I can humbly say that I made the magic happen with this pizza.
If this pizza were a song, it would be an Al Green song. It would be Love and Happiness. This pizza is tight, it’s in the pocket, it’s got soul.
Speaking of love and happiness- remember when I was down to my last egg and came to you for love advice a few weeks back? Did I tell you how much all of your comments touched me? They truly did. Thank you, again and again and again.
I just wanted to let you know that I have found love and happiness. It’s all just inside of me. It’s lovely and amazing. So I’m back to living the good life, on my own. I also happen to me making the magic happen, one pizza (and one very hot kitchen) at a time.
Here’s something that I didn’t know about pizza: it’s really easy to make! When it comes to having all of my pizza questions answered, there was only one place I could go: Smitten Kitchen. Deb is batty for pizza and she has some amazing tutorials about what to do and how to do it.
I know it’s warm out friends, but don’t let that stop you from making some magic in your kitchen. Crank up the air conditioning, pour yourself a nice cold beer, blast the Al Green and make a pizza. That’s called the good life. I know. I’ve tried it.
Pizza Dough
recipe from Smitten Kitchen
makes 1 large pie.
3 cups flour (can replace up to half of this with whole wheat flour)
2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast
1 cup lukewarm water (may need up to 1 or 2 tablespoons more)
2 tablespoon olive oil
Stir dry ingredients, including yeast, in a large bowl. Add water and olive oil, stirring mixture into as close to a ball as you can. Dump all clumps and floury bits onto a lightly floured surface and knead everything into a homogeneous ball.
Dough after a few minutes of kneading. Just before first rest.
If you are finding this step difficult, one of the best tricks I picked up from my bread-making class is to simply pause. Leave the dough in a lightly-floured spot, put the empty bowl upside-down on top of it and come back in 2 to 5 minutes, at which point you will find the dough a lot more lovable.
Knead it for just a minute or two. Lightly oil the bowl (a spritz of cooking spray perfectly does the trick) where you had mixed it — one-bowl recipe! — dump the dough in, turn it over so all sides are coated, cover it in plastic wrap and leave it undisturbed for an hour or two, until it has doubled in size.
Dough, just before air is pressed our after first rise.
Worked into a nice smooth ball, ready for 20 minute rest.
Dump it back on the floured counter (yup, I leave mine messy), and gently press the air out of the dough with the palm of your hands. Fold the piece into an approximate ball shape, and let it sit under that plastic wrap for 20 more minutes.
Sprinkle a pizza stone or baking sheet with cornmeal and preheat your oven to its top temperature. I used a baking sheet, turned upside down, lined with foil and sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Roll out the pizza, toss on whatever topping and seasonings you like. (I always err on the side of skimpy with toppings so to not weight down the dough too much, or if I have multiple toppings, to keep them very thinly sliced.)
Bake it for about 10 minutes until it’s lightly blistered and impossible to resist.
Pepperoni and Black Olive Pizza, Heavy on the Sauce
1 1/4 cup pizza sauce (I bought mine from Trader Joe’s. It’s great!)
1 1/2 to 2 cup grated mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup sliced black olives
as much pepperoni as you can layer onto the pizza.
Once the dough is rested and rolled, spread the sauce over the pizza and layer with cheese. Top with olives and pepperoni and bake at 450 for 10-13 minutes. So good!
s
July 29th, 2008 at 4:20 pm
Joy -
Good for you. Good for making pizza and good for realizing the root of all good starts within. I leave you with a line from the Wizard of Oz. AND, I’m planning a little pizza gathering of my own this Friday! It was meant to be!
“I’ve learned….that it wasn’t enough to want to see Uncle Henry and Auntie Em…and that if I ever go looking for my heart’s desire again, I shouldn’t look any farther than my own back yard. Because if it isn’t there, then I never really lost it to begin with. Is that right?” - Wizard of Oz
July 29th, 2008 at 4:36 pm
Pizza is one of our all time favorite weeknight meals… weekend meals, for that matter. I’m always messing around with mine, gussying it up with stuff; nothing fancy, just not anything you’d see at dominos. Amy on the other hand, well…
“Pepperoni and Black Olive Pizza, Heavy on the Sauce”
…that says it to a T!
