Cheeseless Pizza · 12 July 2013
Ingredients:
Whole Wheat Pizza Dough
Pizza Sauce
Spinach
Onion
Artichoke hearts
Mushrooms
Sun-dried Tomatoes
Kalamata Olives
Peperoncini
Tomatoes
Directions:
Cut and slice whatever vegetables you want on your pizza. (If you use other ingredients, some may need to be sautéed before placing them on the pizza.) Preheat the oven to 400°F. (We use a pizza stone and cook the dough on parchment paper.) Roll out the dough into the size and thickness you desire. Cook the sauce down to the desired consistency. We usually bake the pizza dough for 7 minutes before placing the sauce and ingredients. Then, we cook the completed pizzas for 5 minutes. We like to let the pizzas stand for a couple minutes before slicing. Then, we put the uncooked tomatoes on individually.
The pizzas can be cooked for 12 minutes without precooking the crust, but the crust usually turns out soggy that way.
The list of ingredients above is one we wanted to note for future use. In reality, we do not use the same ingredients every time. We just use whatever is on hand. Bell peppers add color and flavor. And the tomatoes can either be cooked on the pizza or added afterward. My wife and I like them uncooked.
My wife says I have ruined her. She means that she does not need cheese on her pizza anymore. (She will tell you that she has never needed meat, but she still likes to have a slice of the Canadian bacon and pineapple pizza that our son makes for himself.) I was pleasantly surprised at how good pizza tasted when we first started eating it without cheese and meat. In fact, the more I stay away from processed foods, the more I enjoy the different tastes of our vegetable, cheeseless pizza.
My wife might be right in saying that I have ruined her, but cheeseless pizza is the way to go.
© 2013 Michael T. Miyoshi
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Pizza Sauce · 11 July 2013
Ingredients:
12 oz. can Tomato sauce
8 oz. can Tomato paste
~ 8 oz. Water
Italian seasoning
Oregano
Directions:
Put the tomato sauce, tomato paste, some water (rinse out the tomato paste can), and the seasoning (enough for your own taste) into a sauce pan. Stir. Cook at medium heat reducing the mixture until it is at the desired consistency.
Our youngest son makes a great pizza sauce. He puts in Italian seasoning and oregano to taste rather than measuring it out. He stirs and tastes it every once in a while as it is heating. Then, he reduces the heat when it starts making large bubbles that make a splattery mess.
The boys like having their own personal pizzas and my wife and I like it that they can help out in more ways than just putting their favorite items on the pizza. They can help with making the dough and actually make the sauce. Homemade pizza night has been and continues to be a family night of cooking and eating. It is a good thing our youngest is the one to makes the sauce. It means we will continue to have great pizza sauce without lifting a finger for many years to come.
© 2013 Michael T. Miyoshi
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Whole Wheat Pizza Dough · 10 July 2013
Ingredients:
1 package (2 ¼ teaspoon) active dry yeast
1 teaspoon Sugar
2/3 cup warm Water
1 2/3 cup Whole wheat flour
¾ teaspoon Salt
2 teaspoons Olive oil
Directions:
(Note: This is a modification of the Cuisinart basic pizza dough recipe, but you do not need to use a Cuisinart to make it.)
Stir the yeast and sugar into the warm water and let it sit until the mixture is foamy. Make sure the container is big enough for the mixture to triple or more in volume. In another container or food processor, mix the flour and salt. When the yeast mixture has gotten foamy, add it to the flour and salt mixture. Stir it all up, add the olive oil, then knead until it is ready. It takes no time at all if you use a food processor. Our Cuisinart does a great job.
Roll out the dough and place on parchment paper or pizza pan (we use parchment paper and a pizza stone). Preheat the oven (and pizza stone) to 400°F and bake without ingredients for 7 minutes.
I use a large glass measuring cup (I actually use the one for a quart because we double the recipe) to make the yeast mixture. A single recipe will make two 10- to 12-inch diameter pizzas. We use the double recipe to make three 12-inch diameter pizzas.
The Cuisinart recipe is actually not a whole wheat one. We like to make it whole wheat to be a little healthier although any flour takes away at least some of the nutrients because of the processing. The whole wheat does make less dough than using all-purpose flour because it does not roll out as thin.
The other great thing about this pizza dough recipe is that it is easy and takes very little time. We rarely used to have homemade pizza, but now we have it a couple times a month. But be forewarned, once you start making your own homemade pizza dough and pizza, you might not want the stuff they make in even your favorite pizza joints.
© 2013 Michael T. Miyoshi
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