Last Sunday morning I decided I wanted to go out for dinner. But then, for whatever reason, I changed my mind and decided instead that I just wanted to stay home and have homemade pizza. Mr. C. immediately agreed with my idea and offered to go to the store for any ingredients I needed. (We both love homemade pizza.)

So, off he went to procure pepperoni, bulk sausage, mushrooms, and mozzarella cheese.

And since I was desirous of keeping life as simple as possible for myself, I decided to wing it and try making a pizza crust that took little effort. And the recipe you find below is what I came up with.

Now one of the problems I have always had with making homemade pizza is that the crust never seems to get done before the toppings are hot and the cheese is melted and nicely browned. That’s because I am never skimpy with the amount of topping I use. In fact, I usually add way more than is necessary. So, I decided this time to pre-bake the crust for a few minutes before adding all the yummy toppings. And it worked.

So, if you too love homemade pizza, I think you should consider making this crust.

And since I’m sure you wondered what I put on this crust, find my recipe for Easy Pizza Sauce below along with the toppings I chose to use on this pizza.  

1 c. warm water 

1 tsp. granulated sugar

1 T. instant or active dry yeast

1 tsp. fine sea salt

1 T. extra virgin olive oil

2 c. unbleached all-purpose flour, or more as needed

Combine warm water, sugar, and yeast in the bowl of your stand mixer and stir to combine. Let mixture sit for 5 minutes, or until it becomes bubbly. Add salt, olive oil, and 2 cups of flour.

Using your dough hook, kneed until a ball begins to form (dough will be very sticky). Add more flour as needed to create a soft dough. (Part of the dough will cling to the bottom of the bowl, but that’s exactly what you want.)

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise for a few minutes or up to an hour. Then plop the dough out of the mixing bowl and spread it onto a lightly greased baking pan in whatever shape or thickness your heart desires. (I use a half-sheet pan 17.9″L x 12.9″W x 1″H.) I just use my fingers to force the dough into the whole pan with the edges thicker than the main part of the crust.

Bake unadorned in a pre-heated 475-degree oven for 7-8 minutes. (This allows the crust to be done at the same time as the toppings are hot and the cheese is melted.)

Remove from the oven and add sauce and any toppings you desire.

Place back in the oven until the crust is golden brown (14-15 minutes) and the cheese has melted and a nice golden brown.

Remove from oven and let sit for 5-7 minutes before serving.

EASY PIZZA SAUCE

2 T. tomato paste

3 T. extra virgin olive oil

2 tsp. chopped dehydrated onion

1 tsp. Italian Seasoning

¼ tsp. granulated garlic

freshly ground black pepper

pinch fine sea salt

tiny pinch crushed red pepper flakes, opt.

⅓ c. finely diced fresh tomatoes, opt.

Stir altogether. Spread on pizza dough after the first baking.

My Favorite Toppings (as pictured above) (and in that order)

pepperoni

fried breakfast or Italian sausage

chopped onion

sliced button mushrooms

sliced black olives

grated mozzarella cheese