7 Days Without Pizza Makes One Weak

People love to pose the ‘If you were stuck on a dessert island and had to choose one food to take along, what would it be?’ question to me. I never hesitate to fire back immediately with my choice: pizza.

Pizza is great fresh from the oven, cold for breakfast, rewarmed, defrosted, made at home, delivered, picked up, ordered in a gourmet restaurant in Italy or from a fast food walk-in shop in Anytown, Canada.

In our house, it’s always a weekly staple. Sometimes we pick it up, but if time allows I’d much rather throw together a homemade pizza and toss it in the oven. I know the ingredients are fresh, and most grocery stores offer fresh pizza dough in their bakery refrigerators, making it a snap to whip together.

That being said, I’ve always struggled with how to prep pizza dough well. I’ve tried flour, corn meal, rolling, tossing, stretching, padding, and prodding all with limited success. My pizzas often turn out with extra flaps, unwanted tumors or uneven thickness. So I spent some time researching a number of different techniques online and am proud to say I think I’ve found the most straightforward, easy to reproduce at-home method for the perfect pizza dough.

I take no credit for the technique other than providing you the link. It worked like a charm!

Below is what I like to use to top my pizzas at home. And while we’re on the topic – what is YOUR take-to-an-island food?

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Fresh Made-at-Home Pizza

Serves: 4

Couch to plate in: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

1 store bought pizza dough

1 cup canned crushed tomatoes

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 ball Mozzarella cheese, shredded or thinly sliced

2 tablespoons basil, chiffonade

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Place dough on a floured surface and sprinkle liberally with flour. Stretch dough to desired size and transfer to a floured pizza baking dish.
Mix crushed tomatoes with garlic and spread evenly on pizza dough. Top with cheese and bake until dough is cooked and cheese is bubbling, about 25 minutes.
Top with basil and serve.