It's easy as pie!

For some reason, I used to be extremely intimidated to make my own pizza at home.  However, since meeting hangry bf, his mom has sent us all the tools necessary to create America's favorite food. With her recipe in hand I tackled the challenge of making pizza at home. Guess what? It's INCREDIBLE easy and not scary at all! 

Since then, I've been lucky enough to call Chef Pete Snaith of Culinaria Cooking School my mentor and friend.  He is the self-proclaimed PIZZA BOSS and boy does he know what he's doing. His pizza is the absolute best and anyone can make it at home.  I got in the kitchen with Chef Pete to make some pizza tutorials for you and share his famous recipes with you.  Keep reading to hear what he has to say and to watch the premier of our PIZZA VIDEO SERIES!

By Chef Pete Snaith

"In my quest for the perfect crust, I think I must have tried every pizza dough recipe on the planet. Bread flour, all purpose flour, and cake flour are just a few of the flours I have tried.  In the resulting pizza dough listed below, you will see I use 00 Flour.  You may have some difficulty finding 00 Flour, but I promise you, it’s worth the trouble. 

After the flour, the second most important contributor to the success of your pizza is your oven.  If you have a gas oven, invest in a pizza stone.  Having a stone in the oven helps hold in the heat, so when you’re opening and closing the door, it helps the oven stay hot.  The stone is placed in the bottom of the oven and, for convenience; I leave mine in the oven all the time and only remove it when I clean the oven. If you have an electric oven, the best thing is to place your stone on a rack in the lowest position.

Heat is important.  Pre-heat the oven for at least 15 to 20 minutes to bring the oven and the stone up to temperature.  When your oven is ready, place the pizza directly on the stone.

As the pizza cooks, check the crust for doneness.  You can do this by inserting the peel under the pizza or using a metal spatula.  The crust should be nice and brown and crisp. I also like the cheese to be well browned. If the pizza crust is ready and the cheese is not, move the pizza from the stone and place it on the highest rack in your oven. Since heat rises, the top will cook and be browned within a minute or two, but the crust should not continue to brown significantly.  Below, find some of my favorite pizza recipes - I hope you enjoy!"

Neapolitan Pizza Dough

Hangry Timer: 24 hours for dough, 1 hour for pizza
Makes: 4 10"- 12" Pizza crusts
Cost: $5

What you need:

1½ cups Water
1 tsp. Dry Active Yeast
1 Tbsp. Honey
4 cups 00 Ground Flour -  If you do not have 00 Ground Flour, you can get pretty close by using 3 cups of all purpose flour and 1 cup of cake flour.
1 Tbsp. Kosher Salt
Corn Meal for the Pizza Peel

What to do with it:

Fill a 2 cup measuring cup with 1½ cups of water. The water should be warm, 95 to 100°. Dissolve the yeast and the honey in the water and stir to incorporate. Let the mixture proof 5 to 10 minutes, or until foamy.

While the yeast mixture is proofing, add the flour to a stand up mixer bowl and place the dough hook on the mixer. With the mixer on slow speed, add the salt to the flour and mix to combine for 1 minute. As the mixer is turning, slowly add the water and yeast mixture. Knead the dough for 30 minutes on low speed. After 30 minutes, remove the dough from the bowl and form into a ball.

Place in a lightly oiled bowl, turning to coat the ball of dough. Cover and let rise in the bowl for a minimum of 4 hours. The longer and slower the rise of the dough, the better it will taste.  Often I make the dough the day before and let it rise in the refrigerator for 24 hours with plastic wrap tucked around the dough to keep it from drying out.

After 4 hours, remove the dough from the bowl. Punch the dough down and divide the dough into 4 equal parts. Shape the divided dough into balls. Place on a sheet tray, cover and let rise an additional 2 hours.

Pre-heat the oven to 500° with a pizza stone in the oven. If you have a gas fired oven, place the pizza stone on the floor of the oven. If you have an electric oven, place the pizza stone on the lowest rack position. I leave mine at the bottom of my oven all the time. This will also help hold the heat in the oven.

Now the fun starts.  To form the crust, place the dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Flatten the ball of dough from the center out with your fingertips. Grab the dough near the edge and rotate the round and stretch the dough as you rotate. If you are feeling a little adventurous, you can try to toss the pizza dough in the air. This takes some practice, but it’s quite impressive as your guests watch.

