I usually make the thicker, bread type crust when I make pizza at home. We thought that it might be fun to try the thinner, almost cracker like crust for a change but I don`t have a receipe for one. Any suggestions? Just for fun what types of things do you put on your home made pizzas? Anyone ever use goat cheese? Thanks fo the help.

-- Linda Foster (rcfam@csinet.net), April 27, 2001

Answers

I use a regular bread recipe for homemade pizza.To make thin and crispy as i call it,lightly sprinkle cornmeal in the pan before putting in the dough,before i put the sauce on the dough i lightly brush with olive iol to keep the dough from getting soggy.I use olive oil on the thick and chewy also.Make sure you watch the pizza closely as it cooks when you use the cornmeal under the dough or it will turn out to be as hard as a hockey puck.Experiment with the amount of cornmealyou use and adjust it as you go along.I use a yeast light bread recipe and it works out great.Also i use cheddar mixxed with mozzarella cheese.Pizza is a trial and error thing and i have found some good combinations by experimentation.Good Luck,and if i can answer any questions to help let me know.Val

-- Valory Leonard (valoryvaleo@aol.com), April 28, 2001.

I could live on PIZZA! One of my favorite quotes is "life is like pizza, even when it's bad it's still good!". To answer your question a mom in our library story hour brought home-made pizza for the snack last week. It was very thin and crispy, I have been making pizza homemade since I was about 10 years old, but this had a little different taste, I asked her and she said she only uses about 1/2 of the yeast called for, and she uses melted real butter in place of the oil. I will try this next time because it was very good. I think a very hot oven really makes it crispier, and I always pre-bake the crust before I add the toppings. Sometimes for my husband and I, I bake a crust, lightly brush with olive oil, then layer on cheese, sausage, mushrooms, red, green and hot peppers, sprinkle on parmesan ,dried basil, and oregano. (NO SAUCE) Then put it under the broiler for about 5 minutes. This is very good for a change from tomato sauce, mozazzarella, and pepperoni (my kids favorite). I think anything taste great on pizza and we enjoy trying new toppings. Sometimes I divide a large pizza into 6 sections and we each "decorate" our own section just the way we like it.

-- Melissa (cmnorris@1st.net), April 28, 2001.

Hello Linda, We use to live in Central Florida and believe me you will be amazed what we put on our pizzas there! I have had it will ripe plantains, coconut, guava, shrimp, crabmeat, and chicken. I have had it will a white cheese sauce. I have had it with salsa and hot peppers! I have had it with Feta cheese too. All in all, I can not think of anything that does not taste good on a pizza. My neighbor makes his out of wheat flour. He grinds the wheat kernals in his mill fresh on the day of the pizza party. He makes the dough and sets it aside to rise. During the preparation time of making the dough he is already cooking down his fresh tomatoes and basil to make the sauce. (Secret recipe). Anyway, even his wheat pizzas taste great! I don't have a thin crust recipe to share with you but, I hoped that the varieties of things we put on our pizzas might give you ideas on your own ingredients. I personally believe that a good pizza sauce must have some beer in it! Our recipe is a simple sauce. We chop onions, crush garlic, grind basil, add salt and pepper. Then we cook it all together in olive oil until the onions are clear. Let it cool. Strain the liquid into tomato sauce. Stir in a cup of beer. Stir in a little more seasoning like salt and pepper. Sweeten to taste with a little sugar. Add some crushed tomatoes and voila! Pizza sauce! Ironically, I got this pizza sauce recipe from a restaurant I use to work at Walt Disney World so don't tell anybody! Sincerely, Ernest

-- http://communities.msn.com/livingoffthelandintheozarks (espresso42@hotmail.com), April 29, 2001.

I was going to ask a similar question Linda. Am looking for good recipes for pizza dough and sauce. Have tried about four different recipes for the dough and, though close, none have been quite what I was looking for.

-- Lisa (tepeeclan@nidlink.com), April 29, 2001.

Try the recipe in Joy of Cooking, using bread flour(not plain flour- get the flour that is specifically for bread) and using olive oil. The kind of flour you use makes a very big difference.

-- Chamoisee (chamoisee@yahoo.com), April 29, 2001.

After much trial and error I found that the secret to good pizza dough is High Gluten flour. Bread flour has a higher gluten that all purpose flour, but the one that is labeled High Gluten is the best. I use just flour, water, yeast, salt, and olive oil. No sugar. When you stretch it out, just keep stretching until it gets as thin as you want it. I have also found that after putting the dough onto the pan, put it in the refrigerator for several hours, uncovered. Take it out of the refrigerator about an hour before baking to let it get to room temperature. Somehow this make a better crust. Put your sauce and cheese on, then bake. The oven temperature should be at least 425 degrees, 450 being better. Twelve minutes later, your pizza is ready.

-- Mary in East TN (barnwood@preferred.com), April 30, 2001.