Pizza Dough

I bought a really great edition of Donna Hay Magazine a couple of years ago that had a special about pizza and since then, we have enjoyed kick ass pizza once a month or so. Prior to that, we used kebab bread as bases or thin crust pizza bases which out here are hard to find. In any case, it takes less time to make your own base then it does to go down to the shop and buy them, is way cheaper and the result is infinitely better. I have even converted my brother to hand made bases who usually mocks me and tells me that what I cook is ghey. A few things to consider:

• the first time you make them, it is a pain but it gets easier.
• make the bases as big or small as you wish.
• fold the bases over to make calzones.
• make more dough then you need, roll out, place between sheets of baking paper, cover in cling wrap and freeze on a flat surface.
• alternatively freeze the dough in balls.
• don't use too many toppings, less is way better and you get a crunchier result.
• don't put cheese all the way to the edge, leave a border.
• save time on making pizza sauce and just use 1 tbs of tomato passatta, (passatta is pureed tomato, its cheap and tasty), if you need more flavour in your pizza, add fresh herbs.
• alternatively use garlic oil on the base
• if you do want to make a lot of effort, try something like this Oven Roasted Cherry Tomato Pizza Sauce

1 cup luke warm water

1 small packet of yeast (2 tsp)

1 tsp sugar

1 pinch salt

375gms plain flour 

1 tbs olive oil

Combine the water sugar and yeast in a bowl/container, allow to sit for about 5 minutes until it bubbles/foams. Pour the flour into a large mixing bowl, add the salt, oil and yeast water and stir with a wooden spoon to combine. Turn out onto a floured bench top and knead for about 5 minutes or until in is shiny and elastic. Watch here for a demo, it's 7 seconds long. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough inside, cover with a tea towel and allow to prove for 30mins. This amount of dough will make 3 large pizza bases or 6 to 8 little ones. Divide into however many portions you want and roll out one at a time. Do this on a floured bench and is easier if you have flour on the rolling pin. Dust you pizza tray with flour or semolina/polenta, top with whatever you want and bake in a hot oven (230C) for about 20mins.

Garlic oil and tomato passatta