Cooking With The Kids - Pizza!

It's Half Term here.  The children are out of school for a week.  That means there will be lots of hungry kids to feed and entertain.  I have an idea how you can do both at the same time.... make PIZZA!

I know you can have pizza delivered but it cost a fortune and pizza is really easy to make.  Honestly, it is!   You can even make the dough the night before and let it rise in the refrigerator while you sleep.  

All you need is this simple pizza dough, a little pasta sauce, and a few toppings.  It only takes a small amount of each ingredient to make a great pizza.  Here's your chance to use up that odd bit of bacon, the leftover sausage and any veggie that takes your fancy.  

You can use any cheese you have on hand.  I made my pizza with cheddar.  Fussy eaters can customize their pizza.  If Hector doesn't like tomato sauce he can leave it off.  You can use BBQ sauce to make a Sloppy Joe pizza.  The options are endless.  Have I convinced you? Good!  Let's make the dough.

This is all you will need to make pizza dough:

1 packet dried yeast
1 cup warm water
1 teaspoon sugar
2 1/2 cups of flour - strong bread flour is best 
3 Tablespoons vegetable oil 

In a large mixing bowl combine 1 packet of dried yeast,  a pinch of sugar, and 1 cup of warm water.  Let the mixture sit in a warm place until the yeast begins to foam and bubble.  

Then add 2 Tablespoons of oil and 2 cups of flour.  Stir with a wooden spoon until you have a rough dough.  Sprinkle some of the remaining flour on to your work surface and knead the dough, adding more flour as required to make a smooth, slightly springy dough.  It should take about 5 or 10 minutes.

Pour the remaining 1 Tablespoon of oil into the mixing bowl and grease the sides and bottom of the bowl.  Place the kneaded dough into the bowl and turning the dough ball around to cover it with the oil.  Place a bit of plastic wrap over the bowl and leave the dough to rise.  (You can put the dough in to the fridge now and use it the next day.  Let the dough come to room temperature before making the pizzas.)

The longer you let the dough rise, the better the crust will taste but you can use it once it has doubled in size.   I like to make individual pan pizzas in my smallest cast iron skillet.  You can make one big pizza if you like.  Use a large baking sheet to make thin crust pizza.  Just make sure to lightly oil any pan before putting the crust on it.  Make the crust as thick or as thin as you like.... it's all up to you!  

Start constructing the pizza by spreading on a bit of pasta sauce, then adding as many toppings as you like.  If you are using sausages, ground beef, bacon or veggie mince, you must cook them before adding them to your pizza.  Dice  or  thinly slice any vegetables you are using for toppings.  Cheese can be thinly sliced or grated but always sprinkle it on last.  It helps to keep the meat and vegetables moist and tender.

Bake the pizza at 200C/400F for 20 - 30 minutes.  Baking time will depend on the thickness of your crust and toppings.   The pizza crust should be golden brown and sound slightly hollow when tapped.  That's all there is to it.  Slice, eat and enjoy!   You've got great pizza and not a cardboard box in sight!