This super easy recipe for homemade pizza is hands-on, fun, and endlessly customizable. It's perfect for a date night in or a family cooking experience. This recipe yields about two 12-inch pizzas in 2 1/2 hours. (Don't worry--there's only a 1/2 hour of actual work involved.)
Cheaper than delivery? Check. More fun than delivery? Check. More delicious than delivery? Check.
For anyone who says cooking isn't fun: try this recipe! The best part is that this recipe makes two pizzas, so picky eaters in the house can have their say, too.
Ingredients:
For the homemade dough: (courtesy of J. Kenji Alt-Lopez):
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 cup warm water
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for oiling the pans
For the toppings: (This can be literally anything you want! But here's mine.)
2 tablespoons butter, melted
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup basil pesto
6 oz. mozzarella, thinly sliced or shredded
1 large tomato, thinly sliced
4 oz. mushrooms, thinly sliced
handful fresh basil, chiffonaded
Kosher salt, to taste
Red pepper flakes, to taste (optional)
Instructions:
Make the pizza dough:
Grease two cast iron skillets or cake pans with olive oil and set aside.
Mix and dissolve the yeast into the warm water and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk the salt into the flour until evenly incorporated.
Pour the yeast mixture and olive oil in the flour. Mix with your hands or a wooden spoon until a dough ball forms. The mixture will be wet sticky!
Flour your hands and a clean countertop. Separate the dough into two equal parts and knead and form each into ball with your hands.
Place each dough ball onto the greased skillets and roll until they're evenly coated in oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rest for two hours. Kenji suggests using this time to read or play hide-and-seek. I suggest enjoying a half bottle of wine and watching RuPaul's Drag Race.
Top and bake:
Preheat your oven to the hottest setting (500F or 550F).
Remove the plastic cover from the dough. Spread and stretch the rested dough evenly across the pans, filling corners and edges. Its ok if it's not perfect! It'll still be tasty!
Place the minced garlic in the melted butter, and brush the mixture onto the dough evenly. Then top with pesto, cheese, and other toppings!
Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the edges are nicely browned.
Transfer the pizzas to a cutting board and serve!
Easy, breezy, beautiful, shoving pizza into my face.
- Arielle