We like to use 1/3 bread flour to 2/3 whole wheat flour. Also, I’ve found that if you let it rise over night in the fridge, it takes on more flavor and texture. Just don’t forget to oil the bowl!
July 29th, 2008 at 4:42 pm
Joy - This pizza looks amazing!! I love your blog and I’m glad to hear you’re living the good life again.
July 29th, 2008 at 5:43 pm
Looks awesome! I just recently started to grill my pizza and I’m having a ton of fun with that!! I used Trader Joe’s sauce last time too, haha. Keep up the great work!
Joe @ cookingquest
July 29th, 2008 at 6:29 pm
Mmm…pizza! This really looks great–and Al Green too?! Makes for a fantastic evening.
July 29th, 2008 at 7:07 pm
Great timing for this post . . . I was just telling hubby and kiddo yesterday that I’ve heard making pizza dough isn’t as hard as I have always feared it was. I’ll grab some yeast at the grocery store tomorrow and give this a try. Thanks for the pics — pictures help me so much! And pepperoni and black olives sound great, tho I’m a “light sauce” kind of gal ;-).
Glad to hear life is good again =)
July 29th, 2008 at 7:22 pm
mmmmm Olives on pizza is my second favorite. Ham and Pineapple are my FAVORITE toppings. You know I am going to have to make this now.
I have always been afraid of making any kind of dough from scratch. I am worried about the yeast and all of that. The way you write your blog makes me feel like anyone can do it.
Thanks again
and you realized the most important thing of all. You MUST love yourself before you can really love anyone else.
July 29th, 2008 at 8:25 pm
I work one day a week at a pizza place and I just discovered that spicy olives and pineapple make the best combo EVER! You should give it a try next time. Your pizza looks great!
July 29th, 2008 at 9:41 pm
Good looking pizza. I am a bacon and black olive girl myself.
Corny as it is, you do have to love yourself before anyone else can love you.:)
July 30th, 2008 at 3:02 am
once you get the hang of your own pizza you’ll never buy it again. unless it’s bacon, red onion and chilli. or duck and ginger jam. mmm……
July 30th, 2008 at 4:41 am
Pizza and self discovery are a fantastic combination. So glad you have discovered happiness within, as that’s the most purest and lasting happiness of them all.
July 30th, 2008 at 5:35 am
Joy, your pizza looks delish. I love to make my own pizza, and it’s a lot cheaper than going out.
Because we like our pizza loaded and it’s damn near impossible to get it off the peel when it’s got a lot of toppings, I shape my dough and put a skim coat of sauce on the dough and par-bake it on a stone. When the dough is set enough to hold it’s shape, I take it out and finish putting on the sauce and whatever else tickles my fancy. By this time, the dough has risen as much as it’s going to and it’s sturdy enough to manipulate to get it in and out of the oven.
July 30th, 2008 at 7:16 am
A girl after my own heart; I love black olives & pepperoni on my pizza. Mmmm. Maybe once in a while some bacon. The top of your pizza came out perfect.
July 30th, 2008 at 8:15 am
There is nothing better than homemade pizza! My heart is smiling at the thought of making one soon.
July 30th, 2008 at 9:26 am
Homemade pizza at its finest…looks delicious Joy!
July 30th, 2008 at 9:34 am
This looks great! I love making pizza and I’m overdue for making it. I like to use my stone out on the grill rather than the oven as I can hit a higher temperature. I’ve also learned that you need to be very careful with oven mitts not rated to withstand such temperatures, lol.
July 30th, 2008 at 9:35 am
glad to hear our favorite bakers feeling jolly again!
Now a question: Does it matter if i substitute the plain flour for whole meal one??
July 30th, 2008 at 10:21 am
I thought my hubby and I were the only people ever to like pepperoni and black olive pizza!!! This looks so delicious and I can’t wait to make it for dinner this week. Thanks for the great recipe!
July 30th, 2008 at 1:34 pm
Joy, you’ve spoken to my hungry little soul! Love and Happiness by Al Green was the song my husband and I danced to at my wedding. And his favorite pizza? Pepperoni and black olive! This is going on my list of things to cook!
