Tonight was pizza night at our house.
I usually make pizza using this recipe, but tonight I was more in the mood for a thicker crust, so I made a yeast dough.
And of course, pictured above is just one of the pizzas but really I had to make three pizzas to fill us all. (I just picked the prettiest one for the picture.)
Three pizzas did fill us all but most everyone needed more food two hours later. That’s how it works around here. Wow, these kids can eat.
We like making our pizzas with a variety of toppings. Some with “just cheese”. Some with cheese and turkey pepperoni. Some with cheese, turkey pepperoni and black olives. Some with cheese, turkey pepperoni, black olives, mushrooms and green peppers.
Pretty tasty.
Ooh, and my favorite ingredient? I like using white cheddar cheese instead of mozzarella. It gives the pizza SUCH good flavor!
So what’s your favorite kind of pizza? Do you like making pizza yourself? If not, where do you like to get your pizza?
Is anyone now hungry for pizza? Sorry about that. If you come on by, I think I might have a couple leftover slices.
Jennifer says
I’m seriously starving right now…. Well, not really, but your pictures make my stomach growl.
I make my own pizza and top it with green peppers, mushrooms, and turkey pepperoni. I usually use mozzarella, but I’ll have to consider the white cheddar suggestion! Yum!
Jenny Adler says
We love making pizza but our choices are pretty plain-just cheese or cheese and turkey pepperoni. But everyone gets to help which is fun. Pizza was on my menu tonight but I didn’t feel like grinding wheat and making dough. Then I remembered that I had your pizza pockets in the freezer! Yeah!
Camille says
We have homemade pizza every Friday night (mostly). Our kids are 1 and 3 and I’m already thinking I’m going to need 2 pizzas soon! I just started using a new dough recipe (it has more oil in it than my usual) and love it. I really need to get a pizza stone and a peel! The little ones prefer pepperoni and the adults prefer a margherita pizza, but lately it’s just been ham and ground beef because that’s what I have on hand!
Amy @ Homestead Revival says
I love onions on my pizza – lots of them. Leeks will do nicely, too, but I must have onion. I’ve been experimenting with 100% whole wheat pizza crusts and I’m having trouble finding one our entire family likes. I’d love to hear what works for others – 100% ww of course!
Laura says
Your pizza looks delish! We had pizza tonight, too, tried out a new crust recipe (we liked it, it’s from Clean Eating magazine). My favorite pizza is loaded with sausage, black olives, onions, pepperoni, mushrooms. I could eat pizza every day…mmmmmm! I make my own for health and financial reasons, but eating pizza at a different restaurant every night would be fine with me if those reasons disappeared.
Sonja says
I got that crust recipe too.
Mimi says
Your pizza dough looks perfect! Where do you buy your turkey pepperoni?
Laura says
Walmart…just Hormel. I haven’t been able to find a healthier version around here or through my food coop.
Marla says
We love pizza. Although I rarely make it. I just haven’t figured it out yet. You would think it would be easy, but I can’t find a crust recipe we all like, or a sauce one, or the right combination of toppings. The cheese is always weird. My pizzas always end up pretty gross. But we do order Mazzios quite often. My fave is pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, and green peppers.
Holly says
Ok – here is what I discovered, and I bet you are having the same problem I did. Is your crust soggy? It’s because I bet your veggies aren’t cooked and a lot of your toppings are cold. If I heat the oven to 400 and let it sit at temperature for atleast 10 min I know it’s good and hot. I roll the dough,, spread the sauce (I just use jarred tomato and basil spaghetti sauce and my toppings are at room temp. I saute all my veggies (onions, peppers, mushrooms) and pat them dry so they can’t sweat under the cheese. Then I spread the cheese. Pepperoni goes last. And it bakes. delish!
Catherine says
I always make pizza for our family using a pizza dough made with yeast. I roll it thin for one pizza because my husband likes it crispy (and pre-bake it for a few minutes) but roll it thick for the children and me because we like deep-dish pizza. The children love ham and pineapple, hubby likes meatlovers and my favourite is supreme.
