Pizza for One (one greedy gal that is)

Homemade pizza is taking over my life.  Slowly, it has gone from a monthly treat to a weekly event.  Friday nights are now pizza pyjama movie party nights.  It honestly does not get much better than that.  There is nothing that I look forward to more after 5 days of running around after small children, mediating arguments, improvising lessons and wiping snotty noses.  Peaceful bliss comes to me in the form of soft elasticy dough smothered in tomato sauce, cheese and a rotation of toppings.  

I've been experimenting with different flours for the bases as well...but have to admit that there is nothing quite like a dough made with type 00 flour...stretchy, soft and so smooth.  All of my dough "recipes" are based on my mum's basic pizza dough recipe...In a big bowl I mix 250ml of warm water, 2 TBSP oil and 1 TBSP dry active yeast with a good pinch of salt and 1 1/2 cups of flour and then gradually add more flour until the dough is soft and not sticky.  I didn't use to knead it at all, since there is a good amount of yeast, but I've been kneading recently and it has resulted in a much softer dough (with a much more dramatic rise).  If I use a mixture of brown and white flours I tend to use 1 cup of brown and 1/2 cup of white to start and then add in more white flour (and often another splash or two of warm water).  This isn't a finely tuned recipe...it is always changing. 

SO, back to the point of this post.  This weekend's pizza feast was postponed to Saturday night to coincide with the big Chelsea footy game...pizza and sport and pyjamas. Everything was set, the dough was rising the toppings were prepared and then the footy fan was invited out.  I greedily encouraged him to go (more pizza and the tv remote to myself...need I say more?) and got on with making MY pizza.  

Normally I just toss on whatever I have to hand, and some pepperoni purchased especially for the occasion.  Last night I followed a recipe...from Jamie's Italy for potato pizza.  It was seriously delicious.     Tomato sauce based covered with cooked New Potatoes sliced and tossed in oil, rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper and a little lemon juice and then topped with mozzarella cheese.  

I had made enough dough to make a second pizza but seeing as I was dining alone last night (and I managed to restrain myself) I popped the left over dough into a container and into the fridge and there it sits waiting for lunch today...

Homemade pizza and a couple of cold beers is totally the new staying in.   

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