Pizza

Pizza and I have an abusive relationship. I love to eat it, but afterwards I just feel fat. During my first year of Uni I used to be able to eat two large pizzas in one sitting (it's a wonder why I got fat?). I still remember one of my first birthday parties at school being a Pizza party where everyone made their own pizza with faces on (except for me who loaded on as many toppings as possible). Little has changed since then, except I try to be a bit more artistic with the Pizzas I make and I restrain myself from just loading them with goodies.

Two pizzas I made for myself and a friend

Ingredients

500g Bread Mix

200ml Passata

300g Mozzarella

200g Mature Cheddar

Toppings

25g Parmesan (to garnish)

1. Make up the dough by following the instructions on the packet; it is usually just a case of adding warm water and oil.
2. Bring together the dough in a bowl or on a clean work surface. This will be sticky and you may be tempted to add extra flour but don't. Adding extra flour throws out the ratios in your dough and it won't rise as nicely. I use a little bit of olive oil because it is easier to clean up afterwards
3. Put the dough in a warm place and leave for an hour.
4. Meanwhile, empty the Passata into a pan. On a low heat allow it to simmer for as long as the dough needs to rise. Don't forget to season it near the end (I can't stand people who don't taste and season their food - it's lazy!!!). I usually season it with salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar to cut the sharpness of the tomatoes. If you have some pesto kicking around a teaspoon of that (or a few) will give a nice basil taste to the sauce.
5. Take the Dough and knead it one more time before rolling it out to about 0.5cm thick.  This will mean that it rises a bit but does not turn into a thick crust pizza.
6. Bake the base in a preheated oven (180'C) for 10 minutes. This will stop the base from being soggy once you add the sauce and toppings
7. Take the base out of the oven and flip it oven onto it's flatter side. Add the toppings and put back in the oven for another 10minutes or until the cheese is golden
8. I tend to finish the pizza by topping it with rocket and grating parmesan on top with a good glug of olive oil

Bon Appetite!