Danielle says
I’m not a pizza eater. If I eat it every 6-9 months I’d be happy. I very rarely get hungry for it. But unfortunately, my family likes pizza lol. So as a compromise, I will order pizza from a local pizza shop, and I’ll get a hoagie (sub, hero, not sure what other names there are for these sandwiches).
Cindy says
May I ask what recipe you used for the yeast dough?
Laura says
I’ll put in on my “list” for recipes to share (sometime in the next six months?). Sorry, I’m SO behind on sharing recipe requests!!
Julia says
Every Friday night is pizza night around here. Like Amy said, I am having trouble finding a good yeast based whole wheat pizza crust recipe. Mine are always soft in the center (even if I pre-bake them). I would love to know what recipe you and others are using.
Alison says
I make pizza on trader joe’s whole wheat pitas. The ingredient line is very good, and it is a quick easy treat. Usually I do sauce, cheese, turkey pepperoni or canadian bacon plus tomatoes and onions. Last night I did homemade buttermilk ranch as the sauce. Grilled a piece of chicken breast in my cast iron skillet, and fried up some bacon. Chopped up onions and tomatoes to have a ranch chicken bacon pizza. It was good!
Yours looks better :)
Vanderbilt Wife says
I’m just getting into making pizza myself. I like the recipe for pizza dough from the Pioneer Woman’s cookbook, but I use whole wheat flour. I like barbecue chicken pizza, fresh mozzarellla and anything…yum!
I don’t know how your budget stands having 4 boys! That’s insane!
Jessie
Laura says
Yeah, gulp. They’re all going to have to get jobs to support their eating habits when they’re teenagers.
holly says
I make this pizza
http://mommyoffaith19.blogspot.com/2010/02/pizza-like-restaurant.html
My dh loves how “pretty” the pizza turns out. Yes pretty, pizza can be pretty when you love food.
One time I made a chicken alfredo pizza. Used alfredo sauce instead of pizza sauce and topped with cheese and chicken that I sauteed in garlic and olive oil.
Amanda says
Yum! My favorite food! We have family night every thursday and, of course, we have pizza. :) The thing I love about pizza is how versitale it is. You can put pratically anything on a pizza! (Have you tried eggplant?? Mmm….) We put different toppings on different sections because every one has their preferences. Usually it’s mushrooms, olives, and green peppers. Ocassionally we add some sausage or pepperoni.
Jen B says
I love pizza, but it doesn’t love me. :) If I could have a pizza without the cheese, or the sauce, or the greasy pepperoni, then I’d be just fine. :) But, if I were to take my chances and eat it, it would be Pizza Hut pan pizza with pepperoni and light sauce. :)
Kari says
I enjoy a good deep dish cheese every now and then.
I’d like to make homemade pizza more often. I was wondering, what brand of turkey pepperoni do you use? Do you use a healthier version than whats offered in the regular grocery stores? My husband could pretty much live off of pepperoni pizza so I’d like to try to offer him something that’s not so bad for him!
Thanks!
Laura says
I just use Hormel. I haven’t been able to find a healthier version around here or through my food coop.
Danielle says
I was going to say Hormel. But I thought you would have had something other than Hormel!
I hate to admit I like the regular pepperoni lol. The turkey pepperoni is good too.
kari, If you are a follower of Tammy’s recipes, I think I saw a recipe for
homemade beef pepperoni.
Sonja says
We like pepperoni, onion and green olive here. Pizza is usually a Friday night thing here, but with lent, we have had to move it to Saturday.
Shelly says
OOOh! We have the best gourmet pizza we make at our house. We use a thinner crust (store bought -I admit) then we brush on a garlic infused olive oil and melted butter mixture. Next we top it with a small amount of gorganzola cheese crumbles, carmalized onions, lots of mozz and romano cheeses and a little garlic salt to taste. This is the BEST pizza on the planet – I PROMISE! My dad developed this recipe by chance, as he so often does! We love it!
