First Pizza

I was asked to put on a kid's cooking class for a friend whose daughter's birthday is coming up! They wanted pizza. I've never made pizza before. Thought I'd better try out a recipe before I get 14 kids to follow my lead, or else I'd have 14 very disappointed faces to contend with. Probably not good karma. The photo story follows.








I worried about the dough rising since it's freezing in NY and the landlord is stingy with the heat, but I just turned the toaster oven onto 200F and sat the dough right on top in a ceramic bowl, turning the lump over once every 15 minutes or so. It worked beautifully. Sauce was from scratch - crushed tomatoes, some spices. I added some spicy salumi from Zabar's that had been sitting around, green bell pepper, and sauteed garlic (per one garlic-lover's request.) Unfortunately, all the store had was low-fat, low-moisture mozzerella, so the pizza's aromas suffered, but on the whole it was yummy! What a relief! If this Bumbling Bee can do it in a freezing cold kitchen, 14 kids should be able to manage just fine.



It must be admitted that the crust wasn't classic NY, given the constraints of my oven and lack of pizza stone. It was very nice though - slightly crispy outside, soft and tender inside. Paired with a lovely Tuscan Brunello (won't be on the kids' menu!) and a nice, crisp salad, it was a delicious meal.