Pizzas (well the dough and the sauce)

This is a recipe for the basics of making your own pizzas at home. Obviously you will need your desired toppings and mozzarella!

Makes 2-3 large pizzas   Prep Time 25mins   Proving Time 1hr30mins   Cooking Time 10-15mins

Ingredients:

For the dough

500g Strong bread flour or 00 flour

1 packet of fast action yeast (7g)

1 tbsp sugar

1tsp salt

1 tbsp olive oil

310ml luke warm water

100-150g fine polenta

(These measurements can be doubled or tripled depending on if you want more etc.)

For the tomato sauce

Half a yellow onion chopped finely

3 cloves of garlic, crushed

5 large vine tomatoes, chopped

500ml passata

2 tsp red pesto

1tbsp red wine vinegar

1tsp sugar

Salt & pepper

Olive oil

Equipment:

Weighing scales

Large mixing bowl or stand mixer with dough hook

Medium saucepan

Rolling pin

Wooden spoon

Chopping board

Sharp knife

Greaseproof paper

Cling film

Put the dry ingredients into a bowl (flour, sugar, yeast and salt) and mix with your fingers to evenly distribute.

Make a well in the middle of the dry mix and add your oil and half your water.

Using your hand like a claw mix the ingredients together, gradually adding in the rest of the water

Keep mixing until you have one ball of dough then tip out on to a very lightly floured work surface and knead with both hands for about 10 minutes. This process can also be done with a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook.

The dough should feel elastic and look fairly smooth.

Flour your bowl and place your dough ball in and cover with oiled cling film and leave to rise for 1.5hours or until doubled in size.

(This is where you can make your sauce, see below for method)

Preheat the oven to 220°c/fan 210°c/gas 8

Punch the dough back so the air is released and now you’re ready to make your pizzas.

*To be honest if you’re out of the house for longer than 1.5 hours then you can prove the dough for longer. I make mine on my lunch break from work at 12ish and use it at about 6 or 7ish.

Take a portion of your dough (one mix makes around 2 or 3 large pizzas) and roll it out on a floured work surface, pulling the edges as you go to avoid it springing back.

The best way to do this is to roll the dough on a surface covered with polenta to get a crisp bottom and good texture.

I usually transfer the rolled out base to a sheet of greaseproof paper sprinkled with polenta and cook the pizzas on the paper, placing directly onto the oven shelf.

Then you can put whatever topping on you wish and cook in a preheated oven for around 10-15 minutes.

Whilst the dough is proving, you can make the sauce!

In a sauce pan on a medium heat, add 2 tbsp of olive oil and lightly fry the onions for around 5-7 minutes until translucent and soft.

Add the garlic and tomatoes along with the red pesto, cook for a few minutes, adding salt and pepper to taste.

Add the passata, red wine vinegar and sugar and reduce the heat to low.

Cook for around 15-30 mins until you have a thick sauce and the tomatoes have begun to breakdown

Chill and put on your pizza!

There are loads of things you can put on your pizza, recently I made 4; a pepperoni and jalapeno, a roast veg and feta, a roast veg and strips of cooked chicken and a cooked new potato and rosemary pizza which was just sliced cooked new potatoes mixed in a bowl with olive oil and chopped rosemary then placed over the base and cooked - But whatever you want.