Better Than Takeout Pizza

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Hello lovelies, if you follow me on Twitter you will know that we had pizza last night for dinner. Not just any old pizza though, oh no, we had Better Than Takeout Pizza.

AND I had 50% off Domino Pizza vouchers!!!!

I know delivery pizza is really handy, but, it is soo expensive, even with vouchers. My Better Than Takeout Pizza costs a fraction of the price of delivery pizza, tastes way better than supermarket pizza, is incredibly easy to make AND you can top it with whatever you fancy!

Have I convinced you to make your own pizza?

Better Than Takeout Pizza - crispy edges, chewy dough, gooey melted cheese. Once you've made this you'll never want to order a pizza again! www.feastingisfun.com
Better Than Takeout Pizza – crispy edges, chewy dough, gooey melted cheese. Once you’ve made this you’ll never want to order a pizza again! www.feastingisfun.com

 

This Better Than Takeout Pizza has the most amazing crust. Made from scratch and, if possible,  left to rise slowly through the day in the fridge. Slowing proving the dough allows the flavour to develop and guarantees the crispy, chewy, crust that we all love.

This recipe is perfect for the weekend, when we all generally have a little bit more time to potter in the kitchen. Guess what? If you can squeeze an extra 10-15 minutes into your morning routine, what you now have is a Pizza Any Night Wonder!!

Prep the dough in the morning, bung in the fridge to prove slowly throughout the day, a bit of bashing and stretching when you get home and within an hour you can have homemade pizza on the table for dinner.

Even better, if you have children, teach them how to stretch out the dough and you can sit down with a cuppa whilst they make dinner!!!!

Growing up, our children and their friends have made an assortment of pizzas. Did you know green pepper slices make excellent light sabers! Pepperoni as a piggies snout. Sweetcorn decorated flowers. Really the possibilities are endless. And I haven’t had a child round for tea who didn’t thoroughly enjoy making their own pizza, but also polished off every last morsel at the table!

This quantity of dough would easily make 8 individual children’s pizzas, or 2 large pizzas, more than enough to feed 4 very hungry teenagers/adults!

Go on, give it a try 😉

Recipe : Makes 2 Large Better Than Takeout Pizzas

275g/10oz Plain White Flour

275g/10oz Strong White Bread Flour

370ml/13fl oz Tap Water at room temp

2tsp Active Dried Yeast (or 1.5 sachets)

3tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1.5tsp Sea Salt (3/4tsp if using free flowing table salt)

Toppings of your choice inc:

Olive oil for drizzling on pizza

Tomato purée – 4tsp for this recipe

300g/11oz Mozzarella sliced or grated

80g/3.5oz Salami

1 x Red Onion thinly sliced.

Method : Preheat Oven to 230C/210C fan

Into the bowl of a stand mixer or bread maker add the water, yeast, flour, olive oil and salt – in that order.

Set bread machine to dough cycle and start.

With a dough hook attached to a stand mixer, start mixing a on a slow speed, once all the ingredients are combined continue to mix for 5 minutes.

Once the dough has been mixed tip out into a large oiled bowl. Then flip the dough over, forming it into a ball shape as you do so.

Cover the bowl with cling film.

This pizza dough is now ready to prove.
This pizza dough is now ready to prove.

 

Place the bowl into the fridge. Leave all day, or until the dough has doubled in size (approx 4 hours).

You can leave the dough to prove at room temperature, which should only take an hour. It won’t be quite as chewy and flavoursome, but will still be good!

See how the dough has risen slowly in the fridge and is now at least doubled in size!
See how the dough has risen slowly in the fridge and is now at least doubled in size!
Remove the cling film and get ready for the best part.
Remove the cling film and get ready for the best part.
Punch the dough. Ooh the satisfying feeling as the puffed up pizza dough deflates.
Punch the dough. Ooh the satisfying feeling as the puffed up pizza dough deflates.
Give the dough a quick knead and then form into a ball.
Give the dough a quick knead and then form into a ball.
Divide the dough in half.
Divide the dough in half.

 

Lightly oil 2 large baking sheets. I use very old, worn, cheap baking sheets, that I bought from the supermarket. They are clean, if a little marked and browned and they work a treat. Just be sure, if using non stick baking sheets, that they are suitable for a high oven temperature AND still oil them!

Place half of the dough onto a baking sheet. Using the heel of your hand flatten and then stretch the dough.

Work the dough with you hands on an oiled baking sheet. Start flattening and stretching the dough.
Work the dough with you hands on an oiled baking sheet. Start flattening and stretching the dough.

 

If making 2 pizzas, switch between the two if the dough starts getting a little resistant to being stretched. A couple of minutes rest will relax the dough and make it easier to work with.

The dough will stretch to fill the baking sheet.
The dough will stretch to fill the baking sheet.
Drizzle over a little Olive Oil.
Drizzle over a little Olive Oil.
Squirt or spoon over 2tsp of tomato purée.
Squirt or spoon over 2tsp of tomato purée.
Smosh the oil and tomato purée together so that the dough is covered.
Smosh the oil and tomato purée together so that the dough is covered.
Add the cheese of your choice - here I've used mozzarella cheese, that's been sliced.
Add the cheese of your choice – here I’ve used mozzarella cheese, that’s been sliced.
Add the toppings of your choice. I've used Italian salami and sliced red onion.
Add the toppings of your choice. I’ve used Italian salami and sliced red onion.

