Homemade Pizza

Sean and I love to cook together and one of our favorites is homemade pizza.  Last's night's homemade pizza was just about the best I'd ever made so I thought I'd share my recipe.  It takes a while, so it really is best on a Sunday, but it is not labor intensive, nor expensive to do.

Dough: (makes 2 12 inch pizza crusts)

1 c. whole wheat flour

2 c. all purpose flour

1 T. vegetable oil

2 T. honey

1 package yeast

1 1/4 c. warm water

1 1/2 t. sugar

pinch salt

Proof yeast with water and sugar for at least 5-10 minutes or until the appropriate amount of bubbles form.  While waiting for the yeast, get together all the other ingredients.  Then mix in yeast, water, sugar mixture and mix in mixer with dough hook until it forms a ball.  Then place in oiled bowl, cover, and place in dark warm place until risen double. (about an hour to an hour and a half).  Then split into 2 and place into low bowls or on cookie sheet to rise another 1/2 hour or until use.

Tomato Sauce 

1 small onion or half a large onion cut into small pieces

2 or more garlic cloves (depending on your like of garlic) chopped fine

2 T. olive oil

1/2 t. to 1 t. or to taste chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (I like to get a can of these and then put it in the food processor to chop it up and then I save it in the refrigerator for use such as this.)

1/4 of a bottle of red wine

1 can chicken broth

1 large can crushed tomatoes

1 T. oregano

salt/pepper to taste

Saute the onion and garlic in olive oil until translucent, careful not to burn the garlic. Add tomatoes, broth, and wine.  Bring up to a boil and then simmer for a couple of hours on stove, checking every so often.  If the sauce is getting too thick, you can add water or more broth.  Add chipotle peppers, oregano and salt and pepper at the last moment.

To make the pizza, we heated preheated the oven with 2 pizza stones in it at 425.  Then we rolled/stretched the dough onto the pizza stone and cooked for 5 minutes.  We then added the toppings, which were onions, peppers already cooked, and pepperoni.  Place back into the oven and cook for approximately 14 more minutes, checking at 12 minutes for doneness.  After it cooked, we added fresh basil that we grew in our herb garden.