Easy Peasy Pizza

We love pizza !  For years and years pizza has been our go to Friday night meal.  Over the years we have had pizza delivered, picked up a pizza on the way home from work, then decided we needed a healthier version.  For several years I purchased a well known pizza shell that was a whole wheat version.   It was good, but a little too chewy - and frankly, too expensive.  Then I came upon a brand called Mama Mary's.  Two whole wheat crusts in a package.  For years I bought them at Walmart and would stock up and store them in the freezer.  Then one day - bam!  - they disappeared.   I noticed my local grocery store carried Mama Mary products and asked several times to have the whole wheat version in stock.  Each time I was told yes...it will take a few weeks.  Well, they never did show up.   Then I searched and found whole wheat pizza shells at Whole Foods.  You can see a post about them here - 

Making Pizza A Little Bit Healthier

And that was good, but not great.   Then the pandemic hit and I decided to try my hand at making my own pizza dough.  There are TONS of recipes online and I tried a few.  Some were too thin, some too chewy for our taste - and I finally found this Pizza Crust yeast and tried the recipe on the package.  SUCCESS!  We really like it, it is easy to make, and I can use some whole wheat flour!  For a few weeks there during the Covid panic you could not find the yeast anywhere  - everyone was baking!  When I did find it, I stocked up.

It says "fast and easy on the package - and it is!

It comes in packs of three - and I use my Kitchenaid Stand Mixer to make the dough.

I first tried making it on my old Pampered Chef pizza tray...but it was too hard to get the crust on the tray and it did not get brown on the bottom.  I tried putting the dough right onto the oven rack with the pizza peel you see in the back of my olive oil basket...but that was a disaster.

I found this pizza pan at Kohls and decided to give it a try.

Here is the recipe -

1-3/4 to 2-1/4 cups of all purpose flour

1 package of Fleischman's pizza crust yeast

1-1/2 teaspoons sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup very warm water ( 120 - 130 degrees)

3 Tablespoons oil

Pizza sauce, toppings, cheese

I use a combo of whole wheat flour and bread flour.  I recently purchased these ProKeeper flour containers and I love them.  Airtight and easy to store in my cupboard.  

I start out with one cup of whole wheat flour...

Add the sugar...

And the salt into the mixing bowl...along with one packet of the yeast.  Add the oil and the warm water...

I check to make sure the water temp is between 120- 130 degrees...

Add it to the bowl and mix for one minute, until...

it forms a mixture that looks like this.

Then I use a 1-1/2 cup measure of bread flour...

Attach the dough hook to the mixer....

And gradually add enough flour until ....

the dough starts to come together.  I never use the entire cup and a half of the bread flour.  I just add a little at a time until I see the dough start to form a ball...

And once it does I let the dough hook knead the dough for 4 minutes on low speed...

While the dough is kneading, I get ready to make the pizza.  I use this silicone pad to roll out the dough...

and get the toppings ready.  A small can of mushrooms from Aldi..

drained well...

Whenever I buy spinach I chop and freeze several batches so I am all ready for the pizza.. .

and chop up some colorful peppers, too. While I am doing this, I keep an eye on the dough kneading.  Sometimes I add a tiny bit more water...or a tiny bit more flour...depending on how the dough looks.   After you make this a few times you get a feeling for how it should look.

The flour I did not use to make the dough is ready to sprinkle on the silicone pad...

and I use my hands to flatten the dough and shape a circle.

I have watched videos where people just shape the dough with their hands...but rolling the dough works for me...

So, I roll it fairly thin to make a circle to fit the pizza pan...

It is NEVER a perfect circle...but that is OK, because I like the crusts that form on some of the edges!

Spread the dough with pizza sauce...though I sometimes use leftover marinara sauce..

I also spread some "Parmesan Cheese" on top for extra flavor, and I use the reduced fat...

As well as reduced fat, part skim mozzarella cheese...

I break up the spinach leaves...

spread them on top of the mozzarella, top with the mushrooms,

and the peppers.

I pre-heated the oven to 425 degrees....

and pop the pizza in for 15-17 minutes.

Another Friday night tradition...while the pizza is baking we enjoy a glass of wine and some nuts...and enjoy the smell of a pizza backing in the oven!

And then it is done...Pizza Bliss!  All gooey and hot !

Cut into 6 slices...we usually eat 2 each and then freeze the rest for another time...

I like mine with EXTRA Spicy Mrs. Dash.

And that is it!  I love making the dough, and I love that I can control the fat and toppings on our pizza.  

Have you made pizza crust at home ?  Do you have a favorite recipe or tip to share ?  I would love if you leave a comment below - and until then, Happy May!  

And thank you for stopping by Our New Vista!