Pizza making session today! Specifically, a spelt crust pizza.
It didn't turn out too bad, considering this is my first attempt at homemade pizza. I was aiming for slightly crispy, thin-crust pizza but the base turned out to be more bread-like than pizza-like, or to put it crudely, soggy pizza. This was especially so in the areas where there were toppings, and I attribute it to uneven cooking/too much "wet" toppings. Nevertheless, the edges of the pizza were exactly what I was after - crisy and slightly chewy. Delish!
For all first-timers in pizza-making, a useful pizza guide can be found here.
Vegetables on a Spelt Pizza Crust (makes 1 small pizza)
Ingredients
"Pizza Dough"
1/4 c lukewarm water
1/2 tsp dry active yeast
1/2 tsp sugar or honey
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup + 2 tbsp spelt flour
Olive oil for brushing
"Chickpea pesto" (makes ~ 1/2 cup)
1 garlic clove
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup basil
1/4 cup cooked chickpeas, skins remved
1/2 anchovy fillet (leftovers)
"Other Toppings"
Shredded mozzarella (note to self: never buy pre-shredded, cheap cheese again!)
Black olives, sliced
Chopped (canned) tomatoes (Waitrose, with chopped herbs)
1 pattypan squash, shredded
Instructions
"Pizza Dough"
1. Proof yeast (i.e. check if yeast is alive). Pour warm water into medium size bowl. Add yeast, sugar or honey, and salt. Stir well to mix. Let stand for 10-15 mins. You should see froth.
2. After 10 min, add flour and knead until dough forms. It should not be sticky. Shape into a ball
3. Oil a bowl. Place dough into bowl. Brush dough with oil and cover bowl with cling wrap to prevent drying out. Let dough rise for 2 hours.
"Chickpea pesto"
4. Put everything into food processor or pound manually using pestle and mortar (which I did).
"Assembling the pizza"
5. Preheat oven to highest temp or 220 C.
6. Gently deflate dough with palms. Spread out into desired shape (circle or rectangle) using hands.
7. Spread layers of: chickpea pesto, mozzarella, olives and squash.
8. Bake for 10-12 mins.
9. Cut and serve. Enjoy!
Some problems encountered:
-Even though I used a brand new packet of yeast, there wasn't any froth! Perhaps I added too little honey and the yeast didn't have enough to 'munch' on?
-Dough was super sticky! Had to add quite a bit of extra flour
-Soggy pizza towards middle. May be due to uneven cooking (pizza stone?), too much wet toppings, or premature removal from oven (patience!)
But it still turned out quite fine :D
It didn't turn out too bad, considering this is my first attempt at homemade pizza. I was aiming for slightly crispy, thin-crust pizza but the base turned out to be more bread-like than pizza-like, or to put it crudely, soggy pizza. This was especially so in the areas where there were toppings, and I attribute it to uneven cooking/too much "wet" toppings. Nevertheless, the edges of the pizza were exactly what I was after - crisy and slightly chewy. Delish!
For all first-timers in pizza-making, a useful pizza guide can be found here.
Vegetables on a Spelt Pizza Crust (makes 1 small pizza)
Ingredients
"Pizza Dough"
"Chickpea pesto" (makes ~ 1/2 cup)
"Other Toppings"
Instructions
"Pizza Dough"
1. Proof yeast (i.e. check if yeast is alive). Pour warm water into medium size bowl. Add yeast, sugar or honey, and salt. Stir well to mix. Let stand for 10-15 mins. You should see froth.
2. After 10 min, add flour and knead until dough forms. It should not be sticky. Shape into a ball
3. Oil a bowl. Place dough into bowl. Brush dough with oil and cover bowl with cling wrap to prevent drying out. Let dough rise for 2 hours.
"Chickpea pesto"
4. Put everything into food processor or pound manually using pestle and mortar (which I did).
"Assembling the pizza"
5. Preheat oven to highest temp or 220 C.
6. Gently deflate dough with palms. Spread out into desired shape (circle or rectangle) using hands.
7. Spread layers of: chickpea pesto, mozzarella, olives and squash.
8. Bake for 10-12 mins.
9. Cut and serve. Enjoy!
-Even though I used a brand new packet of yeast, there wasn't any froth! Perhaps I added too little honey and the yeast didn't have enough to 'munch' on?
-Dough was super sticky! Had to add quite a bit of extra flour
-Soggy pizza towards middle. May be due to uneven cooking (pizza stone?), too much wet toppings, or premature removal from oven (patience!)
But it still turned out quite fine :D
its a small crate of soap. comes with 3 soaps, a loofah, a wash cloth all inside this wooden crate. okay i'll check out Tchaikovski's pieces. chicken pesto looks good ! wanna eat that alone haha.
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