There'a s million way to make homemade pizza as a tasty, cost-effective and likely healthier alternative to takeout or frozen pizzas. But we think baking it on a pizza stone helps the crust to bake evenly and stay extra crispy. Pampered Chef (one of our fave kitchen brands) stoneware comes in a variety of shapes and sizes — you can bake a pizza on a round or rectangular flat stone or in a bar pan. Never used a stone before? Let us show you how.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Sprinkle the pizza stone with flour or cornmeal.
Place the dough on the center of the stone and pat it into a circle or rectangle, depending on the shape of the stone. Roll the dough out to about 1/2 inch from the edges of a flat stone. For a bar pan, press and stretch the dough with your hands until it reaches the rim of the pan. Flour the rolling pin or your hands as necessary to prevent sticking.
Spread pizza sauce on the crust, add other toppings and sprinkle with cheese.
Place the stone in the oven and bake the pizza for 15 to 20 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the cheese has melted.
Tip
Prebake the pizza crust for 5 minutes before adding toppings if you are using a lot of vegetables, then top the crust and bake 10 to 15 more minutes. The water content of the vegetables can cause the crust to become soggy if the crust is not prebaked.
If you own a pizza peel, preheat the stone in the oven and assemble the pizza on the peel. Slide the pizza from the peel onto the stone in the oven. Check the pizza a few minutes early since the stone will already be hot.
Warning
Do not use soap to wash pizza stones.
References
Writer Bio
Petra Wakefield is a writing professional whose work appears on various websites, focusing primarily on topics about science, fitness and outdoor activities. She holds a Master of Science in agricultural engineering from Texas A&M University.