I am currently on vacation and getting a little bored. Didn’t plan any trip. Can’t fish. It has been raining. Kind of dreary weather. It sure seems to be a good day for pizza! I have experimented with crusts for years – some successes and of course some failures. Same with the sauce.
I sometimes take an entire day to make pizzas. I like to make my own frozen pizzas for quick snacks or meals. It is great if you have kids! I will make a triple batch of crusts, pre-bake them, top with desired ingredients, wrap them and freeze. Get your kids involved in the assembly! It is a great Saturday project.
You essentially bake them just like the store-bought cardboard pizzas. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees and bake until the cheese is melted and browned around the edges. The best thing is you know exactly what is in them.
Anyway, today, I am just making pizza for dinner. Here is one of my favorite tomato based sauces. It is just about the best pizza sauce I have ever made! It freezes well for any time you want home made pizza.
The Best Pizza Sauce
- 2 TB extra virgin olive oil
- 1 TB butter
- 1/2 c onion, finely chopped
- 1/4 c celery finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 6 oz tomato paste
- 8 oz tomato sauce
- 2 TB parmesan cheese, shredded
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 small bay leaf
- 1 tsp fennel seed
Saute` onion and celery in butter and olive oil until onion is translucent. Add garlic and saute` 1 minute more. Add tomato sauce and tomato paste and stir until smooth. Add remaining ingredients and simmer 30 to 60 minutes.
The Crust
- 8 oz sourdough starter (2 tsp active dry yeast, 2 c bread flour, 2 c water – mix well, cover, place in warm place overnight, refrigerate un-used starter).
- 1 tsp active dry yeast
- 2 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 3/4 c water
- 1 1/4 c bread flour
- 1 c wheat flour
- 2 TB wheat germ
Mix starter, yeast, water, sugar and salt. Add remaining ingredients. Knead until a smooth dough has formed. You may have to adjust the water or bread flour depending on the humidity. The dough should not be too sticky. Cover bowl and let rise until doubled in size. Punch down and knead 1 minute. Let rest for another minute. Roll dough to desired thickness and size on a floured surface. This is enough to make 2 medium thickness crust pizzas, 3 thin crust pizzas or 1 deep dish pizza.
Top with desired fixings. Today, I am using the sauce noted above, provolone cheese, browned antelope burger, re-hydrated morel mushrooms, sweet bell pepper and onions. I always use cooked or cured meats on pizza. No need to have dinner with our good friend, Sal Monela!
For thin crust, I use a pizza stone and bake at 500 degrees until cheese is melted and browned around the edges. I don’t actually have a pizza stone. I went to the home improvement store and bought un-glazed tiles for a fraction of the cost of a pizza stone. Note – you should pre-heat the oven for at least 30 minutes if using a pizza stone or tiles. Also, the stone or tiles should be placed on the low rack of your oven.
I’m hungry…
Sis, your sauce has me drooling! and I just ate. So happy to have your recipe for sauce AND crust now … and sourdough starter too. That’s like 3 things in one 🙂