If you didn’t get any amoré for Valentine’s Day, a big pizza pie could be the next best thing. Aside from Courtesan Brownies, that is.

You wouldn’t believe how easy it is to make your own pizza dough. True, you get pizza faster when you order in and it’s often cheaper. However, there’s something very satisfying about making it yourself. You can load that baby up with all sorts of fancy things. It’s high quality cuisine.

If it’s Friday night, crack a beer and let’s go. If it’s not, better make it a light beer. You’ve probably got class tomorrow.

 

 

The dough:

 

625 ml (2 ½ cups) flour

1 package quick-rise yeast

250 ml (1 cup) warm water

30 ml (2 tbsp) canola oil

5 ml (1 tsp) garlic powder

 

That’s it. Five ingredients. Not too intimidating, right? Start with 1½ cups of flour in the bowl and stir in the yeast and garlic powder. Add the water and oil and mix it up. It’ll be sticky, so add the rest of the flour gradually until the dough is soft, smooth and elastic.

Put down that spoon, wash your hands and get in there. Knead the dough for three or four minutes. What does “knead” mean? Squish it around, fold some air into it and punch it down. Go ahead and get a little violent with it. It’s therapeutic.

If you like a thick, fluffy pizza crust, keep your dough all in one ball. If you like a thin, crispy crust, divide it into two. Let it rise in your mixing bowl covered with a clean tea towel. It should take about 45 minutes to puff up.

While you wait, prepare your favourite toppings. A good friend told me that one secret to really great pizza is fresh mozzarella cheese. He’s absolutely right. We’re talking about the kind packed in water. It’s soft and delicate with a mild flavour. You can find it in most deli departments.

I got fancy with my toppings and used an herbed tomato sauce base, gypsy salami, chopped artichoke hearts, black olives, shrimp, fresh basil leaves and a combination of jalapeno Monterey Jack and that fresh mozzarella I was telling you about.

When you’ve got fluffy dough, preheat your oven to 175°C (350°F). 

Stretch the dough out over a lightly greased pizza pan and layer on as many toppings as you like. Brush a bit of olive oil over the edges.

Slide the pie into the oven and bake it for 20-25 minutes until the crust is golden brown. Turn the broiler on for another two minutes to get the cheese all bubbly.

While the Courtesan Brownies are not something you’d want to share, a great pizza is. Round up a couple of close friends and make an evening of it. You won’t be sorry.