Mom’s Perfect Pizza

Mom, Dad, and my sister Tammy are in town and you know what that means?  Delicious meals every morning and night and she does it with such ease, she makes it looks so easy.  Yet, when I try, the crust on my pizza is a bit burned, my bread doesn’t rise, and my coffee seems watery.  It’s not because I have no idea what I’m doing, although sometimes it feels like that, but my mom is an amazing cook and baker and so everything I come up with pales in comparison.

Mom’s perfect pizza is a homemade crust, and then a batch of homemade sauce, with tons of delicious toppings.  Oh and Dad doesn’t like cheese, so the pizza has cheese only on one side.  I love cheese. Apple man will eat either.

It’s quick, easy and delicious.  Fresh, flavorful, and gone in one minute.

Mom’s Perfect Pizza

Pizza Dough From Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book

2 1/2 to 3 cups all-purpose flour

1 package active dry yeast

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 cup warm water (120 to 130 degrees F)

Add 2 1/2 cups of flour, as well as yeast and salt into large mixing bowl.  Heat water on stove in a small saucepan, using a thermometer to make sure the milk stays between 120-130 degrees F. Do not let the water get any warmer, or it will be too hot for the yeast to be activated.  Add  water to dry ingredients, and mix with hook attachment on low speed.  The dough will stick to the hook attachment, and the sides of the bowl will become clean.  During this process, add the rest of the remaining flour.  Remove from mixing bowl, and knead in the rest of the flour so that the dough is moderately stiff, yet smooth and elastic.

Cover the dough and let rest for 6-8 minutes.  Use a wooden rolling pin to roll dough out into pizza shape.  Cover pizza stone with moderately amount of flour, and place dough on stone. Pinch the end of the dough so that it is thicker and resembles crust around the outside of the pizza. Preheat oven to 425 degrees, and set pizza dough aside.

Tomato Sauce

4-5 heirloom tomatoes

herbs and spices

Put a tablespoon olive oil into small sauce pan and allow it to heat up. Dice tomatoes and place into small sauce pan on low heat.  Mash tomatoes and let them begin to simmer.  They will begin to form a sauce.  Add fresh thyme, rosemary and basil that has been chopped into small pieces.  Add a teaspoon of sugar, and salt and pepper to taste.  The sauce will be chunky, and stir until sugar is completely dissolved.  Remove from heat and pour onto pizza crust, spreading evenly about 1 inch from crust.

Toppings

We used fresh diced mushrooms, green bell peppers, pepperoni slices, red bell peppers, and fresh peppers.  You can really use anything for this portion, but the key here is to use fresh ingredients.  Fresh ingredients will bring out multiple flavors, and will taste a million times better than any order-in pizza you can get.  When your toppings are added successfully, sprinkle any mixture of shredded cheese on top of the pizza.  Make sure all ingredients are spread evenly and line up with the sauce line, about one inch from the crust.

Place pizza in oven and cook for about 10 minutes, or until sauce is bubbling and cheese is on the brink of becoming brown.  Let cool for 5 minutes, cut with pizza cutter and serve accordingly.