 

Cover the pizza with a clean tea towel and leave for 30 minutes to rest and prove. Then pop into the preheated oven and bake for approximately 20 minutes. The length of baking time will depend on the size and thickness of your pizza dough.

The pizza should have a golden crust when cooked. To check, remove the pizza from the oven, loosen with a palette knife and peek underneath. If the base is golden and firm the pizza is cooked, if not return to the oven for a couple more minutes.

When baked, remove from the oven and serve immediately, either with my Crunchy Homemade Coleslaw or a nice salad.

Better Than Takeout Pizza - crispy edges, chewy dough, gooey melted cheese. Once you've made this you'll never want to order a pizza again! www.feastingisfun.com
Better Than Takeout Pizza – crispy edges, chewy dough, gooey melted cheese. Once you’ve made this you’ll never want to order a pizza again! www.feastingisfun.com

 

This site is called Feasting is Fun, for a reason. Food should be enjoyable and preparing/eating it must be fun!

I hope I’ve inspired you to at least try making your own pizza. If you follow my recipe it is guaranteed to be Better Than Takeout Pizza!!!

Is there a takeout meal that you would never attempt to cook yourself?

For me it would have to be Peking Duck Pancake Rolls – but who knows. Never say never?

If you like this recipe then you might like THIS too!

Homemade Ciabatta Base Pizza

Sammie x

 

 

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What a feast we had!!

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If I were a fairy, this cake would be my home xx
If I were a fairy, this cake would be my home xx

Hi there. I really do hope that you are having a good day? If not I hope tomorrow is better for you.

As for me, eldest daughter is having  a sleepover tonight with some friends. So of  course we’ve had plenty of fun and feasting- although  how much sleep is had tonight I can only guess at!!

They are all lovely girls and all four of their birthdays are near each other, so I thought it would be nice to make them all a special cupcake,

Sharing their birthday celebrations together, with a pretty cupcake tower
Sharing their birthday celebrations together, with a pretty cupcake tower!!

Now before I get into the feasting frivolities, I feel it is necessary to share with you my love of fairy lights. They add such sparkle to a room. With one flick of the switch a nice room becomes a magical party room. And they make me smile, especially when I see them reflected in a mirror. It’s like an extra bonus (buy one get one free!!!). I feel so much better having shared that as it will help to further explain my other love……

Sparkles, whether it is a shimmering, sun lit sea scape, or a harsh overnight frost followed by a sun lit, clear blue sky. The way the ice crystals sparkle under the bright low sun  & spiders webs, beautifully defined by the ice crystals, look like something straight out of an Enid Blyton fairy story.

But sparkles, although enchanting in nature, can also be used to turn a pretty cupcake, into a spectacular one. I’m talking edible glitter here people & the world – my world – loves to sprinkle a little glitter whenever the occasion allows ( I satisfy myself with a daily application of sparkly lip gloss – & I’m happy about that!!).  Christmas (as well as properly remembering & giving thanks to God for the birth of his son Jesus) sees me in my element, totally immersed in fairy lights, tinsel, baubles & pots & pots of glitter – edible or otherwise.

Anyhow back to this blog! Here’s a couple of photos of the vanilla & chocolate cupcakes (I’m proud of the restraint I showed whilst decorating them!!!!

Chocolate, but sparkly & classy!!
Chocolate, but sparkly & classy!!

So I made a couple of pizzas (thank you Mr Bread machine), some coleslaw, garlic bread – with fresh Thyme – my fav so far, well today, baked oven potato wedges, cocktail sausages & sausage rolls ( the last 3 cooked from a packet – I know my limits!!), added a couple of dips, crisps & crudités & the feast was complete. The hungry teenagers got stuck in!!

Many hands make pizza disappear quickly!!!!
Many hands make pizza disappear quickly!!!!

And I’m not sure I have ever heard so much laughter, seen such happy faces or seen pizza disappear quite so quickly. It made me glad and thankful.

Thankful that I am married to a man who loves me sooo deeply, flaws an all. Thankful that we have 3 beautiful, loving, caring & thoughtful children. The BEST family anyone could ever hope for & secure in the knowledge that we are loved by the best man who ever walked this earth, Jesus.

He is our strength & our refuge. It is only by being full up & constantly refilled with His unending love that we can deal with daily challenges & still smile. Thank you Lord.

I hope that you too know my friend Jesus, He IS the smile that lives in my heart.

If you don’t know Him & the Vast love & forgiveness He has for you, please leave a comment & I will get back to you with more info?

Thank you for taking time to read my blog. I’m not very tech savvy & everything I have written & photographed on my phone!!!!

Until next time, & I say this as much to myself as you, try to react in a kind, considerate way the next time someone puts an obstacle in your path & if you can smile through it, all the better xx

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