Pizza Dough

One Friday night I decided to make on of the many pizza dough recipes I have. Big Chubb is very particular about his pizza dough, so we have tried out a lot of recipes. We haven't really found a go-to one, so it was worth it to try this one out.

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 package active dry yeast
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 cup warm water

Directions
1. Combine flour, salt, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl. Mix in oil and warm water. Spread out on a large pizza pan. Top as desired.
2. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes. (I just noticed that the directions originally say celsius instead of farenheit. That would be one crispy crust!)

It was okay. We always cook our pizza at a higher temperature (not 375 C, though), so I thought the crust was only so so. Big Chubb said it was good, but I thought it was just bready.

Bread Machine Calzone

I warned Big Chubb that I was going to mix up our usual Friday night pizza and make this calzone instead.

Thanks allrecipes for the picture!

1 1/4 cups water
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 1/2 tablespoons white sugar
3 cups bread flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon powdered milk
3/4 cup sliced Italian sausage
3/4 cup pizza sauce
1 1/4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
2 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions
1. To make dough: place water yeast, sugar, flour, salt and powdered milk in the pan of a bread machine, in the order suggested by the manufacturer. Select dough cycle. After cycle is completed, roll out dough on a lightly floured surface.
2. Meanwhile, brown sausage for about 8 to 10 minutes in a large skillet over medium heat. Drain excess fat and reserve.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
4. Shape dough into a 16 inch by 10 inch rectangle. Transfer to a lightly greased cookie sheet, and spoon pizza sauce lengthwise down the center of the dough, followed by the browned sausage and the cheese. make diagonal cuts 1 1/2 inch apart down each long side of the dough rectangle, cutting to within 1/2 inch of the filling. Criss-cross water. Brush top of calzone with melted butter.
5. Bake at 350 degrees F for 35 to 40 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool for 5 minutes, then slice and serve.

I was confused by the sliced Italian sausage that needed browning. We had it with just pepperoni inside. There was a lot of bread to the filling.

Big Chubb and I liked it enough, but it was quite a bit of work for pizza. Little Chubb and Baby Chubb didn't care for it, and complained about eating it with no sauce. I will probably keep to regular pizza for our Friday Night Pizza.

Upside Down Pizza

We have pizza every Friday night to make life easy for me when it comes to menu planning. I decided to make this to switch up the routine slightly. Big Chubb told me to never switch it again without giving him warning. He was disappointed that we weren't having actual pizza.

Upside Down Pizza

1 lb. ground beef
1 c. onions, chopped
1 c. green bell pepper, chopped
1 cn. pizza sauce 15 oz.
1/4 lb. pepperoni, coarsely chopped
1/2 ts Italian seasoning, dried
1 jar sliced mushrooms, drained, 2.5 oz
6 oz mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced
    Topping
1 c. milk
1 tb oil
2 eggs
1 c. all purpose flour
1/4 ts salt
1/4 c. Parmesan cheese grated

Heat oven to 400F. In lrg. skillet over med.-high heat, brown ground beef, onions, and bell pepper. Drain. Stir in pizza sauce, pepperoni, Italian seasoning and mushrooms (I added olives because if we were to ever have any sort of pizza anything without olives there would be a major uprising in our house). Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; simmer uncovered 10 minutes., stirring occasionally. meanwhile, in sm. bowl combine milk, oil and eggs; beat one minute. at med. speed. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup; level off. Add flour and salt; beat 2 mins. at med. speed or until smooth. Spoon meat mixture evenly into ungreased 13x9" baking dish. Place cheese slices over hot mixture. Pour topping evenly over cheese, covering complete; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake at 400F for 20-30 mins. or until puffed and deep golden brown. Makes 6-8 servings. "

"It's fun to watch the 'crust' rise while this unique casserole is baking. The secret to the tender crust is following the recipe directions carefully and using the pan size called for."

I liked it enough. Our frozen green peppers are getting to taste like freezer, so it detracted from the flavor slightly. I also used ground turkey because beef is not priced right to be in our food budget. It got good enough reviews to be considered for future meals. Big Chubb said it was ok, but they would never have anything like this in Italy. Baby Chubb loved it like she loves most food these days. Little Chubbs didn't want to eat it because he saw steam coming from it.