Shelly says
I also make a taco pizza – with black refried beans instead of pizza sauce, chicken, cheddar cheese, tomatoes and shredded lettuce on top. Then drizzle ranch dressing and taco sauce. SO YUM!
mamashortcake says
We LOVE this crust recipe. You don’t have to chill it as the recipe calls for, but I usually triple it and keep some in the fridge for use throughout the week. It makes great focaccia too. When she says “white” whole wheat flour she is referring to hard white wheat flour, not the unbleached unhealthy kind! I use freshly ground prairie gold flour. Sometimes we make it thin, and sometimes we make it thick, depends on our mood!
http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/001506.html
Step says
My brood loves homemade pizza night! I make a variety of different pizzas and I have to 2nd you about using different cheeses. I love a blend and cheddar is usually in there somewhere. My top 5 pizzas (or so my family tells me):
1. white pizza — garlic aioli sauce, italian blend of cheeses, topped with shrimp, roasted red peppers and capers.
2. grilled pizza margharetta — crust divided into individual servings, brushed with olive oil and then grilled on the BBQ, then top with homemade pizza sauce, cheese and fresh basil.
3. BBQ chicken — pizza and BBQ sauce blend, colby jack cheese, leftover cooked chicken, red onions, parmesan cheese and cilantro
4. hawaiian (I think I’m spelling that wrong) — ham, pineapple, green peppers, onions, blend of cheeses
5. supreme — pepperoni, onions, peppers, mushrooms, black olives, etc.
Courtney says
My husband needs to eat gluten-free, so we use Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free pizza crust mix – it is so good! Instead of using pizza sauce, I like to brush the crust with Italian dressing (Newman’s Own is great) and then top with chicken, caramelized onions, green onions, artichoke hearts and whatever cheese we happen to have on hand. So good! Next time, I think I’ll use white cheddar – that sounds delicious!
Teresa says
Hi Courtney,
I noticed that you make gluten free pizza crust using the Bob’s Red Mill gluten free mix. My son has been complaining that his tummy hurts all the time, so my plan is to try and take gluten out of his diet to see it it helps. Do you use or have you used the Bob’s Red Mill gluten free all purpose baking flour. If so, does it work and taste good in recipies? I just bought a small bag yesterday and was going to bake some muffins with it in a few minutes. I am hoping they turn out. Thank you for any input that you may have about using gluten free products.
Emily @ AdventuresInTandyLand says
We love Hormel turkey pepperoni in this house! It tastes great and it’s a lot easier on our stomaches than regular too.
We do a lot of olive oil sprinkled with Italian herb blend because my husband is not a huge fan of tomato sauce. I love tomato sauce so a lot of times we split up the dough.
One thing I haven’t seen others post about yet is that we love to do a “stir-fry” pizza. I like to use Soy Vay sauces (love the garlic hoisin!!!) or make my own. I use some sauce to marinate the meat and a litle extra spread over the crust. We usually use chicken but steak is good too – just precook it. Then we top with things you would like in a stir-fry, just make sure things like carrots are sliced very thinly. We love water chestnuts for some reason! I use a blend of mozz and cheddar because the sauce already has a strong flavor.
Ann says
We are having pizza tonight. I use my sourdough to make the crust–it’s part whole wheat. Topping are pepperoni, black olives and onions. I make my own pepperoni using this recipe (it’s delicious):
http://www.tammysrecipes.com/tammys_spicy_pepperoni
The only variation I would suggest is using 1/2 beef and 1/2 sausage.
When we have fresh tomatoes and basil, we make our summer pizza: Crust, mozerella, sliced tomatoes, sliced onions, basil leaves drizzled with olive oil. I can’t wait for summer!
Emily says
My husband doesn’t like tomato sauce on his pizza very much so for him I infuse olive oil with garlic and Italian herb blend seasonings and then brush it on the crust. He loves it!
We’ve found that using the Hormel turkey pepperoni is much easier on our stomachs and it tastes pretty much like regular.
