Make Your Own Pizza Night!

Nearly every family has pizza night once or twice a month...or week!  This convenience dinner IS still possible for families dealing with food allergies.  With a little preparation, you can be eating homemade, personalized pizzas in "take-out time". 

First, the dough.   If you are fortunate enough to be able to use a ready made, refrigerated dough, by all means, make your life easier, and use it! If not, here is one of our favorite recipes:

*Egg-free
*Peanut-free
*Tree nut-free
*Dairy-free
*Soy-free
*Shellfish-free
(If you have other food allergies, please read the recipe carefully to determine if it is safe for your needs.) 

For a Basic Pizza Dough -

1. Dissolve 1 Tbsp sugar in 1 1/3 cups of warm water. 
2. Sprinkle 1 packet of dry active yeast on top of the water (1/4 oz packet). 
3. Wait about 10 minutes, until the yeast is foamy and then stir in 3 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil. 
4. Combine 3 3/4 cups cups of flour and  1 1/2 tsp of salt in a large bowl. 
5. Make a well in the middle and add the wet mixture. 
6. Stir to combine and then turn the dough out onto a floured surface.
7. Knead for about 5 minutes, or until the ball is smooth and elastic. 
8. Form into 2 balls, coat each in olive oil, put in bowls and cover the bowls tightly with plastic wrap.
9. Leave the 2 bowls at room temperature for about 1 1/2 hours until the dough has doubled in size. 

*At this point, you can roll out, top, and bake the dough OR you can wrap it in plastic wrap and freeze it for up to a month!

10.  For a regualr sized pizza bake at 475 for 15-20 minutes - depending on topping load and desired crispiness!  (When we make 'mini-pizzas'  we start checking them at 10 minutes.) 

One of the great things about this dough, is that if you double or triple this recipe and freeze the dough balls, you can have enough fresh, safe pizza dough to have one pizza night a week for the entire month!  This is where one afternoon of preparation can set you up for success for a month!  Use the dough to make calzones, and other dough based treats.  We've even used it to make cinnamon sugar donut holes in the deep fryer!  Food allergy families know just how expensive organic and allergy friendly convenience foods can be.  This dough can offer convenience in the kitchen without breaking the budget!

When you want to have a pizza night, simply take the dough ball out of the freezer in the morning.  Place the frozen dough in a large bowl. Coat the ball of dough lightly with a fresh layer of extra-virgin olive oil. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth or kitchen towel and leave it alone on a counter for 4 to 8 hours. At dinner-time, you'll be all set to go!  You can top it and bake it in as much time as it takes to order take-out!

Here's a list of toppings we like to use:

Follow Your Heat Vegan Gourmet Cheese  (for our dairy-free eaters)
Al Fresco Organic Chicken Sausage  (Slice and saute for pizza topping)
Artichoke hearts
Bell peppers
Mushroms
Mini pepperoni
Carmelized onions
Fresh mozarella (for our dairy eaters)
Homemade marinara sauce (I freeze it in 2 cup containers and defrost in the microwave)

We use these mini pizza pans by "Doughmakers". They are just the right size for children, and they allow each person to make their own SAFE pizza without having to worry about possible cross-contamination of ingredients on their portion.  Children love to eat food that they have created and mini-pizzas are no exception! 

I hope you enjoy your pizza night!  As always, I wish you "Good Cooking, and Safe Eating"!