Veggie Pizza

Veggie Pizza

1 can crescent rolls
4 oz soft cream cheese
1/3 packet Hidden Valley Ranch
1 T mayonnaise
Raw veggies (broccoli, green pepper, radishes, cucumbers, mushrooms, celery, carrots, olives, purple cabbage, etc.)
4 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 c crushed pineapple

1) Unroll can of rolls onto cookie sheet.
2) Bake for 1/2 of package time.
3) While baking mix cream cheese, ranch dressing and mayo. Chop veggies into small pieces.
4) Remove rolls, spread cheese mixture over on top of hot crust. Sprinkle on veggies, pineapple, and cheese.
5) Return to oven for remainder of baking time or until veggies are done and cheese melts.
6) Cut into pieces while hot.

I've made normal veggie pizza before, but I wanted to try this because you cook the pizza after you put the toppings on, and it calls for pineapple. It was good, but baking it with the toppings on didn't really do much since it only ended up being about 5 minutes. They were still pretty much raw, but I was afraid the crust would get overdone if I left it in there longer. The pineapple was a good addition. The mozzarella just kind of disappeared. When I make it again, I'll just make it the normal way, maybe with pineapple.

  We have pizza often at our house.  I always make it, except for very special occasions, because it is cheaper and healthier.  For the crust, I usually use a recipe Sarah gave me years ago-- a recipe that requires no rising.  But I thought I would try this one out.  It's from King Arthur Flour.  Mom loved King Arthur Flour recipes, and after trying this one, I can see why.  It averages five stars from 148 reviews.

It gave me the chance to break out my wheat grinder attachment.  It is awesome!

Pizza Crust

What a treat—hot homemade pizza, with exactly the toppings you like. And this crust adapts to YOUR schedule: make the dough now, and serve fresh pizza up to 2 days later. Please read this recipe all the way through before starting. It gives you a lot of baking options, and you want to choose the one that best fits your schedule. Our guarantee: This flavorful pizza crust is crisp when rolled ultra-thin, and chewy when made thick. 2 teaspoons active dry yeast or instant yeast 7/8 to 1 1/8 cups lukewarm water* 2 tablespoons olive oil 3 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour 1 1/4 teaspoons salt *Use the lesser amount in summer (or in a humid environment), the greater amount in winter (or in a dry climate), and somewhere in between the rest of the year, or if your house is climate controlled. Directions 1) If you're using active dry yeast, dissolve it, with a pinch of sugar, in 2 tablespoons of the lukewarm water. Let the yeast and water sit at room temperature for 15 minutes, until the mixture has bubbled and expanded. If you're using instant yeast, you can skip this step. 2) Combine the dissolved yeast (or the instant yeast) with the remainder of the ingredients. Mix and knead everything together—by hand, mixer or bread machine set on the dough cycle—till you've made a soft, smooth dough. If you're kneading in a stand mixer, it should take 4 to 5 minutes at second speed, and the dough should barely clean the sides of the bowl, perhaps sticking a bit at the bottom. Don't over-knead the dough; it should hold together, but can still look fairly rough on the surface. 3) To make pizza up to 24 hours later, skip to step 5. 4) To make pizza now: Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover the bowl, and allow it to rise till it's very puffy. This will take about an hour using instant yeast, or 90 minutes using active dry. If it takes longer, that's OK; just give it some extra time. 5) To make pizza later: Allow the dough to rise, covered, for 45 minutes at room temperature. Refrigerate the dough for 4 hours (or for up to 24 hours); it will rise slowly as it chills. This step allows you more schedule flexibility; it also develops the crust's flavor. About 2 to 3 hours before you want to serve pizza, remove the dough from the refrigerator. 6) Decide what size, shape, and thickness of pizza you want to make. This recipe will make one of the following choices: Two 1/2"-thick 14" round pizzas (pictured); Two 3/4"-thick 12" round pizzas; One 3/4" to 1"-thick 13" x 18" rectangular (Sicilian-style) pizza (pictured); One 1 1/2"-thick 9" x 13" rectangular pizza; One 1"-thick 14" round pizza. 7) Divide the dough in half, for two pizzas; or leave it whole for one pizza. 8) If you're making a rectangular pizza, shape the dough into a rough oval. For a round pizza, shape it into a rough circle. In either case, don't pat it flat; just stretch it briefly into shape. Allow the dough to rest, covered with an overturned bowl or lightly greased plastic wrap, for 15 minutes. 9) Use vegetable oil pan spray to lightly grease the pan(s) of your choice. Drizzle olive oil into the bottom of the pan(s). The pan spray keeps the pizza from sticking; the olive oil gives the crust great flavor and crunch. 10) Place the dough in the prepared pan(s). Press it over the bottom of the pan, stretching it towards the edges. You'll probably get about two-thirds of the way there before the dough starts shrinking back; walk away for 15 minutes. Cover the dough while you're away, so it doesn't dry out. 11) When you come back, you should be able to pat the dough closer to the corners of the pan. Repeat the rest and dough-stretch one more time, if necessary; your goal is to get the dough to fill the pan as fully as possible. 12) Allow the dough to rise, covered, till it's noticeably puffy, about 90 minutes (if it hasn't been refrigerated); or 2 to 2 1/2 hours (if it's been refrigerated). Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 450°F. 13) Bake the pizza on the lower oven rack till it looks and feels set on top, and is just beginning to brown around the edge of the crust, but is still pale on top. This will take about 8 minutes for thinner crust pizza; about 10 to 12 minutes for medium thickness; and 12 to 14 minutes for thick-crust pizza. If you're baking two pizzas, reverse them in the oven (top to bottom, bottom to top) midway through the baking period. 14) To serve pizza immediately: Remove it from the oven, and arrange your toppings of choice on top. Return to the oven, and bake on the upper oven rack for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, until the crust is nicely browned, both top and bottom, and the cheese is melted. Check it midway through, and move it to the bottom rack if the top is browning too much, or the bottom not enough. 15) To serve pizza up to 2 days later: Remove the untopped, partially baked crust from the oven, cool completely on a rack, wrap in plastic, and store at room temperature. When ready to serve, top and bake in a preheated 450°F oven, adding a couple of minutes to the baking times noted above. Your goal is a pizza whose crust is browned, and whose toppings are hot/melted. 16) Remove the pizza from the oven, and transfer it from the pan to a rack to cool slightly before serving. For easiest serving, cut with a pair of scissors. This was definitely a favorite at our house.  The only downside is the rising time.  We loved the flavor and the texture.  I made it whole wheat and I could hardly tell in the pizza.  I will definitely make it again, but I might make a big batch and freeze some so I only have to go through all that rising time once.