We like to make “stir-fry” pizza at our house. I either make my own sauce or use Soy Vay’s Hoisin Garlic (vegetarian and kosher brand – sooo good!) I marinate the meat (usually chicken but steak is good too) and then either grill it or cook it in the oven. I put a little extra sauce on a pre-baked crust and then top with meat and thinly sliced veggies – whatever you like in your stir-fry! We love water chestnuts and carrots. I’m going to try edamame soon. I usually use a blend of mozzarella and cheddar. You don’t want to use too strong of a cheese because you don’t want the sauce to compete with it. It is so good and nobody complains about eating vegetables!
Janet says
I make homemade pizza with a spelt flour crust a couple times a month, and I LOAD it with toppings. For the women: crust, sauce (http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1615,147191-252198,00.html), sauted onions,red and gr bell peppers,garlic, mushrooms, blk olives, then tomato slices and lots of cheese over all to hold it all together. For the men: all the above plus ham and sausage, and pepperoni if I have it.
Deb says
An alternative (not healthy), Saute diced chicken breasts in fresh garlic, spray non-stick cooking spray in the pan, but don’t add any extra oil. Saute until brown. To make pizza, use homemade crust, I always use the one I googled from CPK for this recipe. Roll out crust, spread jarred alfredo sauce that you have mixed with some garlic over the crust. Sprinkle some mozzarella on top. Sprinkle the chicken over that. Sprinkle more mozzarella, then shredded parmesan over that. Then sprinkle with Italian Seasoning. Bake at high heat, like 425 (I use the convection feature and a pizza pan with large holes). Then if you like about 5 minutes before it is done, sprinkle with fresh diced tomatoes and sliced green onions (some like it, some don’t.)
I normally use this recipe for pizza crust, 1 1/3 c water, 1/4 cup olive oil, 1 t. sugar, 1/2 t. salt, 4 cups bread flour and 2 t. yeast. That makes 3 crusts or 2 and some breadsticks. To make breadsticks, roll out, not like pizza, but to make little logs. Then let those rise until doubled, then bake at 425 and then brush on REAL butter, sprinkle with garlic salt and grated parmesan. YUM. I use the Hunt’s spaghetti sauce for our pizza sauce, it is about .98 per can which is about the same as making it. This is our ‘avoid eating out’ meal that I can do quickly. The crust keeps in the refrigerator for 3 days.
One more yummy recipe, roll out a crust, spread with minced fresh garlic, then sprinkle on mozzarella, then shredded parmesan, then put on fresh SLICED tomatoes, and sprinkle with parmesan again, then sprinkle with Italian Seasoning. Bake at 425. We call that a foccacia, it is very “garlicky” but very yummy. I cut it in squares, rather than triangles.
Melinda says
We have to make at least 3 pizzas here, too. Usually we have 1 cheese, 1 with pepperoni and black olives and 1/2 mushrooms, but the most complicated, and most delicious is the Alfredo. I use a package of Alfredo mix (I just ignore the ingredient list, don’t beat me), well-drained, canned tomatoes (or seeded, fresh ones), sausage, and fresh spinach! It is the best! Even the picky child, who doesn’t like pizza (?!), will eat this and ask for seconds.
Rhonda says
I love pizza! Friday night is pizza night for us. I make a really simple pizza crust that my whole family loves. (You can find the recipe on my blog.) I stretch my pizza dough out a little further than the pan and pile on some extra cheese and sauce around the edges and then fold the crust over to make a “stuffed crust” that is delicious when they bite into it.
Erin says
I make my own pizza. Aside from a real chicago deep dish I have not found any other pizza better than what I can make at home
Suzanne says
We have pizza and a movie every Friday night – I LOVE it!!!! It is such a relaxing way to end the week. of course I make 4 different pizza’s – more if we have friends over! We are vegetarian so I make a yeast WW pizza dough and 2 of my boys like just cheese – no sauce, 1 likes sauce, cheese (a combination) and olives, Hubby likes sauce, various cheese (mozz, ched, blue and parm), onions, garlic and olive and I HEAP mine with spinach, (no sauce) then a little mozz and parm and HEAPINGS of broccoli on top – actually embarrassing when people I do not know well are over! :-) One of my favorite meals for sure – and we usually have some leftovers for lunch on Saturday!
