How to Make Home Made Pizza

Pizza night will never be the same again. Make it into a fun experience with your kids and choose colourful toppings. This is very easy to make.

Dough Ingredients:

2 teaspoons active dry yeast

½ cup lukewarm water

1 teaspoon sugar

680 grams all purpose flour

1 teaspoon San Giuliano Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 teaspoons salt

1 ¼ cups water

Toppings:

¾ of La Favorita Bruschetta Sauce 180g bottle

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

½ of Mr Filbert’s Olive Snack 30g, cut into thirds (crosswise to make rings)

½ red bell pepper cut into rings

½ yellow bell pepper cut into rings

1 sausage, sliced diagonally into ½ cm thick pieces

¼ cup cherry tomatoes, halved

¼ cup pineapple titbits

1. In a small bowl, mix the yeast, lukewarm water, and sugar. Give it a good stir, then set the mixture aside and cover with a cloth. After 10-15 minutes it should have a frothy top layer.

2. In a large bowl, put together the flour and yeast mixture. Add the extra virgin olive oil, salt, and water. Stir until all the ingredients come together forming the dough. Put the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead it for a few minutes. Use the palm of your hand to press down and push the dough forward, then fold it back in using your fingers.

Keep doing this for about 10 minutes and your dough will become silky smooth and elastic – the dough will spring back when you press your finger in.

3. Cup both hands and rotate the dough until it becomes a nice ball. Take a large, clean bowl and rub a bit of extra virgin olive oil all over the inside surface. Place your dough inside and roll it around to get it lightly coated with the olive oil. Then cover with plastic wrap or damp cloth and let it rise for about an hour. You’ll know it’s done when you push a finger in it and the hole stays.

4. After the dough rises, place it on your working table. This pizza dough recipe makes three 12-inch round thick crust pizzas. Portion accordingly and make into smaller balls by tucking the sides of the dough in and under using your cupped hands. Let it rest for another few minutes.

While the dough rests, prepare your sauce and toppings. A lot of people don’t know this but the La Favorita Bruschetta Sauce makes an excellent pizza sauce. It has tomato pulp, olive oil, fresh basil, garlic, and sea salt. You will see a bit of tomato chunks in the sauce when you spread it on your pizza, and that adds to the overall pleasantness!

5. Pre-heat the oven to 240 degrees Celsius (465 degrees Fahrenheit). Then gently stretch your dough by pressing it with your fingertips, lifting it up from time to time. Alternatively, you can use a rolling pin and just gently roll to the desired shape. Put it onto your lightly floured pizza dish and use a fork to poke all over the surface.

6. Apply the La Favorita Bruschetta Sauce evenly. Next, spread the mozzarella cheese; reserve some for the final topping. Arrange the rest of your toppings according to your preference. And top it off with the remaining mozzarella cheese.

7. Pop it in the oven for about 10-12 mins, turning the pizza around when halfway through to ensure even cooking on all sides.

[Note: You can freeze the portions of pizza dough you won’t be using and have them ready on your next pizza adventure. Take your San Giuliano extra virgin olive oil and gently coat the dough on all sides and put in a freezer bag, carefully pressing out all the air from the bag. You can keep them in the freezer for 3 months. When you’re ready to make your next pizza, just take it out from the freezer and let it thaw overnight or about 12 hours in your refrigerator. Let the dough rest on your tabletop afterwards to let it warm up to room temperature before doing anything with it.]

Recipe by Janelle Aficial