Sunday, October 30, 2011

pizza!

there are a few things that work very well food-wise for me here. Pizza is one of my total obsessions. I can buy pizza here, but making it is so easy and it tastes so wonderful. Initially I wasn't making a sauce, I was just using diced tomatoes and marinating them for a little bit with balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper and olive oil with maybe some oregano. Then I decided I wanted super familiar regular not fancy yet very delicious pizza. I searched out a super easy sauce that's perfect. So this is the pizza post! First, dough:

I found this recipe when I was looking at no-knead bread recipes. I make it at least once a week, the leftovers freeze really well or can be stored in the fridge.

3/4 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 t yeast
3/4 t salt
1/4 t sugar
1 T olive oil
3/4 cup water


mix everything together in a bowl that is big enough to give the dough room to grow. Don't knead it, but make sure it's well incorporated. I use a wooden spoon. Cover the bowl, one of my plates fits perfectly, so I use that, but you can use plastic wrap. Let it sit. The recipe says 12 hours, but I usually only give it 9 or so and it's fine. When you are ready for pizza scrape the dough out onto a very floured board and cut dough if desired. (I cut it in half.) Shape the dough into balls with floured hands. Flatten to get rid of excess air inside and either stretch with your hands or use a rolling pin. Top and bake! I bake mine on a piece of parchment paper on a cookie sheet at 450f for about 10 minutes, longer if you like your pizza darker. (adapted from Food Wishes)


The sauce is super simple as well and comes to me by way of 101 Cookbooks.

1/8 cup olive oil
3/4 t crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 t salt
3 medium cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 14 oz can crushed red tomatoes

put the oil, pepper, salt and garlic in a sauce pan and turn on the heat to medium. When the contents of the pan become fragrant, pour in the whole can of tomatoes. Let simmer for 5 minutes. Done! 101 cookbooks adds the zest of a lemon, which I will try at some point, but lemons are expensive here so I don't ever just have them around.

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