hi everybody. i'd like a really good, easy, tasty pizza crust recipe. i have tons of cookbooks and searched internet, etc, but have yet to find what i am looking for. do you have a recipe that you actually use? or any other advice on making homemade pizzas.

thanks and have a blessed day.

gene

-- gene ward (gward34847@aol.com), August 25, 2001

Answers

Easy and delicious: Pizza Crust 1 pkg yeast 1 cup warm water (105* - 115*) 2 1/2 cups flour 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 teaspoon sugar 1 teaspoon salt

Dissolve yeast in warm water in medium bowl; stir in remaining ingredients and beat vigorously about 20 strokes. Let rest 5 minutes. Grease cookie sheets or pizza pans, divide dough in half and pat into 11-inch circle with floured fingers.

-- cjmonty (tfl4715@montana.com), August 25, 2001.

Hi Gene, there's a really good show on Food TV, Good Eats with Alton Brown, that just the other day went into detail about pizza dough. They have a web site, www.foodtv.com. When you get into the site, look to the right, top hand corner, and type in pizza dough under Search. You'll find quite a few recipes. You can check em all out, or click on Pizza Pizzas, for Altons show. Hope this helps.

-- Annie (mistletoe@kconline.com), August 25, 2001.

Here's a tried and true one. Mix together and let sit 5 min to proof; lpkg yeast,l cup warm water,l tsp. salt, l tsp, sugar. In a large bowl mix together 1 or 2 T. parmesean cheese and 2 1/2 c. bread flour. Make a well in the center of the flour and add 2T. olive oil and the yeast mixture. Mix and gather into a ball and knead for a few minutes. Dust the bowl with flour and let the dough rise for at least an hour. I've been late coming home from church and its risen 2 1/2 hrs. Didnt hurt it. After its risen roll it out and put your stuff on it.Bake at 475 degrees until its browned as you like it. I found after breaking a couple of pizza stones that my cast iron griddle is far superior. It makes a perfect brown slightly crisp crust. I have a long griddle that fits over two burners that makes a large one and a round griddle that makes a small. A shallow skillet makes a perfect pan pizza. I've found from trial and error that brushing the crust with a little olive oil before putting on the sauce is good and I put the cheese on top of the sauce and the toppings on top of the cheese. We use the cheap in a can, store brand spagetti sauce. If you like it thicker add some parmesean cheese to the sauce. I make this dough and pinch off walnut size pieces. Stretch and pull until the dough is a fairly thin circle and fry in deep fat until golden brown. Its like indian fry bread. You can dip it in pizza sauce or shake it in a bag with cinnamon/sugar. I've used the leftovers the next day to make individual pizzas by putting the sauce/cheese and toppings on the bread and sticking it under the broiler to melt the cheese. It's mighty fine eatin.

-- peggy (wclpc@cookeville.com), August 25, 2001.

I use the same recipe as cjmonty, with one variation which makes it very good - I use about 1/3 whole wheat flour. This recipe covers a good size cookie sheet.

-- Rose Marie Wild (wintersongfarm@yahoo.com), August 25, 2001.

Pizza Dough: 1 1/2 tsp. yeast, 1/2 luke warm water, 1 1/2 c. any kind of flour, 1 TBL oil. Disssolve yeast in water, stir in the rest, knead about 3 min., let rise about 40 min. Spread on oiled pan. Bake 10 min at 400, take out, add toppings, bake 10 min. longer.

I always double this, I also use pan with holes and no oil on it. One of our favorite toppings is green chilis.

-- DW (djwallace@ctos.com), August 25, 2001.

Peggy, what a neat idea!! I never thought of using my griddle or skillets for a pizza pan. I've always had trouble with the toppings not cooking enough before the bottom burns with the flimsy metal pans.

Anyone else like to make dessert pizzas? What's your favorite topping?

-- Polly (tigger@moultrie.com), August 25, 2001.

Having tried almost every pizza crust recipe out there without satisfaction, I finally settled on the Baker Boulanger 'Pizza Hut' crust recipe at http://www.betterbaking.com/baker2/pizza2hut.html . It's the best I've found, and when you retard the dough by wrapping it up in plastic wrap and leaving it in the fridge for two or three days before using, it becomes a show stopper.

-- Julia (charmer24@juno.com), August 25, 2001.

I have found that those blue spekeled turkey roasters work wonderful for pizza. You oil them good and use it, it will brown the bottom just like a pizza oven!!

-- Teresa (c3ranch@socket.net), August 25, 2001.

I havent made dessert pizza in a long time. We like strawberry, kiwi,banana,blueberry. I make a glaze with clear gel and strawberry jello to go between the cream cheese layer and the fruit. Make rows of sliced sweetened strawberries, kiwi and banana's. Then put blueberry pie filling in the middle. I've got to go dig some strawberries out of the freezer and make one. Blessings Peggy

-- peggy (wclpc@cookeville.com), August 25, 2001.

I use about the same ingredients as the first couple but I don't use any oil. I also knead it until elastic, almost as long as I do bread dough and let it rise until double then pat it out on my thick pizza pans that are perforated. I then put in directly on a hot pizza stone or on unglazed quarry tiles (bought them at the home center, washed them before using the first time). My oven thermostat doesn't work so its either on full blast or not on at all. When it did work I usually baked the pizza on the oven floor on top of tiles that were preheated to 500 degrees along with the oven. The crust is nice and crisp. Usually, the toppings are cooked/melted too by the time the crust is done but I have, on occasion moved the pizza up to a higher shelf on top of a cookie sheet to protect the bottom from burning then turned down the oven (opened the door) to let the toppings finish up.

-- Deb Foster (DFoster987@aol.com), August 25, 2001.

I use the one out of the Tightwad Gazette. Mix it up and knead it in the food processor in about 2 minutes and then let it rest and slightly rise for about 10 minutes. Quick and easy.

-- connie in nm (karrellewis@aol.com), August 29, 2001.

if you like the crust like dominos or the new york style add a tbl of gluten for each 2 or 3 cups of flour. let it raise in fridge overnight. gluten is flour protein, you can get it at walmart. if you dont have overnight, let it raise in warm place like near woodstove for an hour.

-- js (schlicker54@aol.com), January 12, 2002.