Pizza!!!

Once a month, we have a pizza and wine date. Here are some samples of the pizzas we have made:

Cast Iron Skillet pizza with artichoke, spinach, and tomato sauce

A view of said pizza on plates

The non-cast iron skillet version, with tomato, onion, mushroom, and arugula

I mix up the dough earlier in the day, and since it only needs one rise it is ready whenever we want to eat. Here's a dough recipe below...and a tomato sauce recipe (but you can just use olive oil and cheese too).


Dough:
Mix 2.25 tablespoons active dry yeast with 1.5 cups warm water (around 120 degrees). Let the yeast rise for a few minutes, then add 1/2 cup of flour and a teaspoon of sugar. Mix it up with your stand mixer and dough hook attachment. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil, a good dash of salt, and 3.25 cups flour (I usually make about 1 cup of that whole wheat). Mix/knead with the dough hook. Dough should be moist and glistening but not sticky...you can add more flour if necessary. Put the dough in a bowl greased with olive oil...and let it rise for about an hour (or more).

Then just roll out the dough on a pan, top as you wish, and place the pizza in a 425 degree oven until the crust is nicely browned and cooked.

Joe's Tomato Sauce:
Saute a red onion in a good amount of olive oil until translucent. Add a couple cloves garlic if desired. Add about a third of a cup of alcohol (cooking sherry or wine) and reduce until most of it burns off. Add a can of either diced tomatoes or crushed tomatoes...salt and pepper to taste. You can also add oregano, basil, rosemary, or similar Italian spices to jazz up the sauce. Add red pepper flakes if you wish. Let the sauce simmer, covered, for 30-40 minutes, then cool slightly before topping pizza. Also great on pasta.