Stretch the dough into a 10” to 12” round. For a thinner crust it can be stretched to 14”. Take your pizza peel out and sprinkle with some corn meal. The corn meal is used to keep the pizza dough from sticking to the peel and making it easier to slide onto the stone.

If you don’t have a peel, you can remove the stone from the oven, sprinkle on some corn meal, and make the pizza directly on your stone.  Just be careful handling it when it’s hot.

Use this recipe as the foundation for any of your favorite pizzas.

Pizza Sauce

Hangry Timer: 20 minutes
Feeds: 4 pizzas worth of people
Cost: $7

What you need:

¼ cup Olive Oil
1 clove Garlic, crushed
1  Bay Leaf
1 tsp. Red Pepper Flakes (optional or more if you like the sauce spicy)
1 28 oz. can Whole San Marzano Tomatoes
¼ cup Basil, fresh
Salt and Pepper

What to do with it:

Heat the olive oil in a 3-quart pot over medium-high heat.  Add the garlic and bay leaf and cook until the garlic is slightly browned and remove the garlic and bay leaf.

Crush the tomatoes with your hands, pour into the heated pot, and bring to a slow simmer.  Taste and adjust the seasonings.

Add the remaining ingredients and cook for 10 to 15 minutes until slightly thickened.  Taste again and adjust the seasonings.

Insert an emulsion blender (boat motor) into the sauce and blend into a smooth consistency. *

*I usually double or triple this recipe and freeze the leftover sauce for the next time I make pizza.
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Watch Michelle and Chef Pete Make Pizza Together Below!

Bonus Pizza Recipes!

Pizza Margarite

Hangry Timer: 20 minutes
Feeds: 2
Cost: $10 or less

What you need:

1 Recipe Neapolitan Pizza Dough (above)
1 Recipe Pizza Sauce (above)
Fresh Buffalo Mozzarella Cheese
Fresh Basil

What to do with it:

Place the tomato sauce on the pizza, being careful not to add too much. If too much sauce is added, you run the risk of your cheese sliding off.

Add the fresh buffalo mozzarella cheese slices and fresh basil and slide into the oven. In a 500° oven it will take 4 to 5 minutes for the bottom to become crispy. If you like the cheese a little browned on top, place on the uppermost rack for 1 to 2 minutes more.

Pizza Bianca

Hangry Timer: 20 minutes
Feeds: 2
Cost: $10 or less

What you need:

1 Recipe Neapolitan Pizza Dough (above)
1 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
½ cup Rosemary, finely chopped
Fresh Buffalo Mozzarella Cheese
Olive oil for drizzling

What to do with it:

Lightly brush a little olive oil on the pizza, being careful not to add too much. If too much oil is added, you run the risk of your cheese sliding off.

Add the fresh buffalo mozzarella cheese slices, Parmigiano Reggiano and fresh rosemary, Drizzle the pizza with olive oil and slide into the oven. In a 500° oven it will take 4 to 5 minutes for the bottom to become crispy. If you like the cheese a little browned on top, place on the uppermost rack for 1 to 2 minutes more.

Pizza with Potato

Hangry Timer: 20 minutes
Feeds: 2
Cost: $10 or less

What you  need:

1 Recipe Neapolitan Pizza Dough (above)
1 Potato, thinly sliced (Idaho Yukon gold is preferred)
1 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
½ cup Rosemary, finely chopped
2 - 3 Garlic cloves, crushed and finely chopped
Olive oil for drizzling
Salt and pepper to taste.

What to do with it:

Wash the potato and thinly slice on a Madeline. The potato should be sliced thin enough to see though the slice. Soak the potatoes in water to remove excess starch. When ready to make the pizza, remove the potatoes and pat dry.

Lightly brush a little olive oil on the pizza, being careful not to add too much. If too much oil is added, you run the risk of your topping sliding off.

Add the potato slices in a circular fashion, trying not to over lap. Add the Parmigiano Reggiano and fresh rosemary. Sprinkle on the fresh garlic Drizzle the pizza with olive oil and slide into the oven. Make sure to add salt and pepper as the potatoes will taste bland. In a 500° oven it will take 4 to 5 minutes for the bottom to become crispy. If you like the cheese a little browned on top, place on the uppermost rack for 1 to 2 minutes more.

Follow Chef Pete on Facebook, Instagram, and at Culinaria Cooking School!

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