Homemade Pizza: The Basic Recipe

We have a weekly pizza night at our house. Not only does everyone love pizza, it makes my meal planning a lot simpler to just eat it the same night each week.  Plus, pizza is one of those easy to order out meals, so making it at home helps us to avoid ordering pizza on a lazy day. 

It's so much cheaper to make myself, and while I won't pretend that I love when we do order out, I've gotten pretty good at making a decent pizza at home. Over the next several weeks I plan to share some of the different pizza recipes that I use. I get board of the same kind of homemade pizza each week very quickly. If we have the same kind too frequently I am much more likely to want to order out! So I rotate about 5 or 6 different pizza crusts and various toppings, although do cheese and pepperoni about every other week.

My basic pizza dough recipe comes from the Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book Bridal Edition cookbook, one that I got when we were first married. I like this one because it doesn't need any rise time, so it's perfect for last minute nights. 

My Kitchen Aid mixer is a lifesaver with all the pizza dough I make!

And since this dough is really simple, I usually brush the whole thing with olive oil before I add the sauce and toppings. Then I sprinkle some garlic salt or other seasoning on the crust to add just a bit more life to it!

Pizza Dough
from Better Homes and Gardens

2 3/4 to 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/4 teasp. yeast
1/4 teasp. salt
1 cup warm water
2 Tbsp. cooking oil

Beat 1 1/4 c. flour, yeast, salt, water and oil in a mixer for 30 seconds on low. Turn up to high and beat for 3 minutes. Gradually add as much remaining flour as possible while still maintaining a soft, pliable dough.

Turn dough out on to a lightly floured surface and knead in enough flour so the dough is no longer sticky. I only knead for a minute, max. Let the dough rest for about 10 minutes, while the oven is preheating to 450 degrees. Make sure to place any stoneware in the oven while it is still cold.

Once the oven is heated, shape the dough into your desired shape using a rolling pin or hands. (Our pizzas are hardly ever perfectly round, and often end up rectangular :) they still taste great!). Make one large pizza or two slightly smaller and thinner crusts with this amount of dough. Place on pizza stone.

If desired, brush dough with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic/garlic salt. Top with homemade sauce and favorite cheese, plus pepperoni or other favorite toppings. Bake in 450 degree oven for about 13 minutes, or until cheese is browned. Allow to rest for 5 minutes before cutting to allow the toppings to set. Enjoy!