pizza, furry puppies + fun!

did you know that there are people in this world that dont like pizza?

for serious.

i'm assuming these people are the same people that dont like furry puppies, ice cream or fun.

i mean, who are you people??? whats not to love about pizza? tangy and thick tomato sauce, mounds of shredded cheese, and any toppings of your choice.

sounds like a plateful of happiness to me.

for you puppy hating, fun avoiding, lactose intolerant folks, look away cuz its about to get real up in here.

as you may remember from past posts, yeast and i have a slippery love/hate relationship and i cant seem to create a dependable pizza dough with it so if i'm not in the mood to deal, i just cruise on over to trader joe's and buy some of their refrigerated balls of dough (by the prepared foods).

i wasnt in the mood to curse and wrestle with pizza dough today so i went with tj's. it makes for a thicker, more doughy crust but we are always happy with the results.

i dust the dough with a little flour and knead it once or twice and then let it sit on a floured surface for about 45 minutes.

while that is coming to room temperature i toss a can of tomato puree or can of whole tomatoes, 1 smashed clove garlic and some olive oil or 2T butter in a medium saucepan and heat that on med low for about 30 minutes. you can also toss in some fresh basil or fresh or dried oregano if you are feelin' it.

preheat the oven to 450-500 degrees, shred some mozzarella and gather your toppings and go for it!

i had canadian bacon, pineapple and black olives ( its a throwback from chuck e cheese days, that was one of my favorite pizzas. i know. weird) and daniel just wanted canadian bacon.

place each pizza on a cookie sheet that has been liberally dusted with cornmeal, this will keep the dough from sticking. bake for about 15-20 minutes or until the pizzas are a delicious shade of golden brown. i like to glaze the crust (5 minutes before it is done and then again as soon as it comes out of the oven) with some garlic butter (melt 2 T of butter in microwave, toss in a smashed garlic clove and let infuse 5+ minutes).

mmmmmm....

mangia!

***i don't really have anything against people that dont like pizza or are lactose intolerant. however, if you don't like furry puppies and fun, we can't be friends anymore***