In the past I have shared with you my failure at making any kind of dough. For someone who loves bread and loves to cook it is my nemesis. When Fleischmann's Yeast sent me their pizza crust yeast and a great how to on making pizza dough I decided Halloween was a good time to try there fun pizza ideas with this easy pizza dough recipe and face my fear.
My kids love dipping bread sticks in pizza sauce so we decided to make a pizza spider with breadstick legs which meant the best of both worlds. They are cheese lovers so we just made eyes with pepperoni and a mouth with a red pepper which I cut into fangs. I also melted some garlic butter and brushed it on the legs and outer crust. Now to making the dough, I was seriously terrified this would be a disaster. We have tried making pizza dough many times from scratch but it always turned out flat like cardboard or it wouldn't rise.
Using the easy instructions provided, it came out perfect on the first try. This yeast made especially for pizza crust made it perfect. The best part we made it and cooked it right away, no waiting for it to rise or refrigerating it for hours. This means when we want to have a family pizza night I no longer have to do a lot of planning ahead, and with our busy schedules that is a bonus. The most important thing in making this a success is making sure your water is at 120-130 degrees. I used my regular kitchen thermometer to check it before I poured it in. Second is kneading the dough long enough, 4 minutes is a lot longer than you think so go ahead and set a timer and call in the kids, it's like playing with playdough.
We pulled off eight one inch pieces and rolled them into logs for the legs. The rest was made into a circle for the body. Now my number one tip for how to get a crispy pizza crust is to preheat the pan. I pre-heated mine at 425 for about 20 minutes before putting the pizza on it. Then we put the body of our spider towards the top and pressed the legs into the dough.
When the dough is done, spread on your favorite sauce, cheese and whatever toppings you want to decorate your spider or other fun pizza creation. Put in the oven at 425 for 12-15 minutes and enjoy! This easy pizza dough recipe is below, but you can visit Fleischmann's and get lots of other great pizza recipes here. Family pizza night is so much fun and we usually have game night or a movie with ours. We are pledging to do this at least once a month with our family you should to!
- 1 cup flour
- 1 envelope Fleischmann's Pizza Yeast
- 1 1/2 tsp. sugar
- 3/4 tsp. salt
- 2/3 cup of warm water at 120-130 degrees fahrenheit
- 3 tbs. vegetable or canola oil
- 1/2 cup flour plus more for dusting
- Combine 1 cup flour, undissolved yeast packet, sugar, and salt in a large bowl.
- Add water and oil.
- Stir together until blended well, about 1 minute.
- Add 1/2 cup flour gradually until the dough comes together in the middle of the bowl and forms a sort of ball. Dough will be slightly sticky (depending on humidity and altitude you may not need the entire 1/2 cup)
- Sprinkle flour on your kneading surface ( I use a silpat mat)
- Knead until dough is smooth and elastic which takes about 4 minutes. You will need to add additional sprinkles of flour as you knead it to help with sticking to your board or fingers.
- Spread out with fingers for best results or use a rolling pin for a really thin crust.
- Top with toppings and bake at 425 for 12-15 minutes.
Comments