A couple of weeks ago, we had a playdate at a pizza place near our house and the girls fell in looooove with making their own pizzas. So last Saturday, the girls convinced me into looking up a recipe for pizza dough and making our own pizzas at home. The dough was super easy to make and I had all the ingredients on hand.
I set the girls up with their dough and they quickly got to work!
"Whatsa matta wit you mama? My pizza looks great!"
(Alyssa went with the non-traditional blob-shaped pizza.)
Giggles McGee (a.k.a. Makena) attempting to go for the triple-the-cheese pizza
Alyssa's finished product
(She decided to add olives as a topping just to make sure I didn't get her pizza mixed up with the other two)
I forgot to get a picture of Riley's pizza masterpiece which turned out to be just cheesy bread since she didn't want sauce, but I do have photo evidence of the mess she made with the flour. Good thing it was bath night.
Pizza Dough Recipe
1 package active dry yeast (2 teaspoons)
1 cup warm water (105° to 115°, no more)
3 cups all-purpose or bread flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus a little for coating
1. Dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Set aside and follow the instructions below for the method you choose.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar and salt. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour the olive oil and yeast mixture into it. Stir until it begins to form a ball, then turn it out onto a clean, floured surface and knead for about 4 or 5 minutes.
3. Lightly oil the ball and the inside of a large glass bowl. Place the dough in the bowl, cover, and let it rise in a warm place until doubled, about an hour. For better crust, punch down the dough, reshape into a ball and let it rise again. You can refrigerate or freeze the dough at this point.
4. Divide the dough into 4 equal portions, about 6 ounces each. Roll each portion into a ball, then, working on a lightly floured surface, stretch the dough and work it with your fingers or a rolling pin to form an 8-inch circle. The outer edge of the circle should be a little thicker than the body, forming a rim. Add toppings.
5. Transfer to a pizza pan or pizza stone. Bake in a 500° pre-heated oven until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted, 10 to 13 minutes, or perhaps a little longer if your oven does not reach 500°. (I cooked our pizzas at 450 degrees for 13-15 minutes and it came out perfect).
Now go make some pizza! You can thank me later :)
Hosted by Cecily and Mamarazzi
It's no surprise that four year olds have lots of energy and absolutely no desire to take naps. So in lieu of naps, I try to run them ragged and get them into bed by 8:00.
