Pizza

Your complete guide to pizza
Making pizza is cheap and easy. Outside you'd normally buy a large pizza for $20, but this recipe costs less than $15 depending on what you use as you can use just about anything to make pizza. I got the recipe from the Taste website (see sources).

Photography by Mark O'Meara

Photography by Mark O'Meara

Let's make pizza!

One of Italy's greatest gifts to the world, pizza is the ultimate family food for eating and making – from kneading to stirring, there's a job for everyone. Once you've mastered our classic dough and traditional tomato sauce, get into our tasty toppings, or be inventive and make up your own.

Here's what you need

• A large bowl and a tea towel for proving dough
• Specialty bread and pizza flour to give the dough a lighter texture
• Polenta to keep the pizza crust dry and crisp
• A pizza tray – you can use regular trays or a pizza stone (from kitchenware stores)
• A pizza cutter or a large, sharp knife to slice up your pizza
• A rolling pin for rolling out thin, round bases

Try this basic pizza dough, and classic pizza sauce.

Pizza tips & tricks

Try these knead-to-know tips for pizza perfection.

• Add salt to the dough mixture after the other dry ingredients. If added at the same time, it can make the yeast inactive.
• Prove the dough in a warm, draught-free spot, otherwise it will take too long to rise.
• Position oven shelves so one's in the lowest slot and the other's two slots higher.
• Preheat the trays or pizza stones. This helps crisp the base.
• Roll dough from the centre outwards, lifting and turning slightly as you go so your dough is even thickness.
• Sprinkle polenta over the tray to stop pizza sticking and to make the base crisp and dry.
• Place mozzarella on top of pizza sauce but under other toppings to help secure them.
• Store leftover pizza sauce, topped with olive oil, in a jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

Top till you drop!

After you've spread your pizzas with the tomato sauce, try some of our favourite topping combos. Each tops two pizzas.

Eggplant & prosciutto with rocket
Garlic prawn & chorizo
Chicken, pear & rocket
Fresh pineapple & ham
Salami, bocconcini & cherry tomato
Roasted pumpkin & goats cheese

Source

Australian Good Taste - October 2010 , Page 134

Recipe sourced from: http://www.taste.com.au/how+to/articles/4833/your+complete+guide+to+pizza (Accessed on 25/11/2012 at 12:50PM)