Homemade Pizza is a regular feature on the FishFam menu. I try to make it at least once a week, usually on Fridays. This makes a great start to our weekend. Coupled with rootbeer, a movie, and snacks, it creates a fun family night for my husband and me and our six children.
The first time I made pizza, it was a terrible bomb and I vowed never to make it again. That was fifteen years ago. About three years later when our first child was born and we moved to one income, I reconsidered that vow. I liked pizza, but I knew it wasn’t in the budget to indulge on a regular basis.
Instead, I set out to teach myself how to make it at home. After some trial and error, I’ve come up with something that we like just as well if not better than pizza parlour pies. I still goof up sometimes, but overall everyone enjoys pizza night.
Dough
I rely on my bread machine to make fantastic dough. The texture can vary a little, depending on the humidity, but overall it’s pretty consistent.
1 1/2 cups water
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tablespoons honey
4 1/2 cups flour
1 Tablespoon salt
1 Tablespoon yeast
Combine ingredients in the bread machine pan according to the order recommended by your machine’s manufacturer. Set on dough and start the machine, checking after ten minutes to make sure all the ingredients have been incorporated and not stuck to the side of the pan.
When dough is ready, divide into portions. This makes six individual pizzas or three to four large. Shape each portion into a flat round. Place on a cookie sheet or pizza pan that has been greased and sprinkled with corn meal. Spread pizza crust with sauce.
Sauce
I usually use whatever spaghetti sauce I have on hand. Usually something I’ve made myself, like this tomato sauce with meats. I prepare it in huge quantities and store it in 2-cup portions in the freezer. The morning of pizza night, I pull out a container to thaw in the refrigerator.
I use about 2/3 cup sauce for large pizzas, 1/3 cup for smaller, individual size pies.
Toppings
Start with a sprinkling of cheese. We like a combination of shredded jack and mozzarella cheeses.
Next layer on whatever toppings you like:
- pepperoni
- sausage
- sliced mushrooms
- diced onion
- diced or sliced tomato
- sliced, black olives
- chopped zucchini
- sliced bell pepper
Top with more cheese.
A preheated oven is key to a great crust. Up to an hour before baking, set your oven to 475 °. Bake pizzas for 8-15 minutes, depending on their size. Use the shorter baking time for smaller pizzas, the longer time for larger ones. Pay close attention to how your oven operates and how brown your pizzas are getting. I cook only one large pizza at a time.
Enjoy!
What’s your favorite pizza topping?
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{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
Look delicious! I've got a pizza dough recipe I like, but I'm going to try this one next.
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Okay, I made this tonight and want to use it tomorrow. Can I just store it in the fridge overnight? Or should I put it in the freezer? Thanks to anyone that can help?!?
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For just overnight, I would store in fridge. Longer storage, freezer.
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Is there anyway to translate the dough recipe into a non- bread machine one? Maybe warm the water and let the yeast sit, then combine, let rise, then punch down? Does that sound right?? Lol… Did I just figure it out?
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Jessica Reply:
July 5th, 2010 at 1:17 pm
Yes, that’s exactly it. I’ve done it when making many batches at once.
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I’ve been making homemade pizza for 13 years and have never been satisfied with any of the recipes I’ve tried. I’ve made this 3 times now It is awesome! This is now the only one I will use, it has ended my cravings for any of the pizza chain pizzas. Thank you for sharing!!!
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Jessica Reply:
July 8th, 2010 at 3:15 pm
Yeah! Thanks for letting me know that it works for you!
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Your pizzas look great!! I have been fiddling around with a different dough recipes, but haven’t really found one we really like, so i’m going to try yours, I do have a question though: what purpose does the honey serve? Is it just to give the dough a hint of sweetness? I ask because its not something we normally have in the house and wondering if i could get away with substituting brown sugar. Thanks!
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Jessica Reply:
July 8th, 2010 at 3:13 pm
A little bit of sugar or honey helps the yeast do its stuff. Feel free to substitute a different sweetener.
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I had just all but given up on good pizza at home. After reading all of your posts and seeing your wonderful-looking pizzas, I’m going to give it another try. It gives me a reason to keep my bread machine around a little longer. lol! I was thinking about donating it because it has been taking up space since I haven’t used it in quite a while.
Thanks for the inspiration to try again!
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Hi! Sounds yummy!! Was wondering how you freeze the pizza dough?
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Jessica Reply:
July 13th, 2010 at 10:50 am
I wrap each dough ball in plastic wrap or sandwich bag and then store in freezer in a gallon size bag. Do it quickly in the coldest part of your freezer. The yeast keeps going and dough can keep rising until it’s frozen. (It’s alive!)
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I have a question. Like Carrie, above, I’m going to try this recipe without a bread machine. I also want to freeze the dough. Should I freeze it before it rises and just let it rise when it thaws in the fridge?
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Jessica Reply:
July 25th, 2010 at 3:46 pm
Sorry, I thought I answered this. I freeze after the first rise.
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(I can’t find which post about your pizzas that I made my original comments on.)
These pizzas are awesome. I have been a homemade-pizza failure for a decade. No more, thanks to you! My pickiest eater tells us that this is her favorite meal. The sauce is awesome. (We don’t like that sweet stuff.)
I do the dough with my kitchenaide mixer. Warm water, yeast, and 2 cups of the flour in together….let it proof for a few minutes. Mix in everything else besides the last of the flour. After a little mixing, add remaining flour. It only takes a few minutes of prep. Then I let it rise for an hour. Punch it down and it is ready to go.
Love it!
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Jessica Reply:
July 25th, 2010 at 3:45 pm
Yeah! Thanks for the good word. When I’m making this for the freezer, I get one batch going in the bread machine and one in the Kitchenaid. And that’s exactly how I do it.
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