The Best Pizza is Made at Home!

We love homemade pizza here in our house and the kids love to help us make it! We will make it for birthdays, friends, movie night or anything else we can find an excuse to make it for. This dough recipe is the best I have found. There is no waiting for the dough to rise. Just make it, roll it, top it and bake it!  Here is what you need... (p.s. this is the same dough recipe I used to make the Heart Shaped Calzones)

Ingredients Needed:

(Dough)

• 1 pkg. active yeast (about 2.5 tsp.)
• 1 c. warm water
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 T. oil
• 2.5 c. flour
• 1 pizza pan or Jelly Roll pan - pre-greased

*Note: I will make 1.5x this recipe for 1 Jelly Roll pan/cookie sheet size pizza

(Pizza Toppings)

• Pizza Sauce (I use Hunt's Mushrooms or Garlic and Herb canned spaghetti sauce - 1 26.5 oz can will make 2 to 3 Jelly Roll pan/cookie sheet size pizzas)
• Any favorite toppings: sausage, pepperoni, peppers and tomatoes are our favorites
• Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Directions for Mixing the Dough

(Preheat oven to 425 degrees.) Dissolve yeast in warm water. Stir in remaining ingredients. Beat well with spoon or fork, if not using a mixer. You may need to add a little more flour depending on your elevation. I will add everything, but the last 1/2 cup and then I'll keep adding until it is just sticky enough that the dough does not stay on my fingers. Let rest 5 minutes. Mix dough and place on pre-greased cookie sheet. 

Directions for Making the Pizza

If you do not have a rolling pin, a sturdy glass or cup will work just as well. A rolling pin usually has a hard time on a Jelly Roll pan anyways.

 Separate the dough into 2 balls for 2 mini pizzas or 1.5x the dough recipe to have a full pizza with a good crust. Some children will need assistance putting enough pressure on the cup to actually roll it out.

First bring the sauce out. I put some sauce on the center of their pizza and then I let them spread it out on their own. It was hard for me to let them do it because I was afraid of the mess, but they did well. Then, I let the kids put on their own toppings of meat and veggies on their pizzas. If they did not put any veggies on it, that was ok with me, but I wanted to give them the option...and of course, tasting does happen, too! Next, add the cheese and then you are ready to bake.

Bake in the oven on 420 Degrees for 20 minutes

(or until the crust/cheese is starting to brown.)

And just so you can see what a large pizza will look like...

YUM!!! It is seriously so good!

Try it and let me know what you think! It's a simple meal to make, takes less than 20 minutes to put together and so much fun, too!