Is that delivery? No its from your own kitchen!

Good afternoon! Its Sunday, which means that I am trying to get my baking and meal prep finished for the week. I meal plan and shop in two week increments, and this is my "easy" weekend- meaning that I don't need to shop or plan. I just prep everything for the coming week.




My yeast jar. Just because I like it.







On with the important part....

The promised easy (and freezer friendly!) pizza dough recipe.

I have to be honest with you. I have only frozen this dough a dozen or so times, just to be sure that it will work. Why? Because its so easy to make that I just make it fresh on pizza night. It DOES freeze well though, so I'll include those directions too.

As I mentioned in my previous post, I have a mixer. I DO use my mixer on this recipe. I use the paddle, not the dough hook.

Wait, what? I don't know why, I just do. Its a quirk of mine.

You could probably use your dough hook, I just never have. If you don't have a mixer, you can do it by hand. And by hand, I mean you'll need to use your hands. A spoon isn't going to get the whole job done.

My recipe, as written, will make one medium or large pizza. You can double this recipe easily.  I would suggest that if you don't own an industrial bakery mixer, you don't go more than double. Your mixer bowl will be too full and the motor is going to be stressed.

To feed my family of 5, I make two pizzas. But to be honest, I almost always mix the dough in separate batches. It is just easier to work with that way. I mix one batch, dump it out on the counter, and then prep the yeast for the next batch. I then knead my dough, roll it out, and plop it on the pan. I add the rest of the dough ingredients into the yeast mixture and set to mix. I then sauce up the panned dough. By that time, the dough in the mixer is ready to be worked on the counter. It works out efficiently once you have a routine.

Another thing- I own round pizza pans. I never use them. Two large round pizzas won't fit in my oven at the same time. I use large rectangle baking sheets. Two large rectangles will just fit in my oven next to each other.

On to the pizza! I'll go step by step here, and then include a printable version of the recipe at the end. You will need: flour, dry yeast, vegetable oil of your choice, salt, sugar, and water.

Preheat your oven to 350*F

Measure out one cup of warm, not hot, water into your bowl. I have a metal bowl, so I feel my bowl temp before getting my water. If my bowl feels cold on my inner wrist, then I go with warmer, almost hot, water. I do that because I know that dumping a single cup of warm water into a cold metal bowl is going to rapidly drop the water's temp. If you want to be sure about it, you can measure your water's temp in the bowl. It should be between 105 and 115*F.

Add your sugar to the warm water and gently stir to be sure it dissolves. Follow this up with your yeast, and very gently stir one time. Allow your yeast to sit in the warm sugar water for a few minutes to activate. It will start to have bubbles or a foam like appearance across the top of the water.

When the bubbles have appeared, add in your oil and salt. Gently mix. Leave the mixer on a lower setting and begin to add in your flour 1/3 of a cup at a time. Allow your dough to form as you add each scoop of flour.

By the time you have added in all of your flour, you should have a solid dough mass that has pulled completely off the sides of the bowl and is not too sticky. If it is still sticky add in a bit more flour a tablespoon at a time.

Dump your dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead 6-8 times until smooth. Form into the shape of a proof ready dough disc/ball- this looks like the cap of a mushroom. Allow to rest for about 5 minutes. (This is where you would stop for freezer method number 1.)

Once rested, roll or hand- toss your dough into your pan's shape. I generally roll it out to start and then hand stretch the dough to get the correct dimensions before placing on my lightly greased baking sheet. Be sure that you have not trapped any air bubbles under your dough if you are using a non- perforated pan. If you have an air bubble, either poke it gently with a fork tine or push to the closest side of the pan to release it. You most likely won't have trouble with this, but sometimes my daughter does. I think its because she tries to stretch the dough directly in the pan. (This is where you need to be at for the "frozen pizza" method.)




Sauce your dough to about a half an inch from the edges, and top your pizza.



