I decided the other day for Meatless Monday that I’d try out a new pizza dough recipe. I don’t eat that much meat, really, during an average week, and when I do, it’s chicken. I’ve pretty much cut out red meat for the most part, yes, I still cave in for a good, thick, juicy bacon cheeseburger (can you hear the arteries clogging?) but on average I just don’t eat it anymore. Most of my protein is chicken or fish. But I consciously cut out all meat on Monday’s now. Those of you who read this loyally know that I’m particularly partial to my old standby pizza dough recipe (I get like that, have you noticed how many times I’ve made my favorite cupcake recipe- the Magnolia Bakery vanilla? Lots). So this was big for me.

Mothereffin’ delicious…

First thing I noticed was how easy the dough was to work with. Much more elasticity and much easier to stretch. It was softer (and also stickier, so I added more flour) and came together much quicker; less “resting time.” The next thing I noticed was that it cooked much quicker too, I usually have an issue with my other recipe cooking evenly in the time given. Sometimes it’s perfect, other times not so much, but it tastes so good I forgive it.  But this recipe is so much better! It’s thicker, yet less dense than my other recipe, and it’s absolutely fantastic. I am not exaggerating, it really is the perfect pizza. I topped it with sauce, mozzarella and broccoli along with some Italian seasoning, but again, it goes without saying you can use any topping you want. Even if you’re one of those freaks who likes pineapple on it *cringes*

I adapted it a bit to fit my needs and likes, so that’ll be the recipe I’ll give you, along with a picture of the pizza before it was baked. Mangia!

PERFECT PIZZA

• 5 cups flour
• 1 tsp. salt
• 3 teaspoons dry yeast
• 2 tbsps plus 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 2 cups lukewarm water

1. Preheat oven to 400° F. Lightly grease a 12″ x 9″ baking sheet. Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl. Stir in the yeast, then make a well in the center.
2. Add the olive oil and the 2 cups lukewarm water.
3. Mix until a soft dough forms. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently for 5 minutes.
4. Roll out dough and press into prepared baking sheet, making a “crust” area that slightly overlaps the edge of the pan. Brush lightly with olive oil just on the center (not on the “crust” part).
5. Cover and allow to rest for 10 minutes at room temperature, poke with a fork in random areas in the center to allow for the air to circulate and not create bubbles, then bake for 5-7 minutes.
6. Remove the crust from the oven and spread sauce and cheese and toppings on top, leaving a border. Bake until golden, 20-30 minutes. It may even be longer/shorter, depending on your oven.
7. Cut using a pizza cutter, and serve!

I think this has replaced my old recipe. I’m sorry, old recipe… we had good times while they lasted.

In other news, the 2nd birthday of Cupcake Rehab, my little bloggette here, is rapidly coming up on the horizon (September 12th to be exact). In celebration of such, I’m planning a HUMONGOUS giveaway- with a grand prize and a first prize, possibly a second prize as well. Which means two or three very, very, very lucky people will walk away with amazing goodies from TOPSTITCH.ORG (here’s her Artfire store where you can buy her beautiful stuffs), Sweet Cuppin’ Cakes Bakery & Cupcakery Supplies, and Very Small Anna. And that’s just as of now.  I’m hoping the list grows so I can make this the biggest giveaway EVER. My last giveaway was a success, so I thought why not go bigger this time?

So on that note, if there are any Etsy sellers, or crafty people who don’t sell on Etsy,  or people who have things to contribute who have no idea what Etsy is  reading this, and they would like to contribute something (or a few somethings) for this giveaway, I would love to talk to you. I’m talking about button makers, hair clip makers, apron makers, cupcake topper makers/sellers, etc. All of you. If you’d like to help out and also get some publicity and advertising at the same time, please e·mail me!

And everyone else: I’ll be posting more information on it as I figure things out… so check back!

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