently pull dough with fists away from each other, slightly turning the dough after each stretch. Each stretch will allow you to pull further away than the previous attempt. If dough is too cold, it will not be elastic enough to stretch, so don't force it otherwise it will tear. Let it sit for a while and try again. If dough is too warm with process will seem very easy but it won't stretch evenly, which causes thin spots and will end up tearing.

3. 
    
   Stretched dough on a wire screen with sauce applied.

   Place stretched pizza dough on the wire screen and evenly apply a thin layer of sauce. Using a small ladle prevents too much sauce from being applied. Use the back of the ladle to spread it out.

4. 
    
   This is a plain cheese pizza after 5 minutes in the 550-degree oven

   Now it's time for toppings! We add parmesan cheese and then an even layer of shredded pizza cheese. You can use plain shredded mozzarella or thin slices of fresh mozzarella, or whatever cheese you prefer. We have found that the Kroger store brand of pizza cheese actually had one of the better flavors because it's a mixture of low moisture mozzarella, smoked provolone, romano and parmesan cheeses. I top my cheese with a sprinkle of oregano. At this point you can add meats, veggies, whatever else you want to top your pizza with.

5. 
    
   Finished cheese pizza after 10 minutes.

   Place your pizza into a HOT oven...we use our highest setting of 550-degrees. Set your timer for 5 minutes. When the timer is up your dough is still very soft and cheese completely melted and beginning to bubble. Rotate the pizza 1/4 of a turn and set the timer for another 5 minutes. This will produce a crispy crust and slightly browned cheese. If you prefer yours less cooked, go for another 2-3 minutes rather than the full 5 minutes.

6. Let pizza sit for 2-3 minutes on the wire screen and then slide onto your metal pizza pan. Using your pizza wheel, score a line directly across the middle. Turn the pan a 1/4 rotation and score a second line directly across the middle, perpendicular to the first cut, creating 4 equal pieces. Now make two additional scores in the same fashion in the middle of two of the quarter pieces, creating 8 fairly equal slices. Serve and enjoy!

7. 
    
   White pie with spinach and garlic

   Here is an example of a white pie: No sauce is used in this pie. Mix an 8 ounce container of ricotta cheese with one egg, sprinkle of garlic salt, pepper and basil. Spread mixture across stretched dough. Sprinkle with grated cheese. We added sauteed garlic and spinach in this pie...you can leave it all cheese if you prefer. Top off with shredded pizza cheese. If you are using plain mozzarella, add slices of provolone to the top. Bake according to directions above. The sky is the limit! Have fun and enjoy!

Tips & Warnings

• Prepare toppings ahead of time. Don't allow sauce to sit on dough for too long because the moisture from the sauce will effect how well the crust cooks.
• Use good, fresh ingredients.
• Make your own pizza sauce! It's easy!
• Leftover meatballs make a great topping.
• Practice makes perfect...don't get discouraged.
• Pizza screens and pizza pans can be found online.
• Once dough is stretched, kids LOVE to help with the application of the toppings!
• Rips in pizza dough are very hard to completely repair.
• Too much moisture from ingredients will make the dough soggy and prevent it from cooking well.
• Avoid using baking stones and pizza pans for baking in regular ovens.

[Tauri]

on 11/23/2008 I love pizza with vegetables on it! I can't wait to try this!!! Yummy