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RECIPES
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Sourdough Pizza Crusts People ask me what to do with excess sourdough starter--make pizza shells. If I'm not planning on using them
at once, I'll freeze them after the first baking, and they are ready to be
topped and baked at the drop of a hat. It makes you ready for unexpected company.
(See also my "Almost
Flat Bread" for
this wonderful Spinach and Parmesan pizza.) If you are going to use the pizza shells right away, you may either partially pre-bake the the shells, top them, and then finish baking them or top them and bake them in one step. If you pre-bake the shells, they will tend to stay more fluffy. If you just top them and bake them, they will tend to be flatter. Prepare them like you prefer. Ingredients: Mix ingredients, working in the flour until you have a soft dough. If the dough gets too dry, add some more starter. If you've used all the starter, add a bit of water. Once you've kneaded the dough, cover it and let rest for 1/2 hour. This lets the dough relax, so forming the pizza is easier. This recipe does not require the rising capabilities of sourdough, it just uses the taste of the starter. Once the dough has rested, roll out into a flat round pie-like shape. I prefer to roll the dough on baker's parchment, turning the dough 1/8 turn between rolls and only rolling the dough away from me. This makes it easier to make something similar to a circle. How large a circle? It depends on your taste and how many people you have to feed. However, if you get much past a 12 inch diameter, you'll have trouble finding freezer bags large enough to hold the pre-baked shells. Once you have a nice round pie shell, you may pre-bake it or top it and bake it. To pre-bake it, slide the parchment and pie onto a baker's peel, and then into the oven. It will work better if you use quarry tiles or baking stones. Bake about 5 minutes. It doesn't take long, so watch carefully. Once the shell is pre-baked, you may cool it and then freeze it, or top it and finish baking it. When you're ready to top the pizza, rub a bit of olive oil on the surface, as this helps keep the crust from getting soggy. The top with your ingredients. There is some argument about what order to put ingredients on the pizza. I prefer to put the cheese on as the final layer. If you don't, the cheese doesn't brown and it just doesn't look like a pizza to me. Whatever your favorite topping, you want to balance the cooking time so the crust is nicely browned and the cheese topping has browned a bit. It is a balancing act. Anywhere from 15 to 25 minutes, depending on your temperature and toppings should do the trick. Use about 8 ounces of mozzarella cheese for a 12 inch pizza--the toppings are up to you.
Homemade Pizza Sauce
Kid Friendly Pizza Sauce 1 medium onion, finely chopped 1 green pepper, chopped 1/4 cup olive oil 2 can tomato sauce & bits (lg 15oz 1/2 can water 1/4 cup parmesan cheese 2 tsp salt 1 pepper 1 tsp garlic powder 1 oregano - few sprinkles 1 parsley flakes - few sprinkles Directions Saute onion and green pepper in oil until tender. Siphon off excess oil. Add rest of ingredients. Cook on medium heat until oven is preheated to 450 degrees. Put 1/4 of the pizza sauce on an uncooked pizza crust. Add desired pizza toppings such as pepperoni, sausage, hamburger, sliced black olives, etc. Bake on top of middle shelf until bubbly - about 12 minutes. Add about 1 handful each of grated cheddar cheese and grated mozzarella cheese. Return to oven another 12 minutes, placing on the lower rack to brown the crust as well as to melt the cheese. At the same time, if cooking more than one pizza, put the 2nd pizza on the top middle shelf to begin cooking. Taken from: IT NEVER TURNS OUT THE SAME WAY COOKBOOK A Collection of Recipes from the Kitchen of Joyce & Clem Kohl Homemade Pizza Sauce A delightful sauce you and your kids can make in less than an hour.
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