Recipe summary Hands-on time: 20 mins. Baking time: 18 mins. to 30 mins. Total time: 3 hrs 8 mins. Yield: 1 or 2 standard round pizzas, or 1 large rectangular pizza, about 12 servings Tips from our bakers Make pizza any shape or size or thickness you like; the above guidelines are simply suggestions. Understand that the thickest-crust pizza will need to bake longer than the thinnest-crust version. To freeze partially baked pizza crust: Bake crust as directed in step 13. Remove from the oven, cool to room temperature, wrap well, and freeze for up to 3 months. When you're ready to serve pizza, remove the crust from the freezer, and allow it to thaw, loosely wrapped, at room temperature. Once it's completely thawed, complete pizza by starting at step 15 above. What else can you to with this tasty crust? How about fresh, hot cheese stuffed bread sticks? Our step by step blog will show you what pitfalls to avoid on your way to these pizza shop favorites.

Pizza Buns

I thought this would be a good quick meal for us when I had to switch things around last minute due to Ben's busy schedule.

Pizza Buns

½ lb. ground beef
4 buns, sliced in half
butter or margarine
1 small can or jar of pizza sauce
shredded or sliced cheese
(mozzarella or parmesan cheese works well)

Brown meat. Drain the fat off the cooked meat. Lightly
butter each half of buns. Spread each half of the bun
with 1 tablespoon pizza sauce and top with cooked
meat. Grate cheese and put some on top if desired.
(Add mushrooms, onion, green pepper or other toppings
for variety.) Bake in oven at 375 degrees until hot and
cheese is melted (about 15 minutes).

Serves four. Per serving: 280 calories, 27 g carbohydrate,
10 g fat, 3 g fiber and 560 mg sodium

I did not like them. The buns were soggy under all the toppings, and I even used somewhat stale buns we had sitting around. Big Chubb however, liked them and ate the last one that I couldn't get down. I did add extra toppings because we had some in the fridge to use up, plus Little Chubb really likes it when there are olives to eat, so that is about all that he ate off of his little pizza bun.

Sorry I took no pictures of them. I was grossed out by the sogginess of the bun underneath and spent quite a bit of the evening trying to recover from gagging them down.

