Cut Costs with Pizza!
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Everyone loves Pizza! And it is really easy to make your own pizza for pennies on the dollar… even if you buy the $10 Costco pie. Best part, you can get super creative with the toppings for a truly gourmet pizza pie. My favorite is pesto, garlic and potato.
I like to produce several batches of pizza dough and keep them in the fridge for use, so when I want a pizza I can get it faster than any delivery!
The Recipe
Now I use a stand mixer to make my pizza, utilizing the dough hook and the paddle beater.
- 4 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoon pure olive oil
- 1 1/2 cup warm water (filtered or bottled water works best)
- 4 cups bread flour
- 2 teaspoon instant yeast
Dump into the mixer the 4 tbls of sugar, 2 tbls kosher salt and 2 tbls olive oil.
Heat the 1 1/2 cups filtered water (filtered or bottled water don’t have chlorine and are better for activating the yeast) to about 120° and pour into mixer.
Dump in 2 cups of bread flour, then the 2 teaspoon instant yeast and finally the last 2 cups of bread flour.
Set the mixer to low and mix with paddle attachment until all ingredients are mixed together (should resemble a thick paste).
Spray the dough hook with a non stick spray and switch the paddle for the hook attachment.
With the dough hook in place, set the mixer on medium and let it knead for 15 minutes (set your timer and go watch tv… or better yet, read a book).
When time is up, check the dough by taking a small piece and flattening it out in your fingers as thin as you can.
If you can get a thin membrane to the point where you can see light coming through (called a “window” in baker circles) then you are set.
Take out of the mixer and split dough in half. Roll each half into a tight ball.
Place dough into zip top freezer bags and toss in the fridge for future consumption (it will rise in the fridge, so besure to use the gallon size bags).
Let sit in the fridge overnight for enhanced flavor (yeast will be doing its thing to make it taste even better).
If you just can’t wait, you can roll the dough out and cook up right a way, or wait 15 - 30 minutes to let rise a bit and roll out.
When ready to cook
Set oven to 400°
Roll out dough into pizza form (will make about a 24 inch pie). You can do this with a rolling pin, but I like to do it by working the dough in my hand and then tossing it over my head to even and stretch it out. Of course that’s just because it makes me feel professional and I like to show off :).
Top pizza with sauce, cheese and toppings and place on pizza pan. If using a metal one, I like to spray it quick with non stick spray just for good measure. If using a pizza stone, dust with flour and/or corn meal. Brush a little olive oil on dough that is not covered by sauce and toppings. Place in oven and bake for 15 minutes.
When done, remove from oven, slice, share and enjoy!
Bonus tip:
My family enjoys what we call “pizza bread” Basically, I roll out the pizza, but then just cook the dough with out any toppings (I do spray it lightly with olive oil and poke a bunch of holes in it with a fork to prevent large bubbles). When it is fresh out of the oven, I rub a little butter on it and dust with a pinch of salt. It is delicious!
Enjoy!
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I think that pizza prices are getting rediculous.