We also do a foccacia with italian meals sometimes. I want to make your pizza pockets and pizza pretzel too – pizza braid is good for a party too. So many wonderful ways to eat pizza!
Julie H says
Homemade pizza is a staple around our house. I usually make up a couple batches of dough in my bread machine and freeze them. Our standard pizza is mushroom and pepperoni but my son has been requesting plain cheese. :) It’s on the menu for this coming week!
Fifth Street Mama says
I have 2 favorites. The first is Buffalo Chicken ranch. The sauce is replaced with ranch dressing and Frank’s hot sauce (I usually mix it with the chicken pieces). So yummy!
My next favorite is philly cheese steak. I use left over steak cut into strips for this one. I replace the sauce with slices of provolone and then top that with steak mushrooms peppers onions and mozza. If you are feeling really adventurous you can dip it in HP sauce.
Kris Mays says
Normally, it is our Friday night dinner. I make two batches of dough and we have one plain cheese and then Dave and I have a vegie, or sometimes I use meat, depending on what we have.
If I don’t make pizza, I make strombolis, which is meat and cheese rolled up in the dough, baked and then dipped in sauce. They are so good!
Been taking a break from pizza on Fridays, lately. Not sure why. It may be time to resume our usual -it sounds good right now.
Kris says
I also make a foccacia bread, and I top it with this whizzed up in the food processor: Spinach, Olive Oil & Raw Garlic. I don’t measure or anything like that. Then I sprinkle some parm on top of that and drizzle more olive oil before baking. It is soooo good.
Jeri Ford says
We have made homemade pizza every Friday night since we got married (almost 10 years ago). The tradition has grown since our children have come along and they help us too. It’s messier with little ones though!! I used to always use the breadmaker to make the dough, which made it such an easy meal! But our breadmaker died about 3 weeks ago. :( I’ve since tried 3 different crust recipes and my favorite is a whole wheat one I found. We’ve had all kinds of toppings, depending on where we live. Right now, we’re in Papua New Guinea, so we just take what we can get. We often have fresh pineapple to add!
Travelin Pilgrim says
Do you have a special white cheddar brand that you use? and if so, where??
We love pizza. Right now, as we are in Italy, the pizza is completely different. Usually I make our own at home. Believe it or not, while we’re here, I purchase the frozen cheese pizzas. They are so different than anything frozen in the states. MUCH better! They also do not add all the additives, preservatives etc… so I don’t feel too guilty about it. The children like the cheese pizzas and then I spruce up the pizza for my husband and I. I just saute some onion, bell pepper and garlic in a little olive oil. Then I put it over the top of the pizza while the pizza is baking. Love it!
Laura says
Amazing that the frozen pizza in Italy is so much different. I want to try some!!
I ust Landmark Raw White Cheddar that I order from Azure Standard.
Andrea says
This is the year of the pizza for me! I have tried to make pizza in the past, and it almost made me cry. My mom got me the cook book for Christmas that kinda goes with the Bosch (although I think I could have done good things with it and a kitchenAid) “Healthy Recipes from the heart of our home.” I LOVE their recipe. It’s so fast and easy! I use 100% fresh ground whole wheat flour and it rolls out quick and easy. Amazing. I almost have the recipe memorized. I made chicken pesto pizza last week. Mmm. We buy artichoke hearts and sundried tomatoes in bulk from Costco to put on our salads and they are EXCELLENT on our pizza. This is weird, though. My absolute favorite topping on pizza is fresh tomatoes. I LOVE how they taste sliced up on pizza warm from the oven. Other favorites are olives, sauted onions, basil leaves, and feta cheese. I feel like such a pizza diva! :)
Tami says
We are always hungry for pizza, but I haven’t tried homemade in years. Yours looks great! We usually get Pappa John’s, because if you order at least 5, they are only $6 each (sometimes even less). And while there are only two teenage boys actually living here, there are usually several more around. They come out of the woods when they smell pizza! If it takes three to feed your boys now, just imagine in about 5 more years – you’ll need more ovens, or you’ll have to call Papa John too.