Fondue For You

I volunteered to cook meals for Christmas Day. Since we usually have the big meal on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day was wide open for any food I pleased. For my wellness challenge, I was supposed to eat three meals a day (harder than it seems if you're pregnant), so this also helped me to be sure to eat meals.

For breakfast I made a non-Cupboard Project recipe that was very good (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/the-ultimate-breakfast-for-dinner-sausage-and-spinach-egg-strata-recipe/index.html) along with fruit soup. Yum! They were great, and there were leftovers for the next morning. I thought about making cinnamon rolls or French toast, but it was for Christmas morning, when I generally gorge on candy and sweets. This was a nice alternative.

For dinner I made two fondue recipes from a Taste of Home magazine. It made a nice easy-to-eat meal for a group.



Pizza Fondue

TOTAL TIME: Prep/Total Time: 25 min.
MAKES: 22 servings
Ingredients
1/2 pound ground beef
 1 cup chopped fresh mushrooms
 1 medium onion, chopped
 1 garlic clove, minced
 1 tablespoon cornstarch
 1-1/2 teaspoons fennel seed
 1-1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
 2 cans (15 ounces each) pizza sauce
 2-1/2 cups (10 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
 2 tablespoons chopped ripe olives
 Breadsticks, bagel chips, baked pita chips and/or tortilla chips

Nutritional Facts
1/4 cup (calculated without breadsticks, bagel chips, baked pita chips or tortilla chips) equals 97 calories, 6 g fat (4 g saturated fat), 23 mg cholesterol, 222 mg sodium, 4 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 7 g protein.

Directions
In a large skillet, cook the beef, mushrooms and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Drain. Stir in the cornstarch, fennel, oregano and garlic powder until blended. Stir in pizza sauce.
Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 1-2 minutes or until thickened. Gradually stir in cheeses until melted. Stir in olives. Keep warm.
Serve with breadsticks, bagel chips, pita chips and/or tortilla chips. Yield: 5-1/2 cups.
Originally published as Pizza Fondue in Taste of Home December/January 2008, p49

For this one, we decided to leave out the meat since we had already eaten meat at like every meal. I made some breadsticks to go along with this, and it really did taste like pizza when you dipped a breadstick in the dip. I think it was too hot when I put the cheese in because some of the cheddar cheese cooked instead of melted. It still tasted good.

Super Sausage Dip

TOTAL TIME: Prep: 15 min. Cook: 35 min.
MAKES: 40 servings
Ingredients
1 pound bulk pork sausage
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies
1 package (8 ounces) PHILADELPHIA® Cream Cheese, cubed
2 cups (16 ounces) sour cream
Tortilla chips

Directions
In a large skillet, cook the sausage, onion and green pepper over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain.
Stir in tomatoes and chilies. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add cream cheese; stir until melted. Stir in sour cream; heat through. (Do not boil.) Transfer to a fondue pot and keep warm. Serve with chips. Yield: 5 cups.
Originally published as Super Sausage Dip in Taste of Home December/January 2008, p49

I think most people liked this one better. At least, more of it was gone. We had tortilla chips and pita chips to dip (and the breadsticks). Dad also liked this dip cold.

Grilled Asparagus Stromboli from King Arthur Flour

Saturday night we had this one for dinner before we headed to Stake Conference. It was pretty easy to make since the bread machine did the hard part. I roasted the vegetables in the oven. Big Chub liked it. Little Chub ate it. I thought it was fine. Next time, I'll definitely salt and pepper the vegetables more and maybe add some Parmesan cheese in with the mozzarella.

The dough was amazing! I'll definitely use it for all our future pizzas.

Stromboli dough

• 2 teaspoons instant yeast
• 7/8 to 1 1/8 cups warm water
• 2 tablespoons garlic oil (or olive oil)
• 3 cups King Arthur Unbleached All Purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon Pizza dough flavor (optional but good)
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt

Grilled Asparagus & Onion Filling

• 2 cups fresh asparagus
• 1 large onion, roughly chopped
• 1 cup shredded cheese (mozzarella, provolone, or a blend)
• garlic oil or olive oil for brushing crust 

We had no garlic oil (I made my own version) and no pizza dough flavor (just left it out). I'm sure it wold have had more flavor if I did use it. I noticed on the King Arthur website, the recipe also includes artichoke hearts as an optional filling item. I assume it was added after this recipe was already printed back in 2010.