Sand and Sunshine's Homemade Pizza

My Pizza Recipe:

3 cups of your choice of flour (use a little more or a bit less depending on humidity) I have found unbleached flour creates a great elasticity and I've also had good results with half whole wheat and half unbleached 

1 tablespoon of oil - I like to use olive oil

1 package of yeast aka 2 1/4 teaspoons

pinch of salt

1 cup warm water (Around 100 degrees F)

I like to combine all of my ingredients in my stand mixer and my dough hook on, but if you don't have those things you can kneed the dough by hand.  First add your water, then your yeast, now the oil and salt.  Lastly add the flour one cup at a time.  If you're feeling adventurous you can add a teaspoon of garlic powder, or perhaps a tablespoon of basil.  It's your pizza make it your own and add what you'd like. Mix until smooth and elastic. Rub dough ball with a bit of extra oil to prevent drying return it to mixing bowl and cover with a clean cloth.  While dough matures get your toppings ready.  

8 oz of mozzarella shredded

1/3 to 1 1/2 cups spaghetti sauce or you can pay extra for your choice of pizza sauce.

Any other toppings of your choice think in 1/4 to 1/2 cup of each depending on how much you love each topping.

If you like to preheat the oven now is the time to do it.  I generally don't preheat for pizza choosing instead to just watch my cheese, but the first time making this pizza you'll have a better idea doneness if you preheat.  You need a 375 degree F oven.  I know that's hot, but it works.  After the dough has rested for 5 or more minutes you are ready to roll it out.  Use a pizza stone or a cookie sheet.  When using a stone and making regular crust I roll the dough to the edge and then push it in from the edge 1/2" to create the crust and prevent moisture from leaking out into the oven. 

If you would like stuffed crust you will need 4 oz of block mozzarella cheese cut into long sticks, or 8 individual packages of string cheese.  Roll the pizza to the edge just like before push just a little further pushing the crust off the edge.  Use your cheese and make a circle with it at 1/2" in from the edge of the pan.  If you don't have enough to go all the way around cut come of your cheese in half lengthwise or spilt the string cheese up the middle.   Gently flip the crust edge up and over the cheese.  Now press that crust edge into the crust of the pizza.  Press the edge back into the main crust area all around.  Seal with a bit of oil.  Just dap a bit of oil on your fingers and run it over the seam.  This will prevent the cheese crust from disappearing out into the main pizza area.

When adding your sauce think one ladle scoop.  Plop the sauce into the middle of the dough and using a spoon or a ladle smooth the sauce around.  You want the sauce to cover the entire center of the pizza right up to your crust.  It should cover evenly, if you like more sauce add more.  If you have people in your house who wont eat the crust now is your chance; move some of the sauce up closer to the edges; the closer the sauce is to the edge of the pizza the more will be eaten and the less that will go to waste.

Now here is a trick.  Add just a tiny bit of the cheese.  Like an ounce.  Just a smidge over the top of the pizza.  Believe it or not I have found this anchors your toppings and prevents the cheese from coming off while you eat it.  Add whatever meat toppings that you would like.  For pepperoni I start in the approximate center with one slice and then circle out around and another circle and so on until the entire pie has evenly spaced pepperoni.  I don't care for a "Pepperoni" lovers style pizza but if you do then you will add a second layer of pepperoni after you add the rest of the cheese.  

Now that you have added all the meat toppings add the remainder of the cheese.  Be sure to cover the entire saucy area.   Now add your "cooler fixings" such as tomatoes, feta, artichokes, spinach, pineapple or whatever.  If someone doesn't like certain toppings you can define their area by adding whatever you'd like to your half.

Did you turn your oven on?  Either way it needs to be on now.  375 degrees.  Add the pizza.  It will need to cook for 25 minutes.  The cheese will tell you when it's ready.  Look for it melt into the toppings to start to turn golden.  When you have that golden cheese the pizza is ready.  

Cheese Has Melted
 but no sign of the golden cheese yet,
needs 5+ more minutes

When done remove pizza from the oven and allow to sit a minute or five.  Get the plates out, napkins, the pizza cutter and so forth.  For an extra yummy crust use a bit of stick butter and run it all over the crust.  Add grated Parmesan or Romano cheese if your not opposed to a little mess on the counter.

The key to cutting a pizza is to press down hard with the cutting wheel and move quickly.  Just like with your rotary cutter!  When cutting a round pizza, first cut directly across the center.  Give the pizza a quarter turn and cut it straight up the middle again.  Now cut the quarters in half cutting straight across again, one more time and you're all done.

DH's Garlic Butter:


1/4 Cup REAL butter
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder or 2 cloves of pealed garlic finely chopped or pressed

In a microwave safe bowl add the butter and the garlic and melt for about 20 to 30 seconds.  Stir and serve.  If you were thinking ahead you could prep this before you cook your pizza and leave it on the stove to let the heat of the stove melt the butter into the garlic and then you wouldn't need the microwave.  Also this can be used to make a butter garlic crust, simply paint the melted garlic onto the crust.  If you don't keep a food paint brush in your kitchen a bit of clean paper towel will accomplish the same thing.

Enjoy!