There are two “go to” meals in the kidgredients household that are always eaten. Regardless of tiredness, crankiness and it seems regardless of sickness: pizza and pasta. So for those nights when I know that nothing else will cut it…we go the pizza route.
I’ve been making a pizza dough recipe from the Bourke Street Bakery book since I got the book. It’s hands down the best dough recipe I’ve come across and I’ve tried lots! I normally make a double batch of the dough (a batch makes about 4x 8″ pizzas).
The key to making pizza a quick family weeknight meal lies in the preparation. I roll the dough out, dock it (put holes in it with either a dough docker or a fork), put it on a silpat liner and set up your pizzas to freeze the same was as you would to cook straight away. I stack the pizzas once frozen in a pastry container in the fridge. You can also freeze the rolled pizzas if you like, or the dough in portions, unrolled.
But getting the toppings ready is tiring, right? Nope! Next time you cook a roast chicken, shred some of the breast and put it in a container in the freezer. Do the same with any roast meats, or leftover grilled meats and grilled vegetables. I also slice bacon into slivers and freeze so they are ready to go. Excess ham gets cut up and frozen for pizzas, as does salami…and any extra semi dried tomatoes etc.
I’m sneaky with my toppings, grated zucchini goes on after the sauce, tonight was shredded kale. I’ve also popped caramelised onions on pizzas for a while!
I buy my cheese in bulk (mozzarella and cheddar) and grate the lot in the food processor then freeze on trays, transferring to a container when hard. This can be used straight from the freezer.
Preheat your oven to 220. From the freezer they will cook for about 15 minutes. Instant dinner! If you freeze the dough rolled you can top it straight from the freezer and bake for about 12 minutes. If the dough is fresh or fully defrosted, 10 minutes.
You will never buy store bought pizza again!
