- Prep Time: Dough Rise (3 + hours)
- Prep Time: 45 Minutes (includes 30-min. dough rise)
- Cook Time: 20-25 Min.
- Total Time: 1 Hour 5 Min.
- Fridge Friendly: 4 Days
- Freezer Friendly: 1 Month
- Servings - 4
Cost Per Person: $
- ¢: pennies
- $: less than $4
- $$: less than $7
- $$$: less than $10
- $$$: over $10
The Case for Home-Baked Pizza
It may surprise you to know that many people in the Western World have no idea how pizza should taste because all they’ve ever known is the stuff sold by the big pizza chains. Fresh ingredients have been replaced with preservative-laden, cheap, and fatty substances that are mass-produced, frozen and shipped across the country. Commercial pizza is a high-calorie, high-fat, high-sodium, low-nutrient food.For-the-love-of-Pizza, we encourage you to give homemade pizza a try because once you do you will never feel the same about this simple and delicious food again.But be forewarned, there’s no going back once you try home-baked pizza made with fresh ingredients because no delivery or frozen product will ever stimulate your taste buds the way a freshly baked, hot, out-of-the-oven pizza does. Buon appetite!
Why I Love This Recipe
Olive oil is the secret ingredient that makes this version extra tasty! This baking method creates a kind of focaccia-type base that makes the dough crispy around the edges but tender on the inside.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
This recipe is a little more difficult (the dough needs to be persuaded to stretch) but when you taste the final result, you'll be glad you rose to the challenge.
Ingredients
- 1 Pizza Dough (see notes below)
- ½ Cup Marinara or Pizza Sauce (Click here for No-Bake Pizza Sauce Recipe)
- 1 tbsp. Olive Oil
- 2 Cups Grated Mozzarella Cheese
Topping Ideas (Slice thin to guarantee even baking)
Buffalo mozzarella • Pepperoni • Salami • Ham • Red Onion • Green Pepper • Anchovies • Fresh Basil • Pineapple • Mushrooms (sauté them first)
Homemade Oven Baked Pizza Dough
- In a deep bowl add 1 tbsp. olive oil and use your hand to coat the entire bowl. Turn the dough out into the bowl, and roll it around in the oil so it is well coated.
- Cover it with plastic wrap and let it sit out until it doubles in size*. I usually leave mine out overnight.
- At this point, you can pre-cut your toppings - including grating the cheese. All can be put in the fridge until you're ready to use it.
- Once the dough has risen, scrape it out of the bowl, and turn the dough out onto your work surface. Work the dough just a bit by folding it into each other a few times to create a ball. Loosely cover it with plastic wrap or a damp cloth and let it sit for another 30 minutes or so. We want it to rise slightly again.
- Add ¼ cup of olive oil to an 11” x 17” sheet pan and coat the entire pan. Set aside.
- Add a little flour on your work surface and a bit on your hands so the dough doesn’t stick to either, set the dough on the floured work surface and start to stretch the dough out with your hands*. Sometimes you have to work the dough in a couple of stages. If the dough is a bit stubborn, don’t worry, let it hang out for 5 or 10 minutes then go back and stretch it some more. Stretch the dough as close as you can to the size of the sheet pan.
- Gently place the dough in the sheet pan. You will have to work the dough so it will fit in the pan. The dough will shrink back once you set it in the pan with the oil. Let the dough sit and relax and stretch the dough again. It doesn't have to be perfect.
- Cover the dough with a damp towel and let it be for about 15 to 30 minutes so it can rise again.
- Pre-heat the oven to 500 degrees
- Remove the cover and spoon the pizza sauce all over the pizza dough. Use the back of the spoon to distribute evenly.
- Next, sprinkle the grated cheese evenly over the sauce.
- Now add the toppings. (See notes below)
- Place the pizza on the bottom rack of the oven and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes.
- Remove the pizza from the oven and let it sit for about 10 minutes before cutting.
From this to
... this!!
Baked Pizza - Cook's Notes/Tips
- Find a bakery or a grocery store that makes good homemade pizza dough. Don’t buy a mass-produced one.
- The dough needs to rise so that the end result is a light, airy dough that will puff up when cooking. Letting the dough rise also adds more flavour to the dough
- Dough rises at different speeds. The warmer the room temperature the faster it will rise. Setting it on a counter in the sun will help. Don’t worry if it doesn’t rise too fast, it will get there.
- The key to stretching out pizza dough is having it at room temperature. Working with cold dough will only frustrate you! It won’t stretch out if it’s cold.
- Use your hands to stretch out the dough, rather than a rolling pin. Using a rolling pin will actually remove all of the air which will result in a flat dough. You want some of those air bubbles so the dough is light, not dense.
Adding the Toppings
- When you cut up the toppings, don’t cut anything too chunky or they won’t bake properly.
- You don’t want to put too many toppings on the pizza including the sauce. If you do, the dough won’t bake properly, and the end result will be a soggy drippy mess.
- Any topping you have like hot peppers or pineapple that come in a jar or can, be sure to squeeze out the excess liquid or the top of the pizza will get too wet.
- Cheese - Don’t buy pre-grated mozzarella cheese! Chemicals are used to keep pre-grated cheese from clumping together and to give it a longer shelf life - not to mention the pre-grated stuff doesn’t melt properly because of those chemicals. So, buy mozzarella whole and grate it yourself.
- Use scissors to cut the pizza. It’s a lot easier than a knife (which will destroy your pan) or pizza cutter.
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