On to your party. If you have any leftover sauce in your freezer from last season’s bounty (I did some tomato, some basil pesto, and some sundried tomato pesto. Yes, I dried my own tomatoes for the latter!), this is the time to use it. Have your friends bring along some local cheese, and their favourite Greenbelt pizza toppings (I don’t need to mention VQA wine, do I?). Throw it all together and you’ve got the makings of a great pizza (not to mention a wonderful evening).
As a bit of inspiration, here are some strange and wonderful things you can paint, drop, or sprinkle onto your pizza crust canvas (though perhaps not all at once!): caramelized onions, blue cheese, cooked peaches, prosciutto, red pesto, chopped garlic scapes, grapes, bison meat, pickles, fried plantain, eggplant, oyster or other kinds of mushrooms, arugula, a fried egg.
Pizza Dough
7/8 Cup Warm Water
1 Tbsp. Dry Active Yeast
2 Tsp. Sugar (white or brown or raw, it doesn’t matter)
1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 ¼ Cups Whole Wheat Flour
1 ¼ Cups All Purpose Flour (unbleached is best)
1 Tsp. Salt
1. Combine the first three ingredients in a large bowl and wait 5 minutes for the yeast to react with the warm water and sugar.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients to the bowl. Mix with a fork until all combined (should still be lumpy, maybe even dry and crumbly) and then knead until it forms a ball. The ball should have a similar consistency and should spring back when you poke it.
4. In a clean medium sized bowl, add some olive oil and then place the ball in and cover with a cloth.
5. Wait for 45 minutes for dough to rise.
6. Once the dough has risen, roll it out and spread it on a baking sheet or pizza stone and top with sauce, cheese, and toppings of your choice.
