Growing up my Mom or myself would make out own pizza dough all the times. If not, we got it from the local bakery where my Mom would work. It's not complicated to make fresh pizza dough, and honestly a little bit time makes a big difference in the final product.And frozen pizza, are you kidding me? I know some claim you can freeze cheese but anytime I ever made a frozen pizza, the cheese doesn't it met. It goes from frozen to defrosted, to burnt.

Without much further ado, let's take a look at what makes a pizza a pizza.

The Dough

Fresh dough is the best. Either make you own or see if your bakery sells it. I do see some bags of fresh dough at Trader Joes and on occasion at my local supermarket. If you have the time though, it's a simple thing to make.



I've seen packages of instant pizza dough mixes, and even after reading the ingredients, which I always do, I tried them. They are ok, but for the extra short amount of time and effort it takes to make a fresh ball of dough, why bother? The chemicals alone in this powder should be a deterent.



There are pizza shells. Why they exist I don't know. They are pre-baked pizza forms that you top and rebake. They are far from fresh and really not a good option.



There are gluten free options here, here and here. While I gave wheat up for 6 months, I've never cooked or baked anything that substituted other flours for wheat so I've never tried any of these recipes.

Pizza dough recipes that use wheat are here with a more detailed explanation of working with pizza dough. 'I'm forever experimenting with pizza dough recipes and this one is a favorite because it uses semolina flour. It works well as a stromboli also.

Fogazzo Traditional Semolina Pizza Dough Recipe



Semolina adds complexity to this recipe, and makes it pliable enough for hand-tossing.



Ingredients:

2 cups warm water

1 packet active dry yeast

4 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons sugar

2 teaspoons salt

2½ cups unbleached wheat flour

2½ cups semolina flour



Preparation:

Heat water to 110 degrees, add yeast and wait 5 minutes to be sure it is activated (foamed). Add olive oil, sugar and salt. Mix with a spoon or whisk.



In a kitchen mixer, add liquid ingredients over flours and mix on lowest speed using a dough hook for 8 minutes. Increase speed one notch and mix for another 3 minutes. Place mixed dough on lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap for 2 hours or until double in size. Remove from bowl, cut into 6 equal pieces, form into balls and place on lightly oiled tray. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.



Each dough ball yields a 14 inch pizza.



Option: This dough recipe can be slow proofed overnight in the refrigerator (retarded), and then used over several days.



The Sauce, if you choose to use one

This is where simplicity shines. It quick and easy. The pizza sauce I use does not cook for a long time. I love the flavor of tomatoes on a pizza so I don't use herbs in the sauce. I use crushed tomatoes. I drain the tomatoes through a sieve, and use the crushed part. I drink the liquid that drains off as a virgin Bloody Mary with some horseradish, worcestershire sauce and lemon.

Pizza Sauce

1 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes (I use Scalafani brand since they use local Jersey tomatoes)

2 cloves of garlic peeled and sliced

Olive oil

Salt to taste



Place about 1/4" of olive oil in a sauce pan with sliced garlic and saute the garlic for a minute or two, Careful not to let it brown. Remove the garlic with a slotted spoon and add the tomatoes. Stir and add salt to taste. Simmer for 10 minutes, and remove from heat. Allow to cool slightly so the cheese don't melt if you're topping your pizza with it.





Cheese

Mozzarella rules. Accept no other, Add parmesan or locatelli if you like but do that before you put the mozzarella on. The grated cheese if placed on top will burn quickly. Asiago and fontina are good cheeses to mix in also. Ricotta is a popular choice also. I've seen cheddar mixed in on some premixed pizza blends.



If you are using very fresh mozzarella that is packed in water, allow it to drain a bit. i recently forgot to do this and my pizza had a flood on top in the oven from the heat releasing the water. Also, I cube the fresh mozzarella instead of trying to grate it. And if you can ever get your hands on scamorza, it's worth a try.

Toppings

You could top your pizza with anything you like. I never understood the addition of pineapple, and when I tried I tried it, I understood why I never understood it. I still don't however it's all a personal preference. I like olives and mushrooms in mine if I top a red pizza. As I mentioned earlier a white pizza with proscuitto and fresh aruglua is my overall favorite. Keep the toppings to a minimum and enjoy the simplicity of the crust with tomatoes and melted cheese. Choose wisely, and savor the experience. Let it reflect who you are. I wouldn't let Papa John speak for me at anytime, so why let him express my taste of what pizza should be?