First off, pizza hasn't always been all about the cheese. It originated in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean countries, where it took the form of a flat bread, sometimes topped with oil and herbs. Later on, when buffalo and tomatoes became available, people started adding more topping.
Anyway, it's really easy to create one at home - making pizza base dough is dead simple. Just ensure you make it an hour or two in advance, then you can leave it to rise while you go and do something else, like bake cupcakes, for example.
I used this recipe by Jamie Oliver simply as it was the first one that came up when I googled 'pizza dough'. However I've used loads of different ones over the years and never had a problem. Trick is to roll it out as thin as possible, then pick it up and flip it about a bit to help stretch it out even more. Don't bother about making it round. Mine didn't work out too thin this time as my dough was a bit too dry. Keep it was wet as possible without it becoming too sticky.
I used this recipe by Jamie Oliver simply as it was the first one that came up when I googled 'pizza dough'. However I've used loads of different ones over the years and never had a problem. Trick is to roll it out as thin as possible, then pick it up and flip it about a bit to help stretch it out even more. Don't bother about making it round. Mine didn't work out too thin this time as my dough was a bit too dry. Keep it was wet as possible without it becoming too sticky.
Once you're done with your base, you're ready to load it up. First thing is your tomato base. Make sure you don't just put tomato puree on, as your pizza will be tasteless. Instead you could buy a jar of pasta sauce of your choice, or just cook up some passata or chopped tomatoes with some garlic and herbs (oregano, thyme), salt and pepper, and boil until you have a paste-like consistency. Spread a thin layer on your base, then shove on whatever you want. I put on some onions, capers, sultanas etc in an attempt to create something like the Pizzza Express Venezia, but was unable to resist also piling on a ton of other stuff like mushrooms, sundried tomatoes. With some olive oil drizzled on top this would have made for a mighty tasty dinner.
However, this time I did go down the fake-cheese route, and grated on some (shitloads of) Cheezly mozzarella style cheese and also some 'Vegerella' which I found in Infininty Foods the other day and thought I'd give a try. Vegerella has a very odd texture, really rubbery - I wouldn't eat in a sandwich, which I occasionally do with Cheezly, but it worked out ok melted on the pizza.
However, this time I did go down the fake-cheese route, and grated on some (shitloads of) Cheezly mozzarella style cheese and also some 'Vegerella' which I found in Infininty Foods the other day and thought I'd give a try. Vegerella has a very odd texture, really rubbery - I wouldn't eat in a sandwich, which I occasionally do with Cheezly, but it worked out ok melted on the pizza.
After cooking (and taking the photo) I also added some rocket. Tastiest pizza I've had in a while.
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