FoodFrom4

My son came home from a school snowboarding trip to Colorado today so I thought I would make Pizza. Yeh I know, hardly original or creative but at least it’s everyone’s favourite so should go down a treat. How was I to know when he got home he would ask for something for dinner with lots of vegetables! Teenagers and vegetables usually don’t mix. Maybe tomorrow night I’ll make a stir fry by which time he will probably have gone off the idea.

It helps if you have a bread machine for this but getting your hands stuck in can be quite satisfying.

Start by making the dough.
If you have a bread machine put 1 cup of water in the pan then add a tablespoon of olive oil, a teaspoon of salt and teaspoon of sugar. Then add three cups of strong white four and 1 sachet of dried yeast. Alternatively you could use a bought white bread mix such as Wrights and follow the instructions on the packet. Set the bread machine to knead and prove, but not to bake. This takes around 1½ hours.

For the topping take 1x400g tin of chopped tomatoes. Empty into a frying pan and cook for about 15 minutes till most of the juice has evaporated. Place the tomatoes in a food processor with fresh marjoram (about 2 teaspoons) and a bunch of fresh basil. You can also add a roasted skinned pepper from a jar if you like or a few sun dried tomatoes. Pulse it to a smooth paste.

When the dough is ready, heat the oven to the hottest setting you can (mine goes up to 280C), roll out the dough onto a large, lightly floured baking tray. Spread the tomato mixture over the dough, then cover with grated cheddar and grated parmesan. Now take one pack of mozzarella, slice and lay the slices over the pizza. Top with a few sliced mushrooms and place in the hot oven.

After about 5 minutes, turn the oven down to 200C and continue to cook until the cheese bubbles and the pizza browns slightly.