July 30th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
This looks great!! Our all-time favorite topping combo is black olives, green olives and mushrooms…mmm!! Glad to hear your feeling better and lovin’ yourself again….wait, that didn’t sound right…
July 30th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
So glad you found your happiness - it certainly is translating into your food
Great idea to flip the baking sheet over!
July 30th, 2008 at 5:30 pm
Good news and bad news: I know what you mean about homemade pizza, and even having love on the inside, but I have never heard of Al Green. Am I a total lost cause?
July 30th, 2008 at 7:15 pm
I don’t know you, but you sound pretty happy in this post. This pizza looks so, so good. I’ve been wanting to try my luck at home made pizza dough, and you have just inspired me. Be Happy!
July 30th, 2008 at 7:49 pm
“Nothing is so good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” - Willy Shakes
My thinking is; Nothing makes things so good as a little pizza dough.
Glad to hear the stars are a little brighter in your sky.
July 31st, 2008 at 7:47 am
Good for you, Joy!! Sometimes you just gotta remember to put yourself first and be happy being alone.
Well… alone with pizza.
July 31st, 2008 at 10:06 am
Aw! My favorite Al Green song- what an intro, and the horns!! I’m blasting it right now, whilst I covet your pizza. I’m seriously considering making pizza for supper now, instead of meatloaf.
July 31st, 2008 at 11:00 am
I love pizza and I love olives. But my boyfriend doesn’t. What a pity
But I think, I’ll try to bake this pizza only for myself. =)
July 31st, 2008 at 5:53 pm
Looks great, and some of my favorite toppings. I also like to cook mine on top of a baking stone in the oven, covered with semolina - I love the extra crunch the semolina gives the crust, plus it’s a great way to keep the pizza from sticking (semolina is great any time you dry fry breads on a skillet or stone). Also, here’s a great tip from Cook’s Illustrated: pre-cook your pepperoni slices between a couple of layers of paper towels in a single layer in the microwave for 30 - 60 seconds. You’ll get rid of a bunch of the grease from the pepperoni before you add it to the pizza - works great.
August 1st, 2008 at 12:02 am
[...] Pepperoni and Black Olive Pizza ~ Joy the Baker [...]
August 1st, 2008 at 11:49 am
Nice pizza! I’m super impressed that you made that at home. And I also question why I have never had a pizza with black olives AND pepperoni when I love them both!
August 1st, 2008 at 1:57 pm
Do you deliver to Ann Arbor?
August 1st, 2008 at 11:20 pm
Gorgeous. Love the combo of black olives and pepperoni. You make pizza at home look so easy! I’m salivating. . .
August 2nd, 2008 at 2:11 pm
Dear Joy, it made me really happy to hear that you’re happy again! Your pizza looks so yummy!
August 3rd, 2008 at 5:55 pm
Yay, I finally tried homemade pizza crust! My first time to make any kind of yeasted dough, actually, and I loved it!!!
Thank you, Joy, for the inspiring photos and “you can do it” attitude in your post =). Here’s my blog post with the end result: http://glendacraftsandcooks.blogspot.com/2008/08/hooked.html
August 4th, 2008 at 8:15 am
That looks fantastic! It has been too hot to turn on my oven so we’ve been grilling pizzas. It is great and adds a little something to the flavor and no heat to my kitchen.
August 4th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
I would soooooo try to court you and eat your pizza if I lived within 1000 miles of you. But, alas, I’ll have to continue worshipping from afar.
August 4th, 2008 at 3:13 pm
Wow, that looks absolutely mouthwatering!
August 6th, 2008 at 10:09 am
I just brought dry yeast…I’m making pizza this weekend!! Thanks for sharing this awesome recipe!!!
August 6th, 2008 at 3:05 pm
I was just going to ask how things in the love department were. I am so glad that you are finding yourself, Joy…. that is the only true way you’ll find that happiness of all happinesses
Pizza looks fantastic.
August 11th, 2008 at 9:09 pm
Fantastic shots, great recipe, an amazing blog! I have subscribed! Keep it up.
August 13th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
My favorite pizza every is just Pepperoni and Black Olive. Yum. The photo made my day!