#7 Homemade Pizza

My nephew Shen once told the joke, "I have good news and bad news. The good news is we are landing immediately. The bad news is we are crash landing! AHHH!"

This week I too have good news and bad news concerning my 2011 New Year's Resolution. The bad news is that I too had a "crash landing" for the first time with a recipe that did NOT turn out. As it turns out, banana cream pie is harder to make than I had imagined.

The good news is that this gives me an opportunity to share one of my favorite recipes with you that is technically not new but slightly revamped thanks to a new homemade sauce. So don't judge me too harshly for putting up an oldie but a goodie, aka Dom's Homemade Game Night Pizza.

You see, I grew up loving games and craving competition. Over the last few years, homemade pizza and game night have merged as one whenever friends come over. So this week, instead of the banana cream pie which went awry, the classic homemade pizza "pie" is what's on the menu.

(This week's recipes have been taken and tweaked to be made by own from none other than allrecipes.com)

Homemade Pizza Crust

Ingredients:

1 cup of warm water

3 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons of olive oil

2 teaspoons of honey

1 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of yeast

A few shakes of garlic powder &

Italian Seasoning

Directions:

1. Put warm water (80 to 110°F) into a bowl. Add salt and honey and mix with a spoon. Add yeast, mix and let it sit for about 10 minutes.

2. Gradually add flour (throw in a couple shakes of garlic powder and Italian seasoning to add extra flavor) and olive oil and start mixing.

3. When the mixture gets too heavy to mix, start kneading the dough with your hands.

4. Knead the dough until you have a smooth ball. If the dough cracks it is too dry. Add water bit by bit until if forms a nice coherent ball. If your dough feels more like batter, it is too wet and you need to add flour bit by bit. If you need to add water or flour, do it by small amounts.

5. Coat the dough with olive oil, place it in a large bowl and cover it with kitchen wrap or a grocery bag. Fill the sink with hot water and place the covered bowl in the sink. Let the dough rise for about an hour at room temperature, then push it down again so it deflates. Let it sit for about another hour or more depending on what you want. If you want to use it the next day, put it in a refrigerator.

6. Put the dough on a lightly floured surface, put a bit of flour on top and make it into the shape of a pie by stretching it out from the center outwards. Punch some holes in the dough with a fork to let the air escape while the pizza is in the oven.

Pizza Sauce

Ingredients:

• 3 garlic cloves, minced

• 3 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
• 1 (29 ounce) can tomato puree
• 1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Directions:

In a large saucepan, saute garlic in oil until tender. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes or until sauce reaches desired thickness. Sauce may be refrigerated for up to a week.

Use whatever toppings and cheese you like to complete the perfect game night and pizza combo.

Buen Provecho and Game on!