Bake for 20-25 minutes. Your crust will be golden brown on the edges and will have risen slightly.

Allow to rest a couple of minutes before slicing. This will allow your toppings time to cool slightly and help keep them from skidding around in the sauce while you try to cut. Enjoy your homemade pizza!


Freezer Method Numeral Uno:
This is the tastiest and most space saving freezer method, however, it still requires planning ahead to serve pizza to your family. This is not the "frozen pizza" method.

You should be at the dough resting stage for this method. Once your dough has rested, gently press into a flat disc about 1 1/2 inches thick. If you are planning to freeze more than one dough disc, place a layer of wax or parchment paper between each disc and then stack. Gently wrap in plastic wrap and place in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Ready to enjoy some pizza? Remove a dough disc from the freezer, place on a lightly greased plate and allow to thaw. You can place your disc in the fridge at bedtime to thaw. About 2 hours before you plan to bake your pizza, pull your dough from the fridge and allow it to rise to room temperature. Once at room temperature, shape your dough to your pan, top, and bake at 350*F for 20-25 minutes.


"Frozen Pizza" Freezer Method:

This method is like buying a frozen pizza from the store. It takes up more space in your freezer, and you lose some of the fresh taste. Let's face it though, its frozen, not fresh. It can save some time if you are very busy or if you need someone who doesn't like to cook to make a meal.

The frozen pizza is just like it sounds. Make your dough, roll out and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment. You'll want the parchment to be able to gently remove your crust. Bake the un- sauced and un- topped crust in a 350*F oven for 12 minutes. Essentially you are half baking the crust. Remove from the oven. Using the edges of the parchment, gently remove the crust from the pan and place on a cooling rack.

Allow the crust to cool, and then sauce your pizza with chilled sauce. You will want to go slightly lighter on the sauce than you would if you were baking it immediately. The water in the sauce will play a role in condensation in freezing. You will want to chill your toppings slightly before placing on the pizza, or at the least, use room temperature. It does not freeze well if you use warm from the pan ground beef or sausage. It causes a condensation issue- soggy pizza anyone? Place your pizza, unwrapped, in the freezer for about 1 hour. Once it is thoroughly chilled and all toppings appear to be "set", wrap your pizza in plastic wrap. In theory this should last in a good deep freeze for up to 3 months, but I haven't ever gone more than a month or so.

When you are ready to bake your pizza, preheat your oven to 350*F. Remove the plastic wrap from the frozen pizza and reseat it into your pizza pan. Bake the frozen pizza for 20-30 minutes, until the crust is slightly raised, golden brown, and the cheese is completely melted. The first few times you  make it, you will need to start checking it after 20 minutes to determine the appropriate baking length for your freezer and oven situation- some freezers run colder, some ovens run hotter.


I hope that this recipe helps some of you out. Enjoy your pizza!



Easy Hand-tossed Pizza Crust
Yields 1 medium or large pizza crust

1 cup warm water (105-115*F)
1 Tbs sugar
.25 ounces OR 2 1/2 tsp dry yeast
2 Tbs vegetable oil
1 tsp salt
3 cups all- purpose or bread flour

1. Preheat oven to 350*F
2. Add warm water and sugar to your mixer bowl. Gently add yeast and allow to rest.
3. When yeast is bubbly/foamy, add oil and salt. Gently mix.
4. Set your mixer to a low setting with the paddle or dough hook and begin to add the flour in 1/3 cup at a time. Allow it to incorporate before adding more. Bump up the mixer speed a bit if you need to as the dough forms.
5. Once all flour is added and incorporated into the dough, dump out onto a lightly floured surface and knead smooth. Form a dough ball and allow to rest 5 minutes.
6. Roll out or hand- toss dough to fit your pizza lightly greased or lined pizza pan.
7. Spread on sauce and top with meats, veggies, and cheese.
8. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until edges of crust are golden brown and cheese is melted and bubbly.
9. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before slicing.
10. Enjoy!