What, you thought I was going to post a pie recipe? Just because of my Pie Odyssey? Bwahahaha! No! Well, actually, yes, but pizza pie, not pie crust pie. I like to switch things up like that. Also, I didn’t have the peaches that I wanted to use to make peach pie, because…I ate them. The DH did not believe me, but eat them I did. All of them. They were delicious. Reminds me of that William Carlos Williams poem.

Today, dear readers, I have the easiest pizza dough recipe ever. I cannot emphasize this enough. Think you’ve got a great old standby? I dare you to try this one. It’s better! No kneading and no (gasp!) waiting for the dough to rise, if you can believe it. You can make this with regular flour or whole wheat flour or some combination thereof (you use what you’ve got!). You can make pizzas or empanadas with the dough (I’ve done both), you can freeze the dough and let it thaw and use it, and you can make the pizza and freeze it and then thaw it and bake it. In other words, it’s a super-easy, super-flexible recipe. So let’s make us some dough!

Basically, you just mix up all the ingredients and let the dough sit for 5 minutes. Or not. If you like a thinner crust, don’t let it sit, and if you like thick crust pizza, let it sit until puffy. I just let it sit while I turn on the oven and prepare the toppings, so really I let it sit for 5 minutes.

The Official Recipe:

Easiest Pizza Dough Ever

• 2 1/4 tsp (1 pkg) quick active dry yeast
• 1 c warm water
• 2 1/2 c. flour
• 2 tbsp. olive oil (or veg. oil. You use what you’ve got!)
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. salt

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Add rest of ingredients. Mix it up in a mixer (or hand mix. I’ve done both). Let sit for 5 minutes, while you prep your toppings. Oil a pizza tray and sprinkle a bit of cornmeal on it before you spread out the dough, for that super-fancy pants look. Spread tomato sauce on dough, and add whatever toppings your heart desires (or, as I do, whatever toppings are in the fridge), and pop in a 425 degree oven until the crust is golden and the cheese melted. Eat. Burp in contentment.

Was that not the easiest pizza dough in the history of ever? I made a hamburger pizza recently, using leftover crumbled breakfast sausage (veg, of course) and black olives (I had it in the fridge so I tossed it on). So. Good. *drools remembering that epic pizza*

In my family, it’s a tradition that the birthday person gets to choose a special dinner menu on their birthday. My mum always used to choose this pizza, but Mediterranean-style, with sliced zucchini, crumbled ground beef, black olives, crumbled feta cheese, and a lot of basil. No tomato sauce, but a chopped tomato instead. It’s healthy, and really delicious!

Try out the recipe and let me your variation in the comments!

Next Post: ‘Pie Odyssey, 2014′ continues, and where I find recipes.

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