Mamma Mia! Homemade Pizza Crust and Salmon and Goat Cheese Pizza

Salmon and Goat Cheese Pizza

One of the best things about moving to a totally new place is the opportunity to meet people. The Hubby and I have met so many amazing people here in DC, and some of them are pretty awesome cooks in their own right. We went over the a friend's house for pizza, only to find that he and his fiancee made the pizza entirely from scratch! And it was vegetarian! With squash! Overachievers. Well, I couldn't let them out-perform me, so I asked for the pizza dough recipe and started making my own fancy-schmanzy pizzas.

The dough recipe is pretty basic. All you need is flour, yeast, and olive oil. The rest is left up to your

This dough is crying out for pepperoni. Or anchovies. Or whatever.

imagination, and, since the recipe makes enough dough for two separate pizzas, you can try lots of different ideas. Do you want basic pepperoni and cheese? Easy, just throw it on with some classic pizza sauce. Is your new girlfriend a vegetarian and refuses to eat real food? Try some sauteed veggies. Want to ward off vampires? Roast a head of garlic and smear it over the crust before adding cheese.You are only limited by your willingness to try new things! And maybe the amount of flour you have, but you could always buy more.

Classic pepperoni and cheese.

It is better to have a thinner crust than a thick crust with this particular recipe. It can be hard to stretch your dough out, but if you can, try to get an even quarter-inch thickness. It will rise up some in the oven, and you want the toppings to be the star of the show, not a huge chunk of crust. Also, go light on the sauce. If you do too much pizza sauce, it tends to get mushy in the middle, and mushy pizza is not my idea of a good time. Use the minimal amount of sauce and spread it all around for the best results. The amount of time needed for baking really depends on the amount of toppings you put on, so watch it carefully so it doesn't burn on you!

The fennel really adds flare.

Salmon and Goat Cheese pizza was really my husband's idea. He likes smoked salmon, and goat cheese is hoity-toity, so put them together and you get something that wouldn't be amiss at a boutique pizza restaurant. Artichoke hearts and dill help round it out and add some nice greenery. It looks very impressive, and very difficult (even though it isn't hard at all), so its perfect for when the in-laws visit. I recommend dressing up the outer part of the crust with some Italian herbs and fennel, which makes it look that much more fancy.

What would you put on your pizza? Let me know in the comments!

Ready to impress the in-laws!

Homemade Pizza Crust
(makes 2 crusts)
1 1/2 cups warm water, at 110-115 deg F
1 packet or 2 1/4 tsp active baker's yeast
Pinch of granulated sugar
3 tbl extra virgin olive oil
3 3/4 cups flour plus extra for kneading
1 tbl salt

In a small bowl, add yeast to warm water and stir. Sprinkle a pinch of sugar over the yeast mix. Let sit until foamy, about 10 min. Add olive oil to yeast mixture. In a large bowl, combine flour and salt. Form a well in the flour and add the yeast mixture. Stir until a soft dough forms. Knead the dough on a floured surface until smooth, about 5 minutes. Allow dough to rise in a oiled bowl in a warm place for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.

Preheat oven to 500 deg F

Divide dough into 2 balls. Roll and stretch each ball onto a pizza stone or cookie sheet. Thinner is better! Add toppings and bake at 500 deg for 12-15 min.

Salmon and Goat Cheese Pizza

1 pizza crust (see recipe above)
5 oz goat cheese
1 can quartered artichoke hearts
3 oz smoked salmon, sliced into small pieces
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill, or 2 tsp dried dill
2 tsp fennel
1/2 tsp oregano
olive oil

Spread out crust on a pizza stone or cookie sheet. Top with crumbled goat cheese, artichoke hearts, salmon, and dill, leaving about 1/3 inch at the edges as the outer crust. Brush the outer crust with olive oil. Sprinkle on fennel and oregano. Bake at 500 deg F for 14 min.