Pizzas

The pizza base recipe comes from the most wicked Italian cook book I stumbled across. The topping recipes just developed all by themselves with a little help from Mark and a little inspiration from ye olde Jamie Oliver.

Pizza Base

400g of plain flour
100g of semolina flours (or just an extra 100g of plain flour)
5g of dried yeast
325ml of tepid water
2 teaspoons of salt

1. Add the yeast to the tepid water and mix.
2. Combine the flour and salt in a bowl and form a well.
3. Add water and yeast mix to center of the bowl and mix with a fork to combine.
4. Once a ball has formed tip out onto a floured bench and knead for 10 minutes.
5. Shape into a ball and place in a oiled bowl covered with glad wrap in the fridge over night (or on the bench for 1 hour.)
6. Half an hour before you are ready to make the pizzas, separate the dough into even size balls and leave to rise on the bench covered with a tea towel.
   
7. To cook the pizzas put pizza stone in a cold oven and heat to 250*C.
8. Roll dough out to desired thickness ~7mm (the ultimate is to just push the dough out with your fingers to keep the air in.)
   
9. Sprinkle semolina flour onto the stone (makes it easier to slide the pizza off the stone) and place dough on top.
10. Place toppings on pizza and cook for 7-10mins.

You can freeze any unused dough in glad-wrap for 6 months.

A pizza stone is the best way to cook the pizzas, it makes the base deliciously crispy and cooks the pizza a lot faster. The stones are sold at kitchen stores/myer for around $15.

If you are not using a stone the bases can be cooked on a large up-side-down oven tray so that they can slide off. They will need to be cooked for around 15 minutes.


Tomato Sauce

500mL Bottle of tomato passata/tinned tomatoes
2 cloves of garlic
1 teaspoon of dried oregano
1 tablespoon of olive oil

1. Heat olive oil in saucepan and cook garlic for 30 seconds.
2. Add oregano and tomato passata and simmer on low heat for 30mins-1 hour.
3. Season with salt and pepper to taste
   

This can be made in advance and kept in the fridge/frozen.

An assortment of pizza toppings
Making up your own toppings is way more fun but here are some suggestions.
Follow the instructions above on how to cook the pizzas using the pizza stone

A most delicious prawn

100mL of tomato sauce (above)
8 green prawns
1 long red chili
1 clove of garlic
Grated mozzarella
1 teaspoon of olive oil
1 lemon
1 teaspoon of finely chopped parsley

1. Marinade prawns in oil, 1/2 the chili, half the lemon juice and the garlic (for 30mins)
   
2. Spread base with tomato sauce, sprinkle on the other 1/2 of the chili and mozzarella
   
3. Cook for 5 minutes
4. Remove pizza from oven and add prawns
5. Cook until prawns are JUST cooked through - they will become opaque (approx 4 minutes)
6. Remove from oven, squeeze over the rest of the lemon juice and sprinkle on the parsley

A cow on a barbecue

200g of eye fillet steak (or any other delicious cut)
1.5 medium red onions
3 tablespoons of bbq sauce
1 teaspoon of fresh thyme and rosemary (dried would probably work too but just add a little less)
2 rashers of bacon
Grated mozzarella and parmesan
2 torn boconcinni balls
1 teaspoon of olive oil

1. Heat olive oil in frying pan and cook onions over low heat until translucent (10 mins.)
2. Add barbecue sauce and the thyme and rosemary and cook for a further 10 mins then transfer into a bowl.
3. Cook bacon on the same frying pan, cut into small pieces and add to the bowl of onion.
4. Season steak with salt and pepper and rub with olive oil.
5. Cook on a hot pan for 1 minute on each side then leave to rest on a plate (1o mins) before slicing into very thin strips.
   
6. Spread onion mixture onto pizza base, top with the mozzarella and parmesan.
   
7. Cook in the oven for 7 minutes until done.
8. Remove from oven, add steak strips and then cook for 1 minute or until steak is cooked to your taste.
9. Remove from oven, top with torn boconcinni and serve.
   

Note: the onion sauce and steak can be prepared a few hours in advanced and kept in the fridge till required.


Margherita with prosciutto

100ml of tomato sauce (see above)
5 strips of prosciutto torn in half length ways
5 large fresh basil leaves torn into three
Grated mozzarella (optional)
2 torn boconcinni balls

1. Spread base with tomato sauce
2. Top with proscuitto and then a thin layer mozzarella.
3. Cook in oven for 7-10 minutes until cooked through.
4. Remove from oven, top with basil and boconcinni and serve
   

Vegetarian Muck

Hopefully your pizza doesnt look like this

100ml of tomato sauce
1-2 tablespoon of Mark's pesto (see other recipe)
2 zucchinis sliced lengthwise into 5mm strips
1/6th of a kent pumkin sliced into 5mm thick pieces (large in the other dimensions)
1 red capsicum cut in half with seeds removed
No mozzarella (optional)
5 large leaves of torn basil
2 teaspoons of oil

1. Heat oven to 180*C
   
2. Rub oil on capsicum halves and place skin side up in oven until skin is brown (approx 45mins). Place hot capsicum into a plastic bag until cool. Peel the skin off and slice into thin strips.
   
3. Place the pumpkin and zucchini onto an oven tray with oil and cook at 180* for about 20mins or until just coloured.
4. Spread tomato sauce on base and place 5cent piece spots of pesto all over.
5. Top with vegetables and the mozzarella if desired.
6. Cook in oven at 250*C for 7-10mins.
7. Remove from oven and add a little more pesto if desired and sprinkle with basil leaves.
   

Note: The vegetables can be cooked in advance and kept in the fridge for a few days till required.