Homemade Pizza

This week in cooking class, we made homemade pizzas. Please note that this image is borrowed from wikipedia, but our pizzas looked very similar to this, and our pizza stone looked exactly like this. If you google "making pizza with kids", there are --as you can imagine -- plenty of ideas. One popular idea is to use English muffins as the pizza crust to make individual pizzas. I must say, there is no part of me that looks at an English muffin and thinks: "Hey, what we should do is add pizza sauce to this!" I just couldn't do it. So, I opted for a tastier, slightly more laborious and time-consuming option : using ready made pizza dough. I am not referring to the ready made crust (like Boboli), also not my favorite option, but okay if you are in a pinch. What I do like are the ready-made dough options from Trader Joe's. There, you can find a nice white, whole wheat or herbed ready-made pizza dough in the refrigerated section near the cheeses. We used the whole wheat dough!

In class, we discussed the tools we needed to make a great pizza: a rolling pin, a pizza stone, a pizza wheel, and a really hot oven!

First we floured our surfaces, then we rolled out our dough. 

A really exciting discovery that we made was when we learned that Ms. Tuangrat is an expert pizza dough thrower! The kids were delighted to see her toss the dough in the air over and over again. It was very exciting!

We added sauce....

...and toppings...

Then, we went to the kitchen downstairs to put the pizza in the oven. While we waited for our pizza to bake, I read "The Little Red Hen Makes a Pizza" by Philemon Sturges. This is a newer, fresher version of "The Little Red Hen" folk tale that you may remember from your childhood. The story begins
when the little red hen spies a can of tomato sauce in her cupboard and decides to make a pizza. With no help from her friends the duck, the dog, and the cat, the little red hen goes through the steps of making a pizza---shopping for supplies, making the dough, and adding the toppings. But despite their initial resistance, the hen's friends come through in the end and help out in a refreshing and surprising way. (Bonus Tip: Give this book and the Melissa and Doug Pizza Party as a great birthday gift.)

Then, each class enjoyed their pizza (restaurant style) in Marshall-Rutter Hall. We discussed the importance of using our very best manners, especially when we are sitting at a table that has a table cloth! Quote of the day: "My dad can toss the dough all the way to the clouds!", "My dad makes pizza, but he forgets to set the timer." and "Miss Diana, I really like cheese pizza, so you'd better watch out!"

Homemade Pizza

Ingredients:

Prepared Pizza Dough - 

All-purpose flour, for rolling

1 cup(s) prepared tomato sauce

8 ounce(s) shredded mozzarella

Pepperoni, olives, pineapple, ham, sautéed zucchini and onions, artichoke hearts, tomato slices, basil, garlic, mushrooms, bacon, sausage...or whatever you like.

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 425.

Divide dough into 2 equal pieces and shape each into a ball. Loosely cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap; let stand 15 minutes.

Using a lightly floured rolling pin or your hands, stretch each ball into a 9- to 10-inch round

Place one round of dough directly on a pizza stone or pan.

Divide sauce evenly between pizzas spreading to within 1/2 inch of the edges of the dough. Top with cheese. Then, pepperoni and other toppings that you like.

Bake for 10 minutes. (The directions on the Trader Joe's ready-made dough bag will state that the pizza will be ready in 6-8 minutes. Using half of the dough, our pizzas needed to stay in the oven for 10 minutes at 450 degrees. So, please make adjustments according to your own oven and check your pizza frequently.) Cut using a pizza wheel and serve immediately.