Who doesn’t love pizza? Everyone has their own favorite ingredients, so I won’t dictate what you should use to top yours, but here is a great and simple way to make your own individual size pizza at home. From making your own marinara and dough, to choosing your toppings, you will be impressed with how well you can make this yourself. You can make the marinara ahead of time and will have extra to use for pizza, pasta or as a dipping sauce, so feel free to store in fridge or even freezer. Recipe calls for a medium saucepan, 9” cast iron skillet and large enough surface for working with the dough.

Ingredients :

(for marinara - makes about 2 cups so you will have plenty left over)

15 oz crushed tomatoes

1/2 tsp tomato paste

2 tbsp water

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp fresh basil, about 4 large leaves, chopped up

1 clove minced garlic

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp dried oregano

(for dough - single serving)

1/2 cup flour (plus extra as needed for kneading and hands)

1/4 cup slightly warm water

1/2 tsp olive oil

1/4 tsp rapid rise dry yeast

1/4 tsp sugar

(for pizza - cheese blend and toppings open to interpretation)

1 ball pizza dough - from recipe above

2 tbsp marinara - from recipe above

3 tbsp Mexican blend shredded cheese (mix of Monterey Jack, Sharp Cheddar, Queso Blanco and Asadero)

6 tbsp shredded Mozzarella

2 slices (slightly undercooked) cooked bacon , chopped up

8 small slices pepperoni

Directions :

(for marinara)

In medium saucepan, over medium heat, add the olive oil and the minced garlic and sauté for 1 - 2 minutes. Add crushed tomatoes and stir for 1 minute. Add the rest of the ingredients, stir together and reduce heat to low. Simmer uncovered for 30 minutes, stir occasionally, or until desired thickness. You can add a touch of water if it’s become too thick or turn up the heat to medium briefly to achieve right consistency (see above). Remove from heat and allow to cool before storing if not using immediately.

(for dough)

You will need a warm place to allow the dough to rise, but not hot as this will start baking the dough. I preheat my oven just a touch on low but turn it off before it comes to temperature. Add the yeast and sugar to a bowl, then add the flour then the oil. Mix briefly before adding the water a little at a time, mixing it in before adding more. Once it is all combined, flour your hands and the surface where you will knead the dough (with your hands and not a rolling pin). Work the dough until it forms a good ball. You will likely need either more flour or even a touch more water to get the right consistency, but it should be slightly sticky. Once you’re done forming the ball place in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap, but allow room for the dough to rise. Put the bowl in the oven for approximately 40 minutes or until the dough doubles in size.

(for the pizza)

Please assemble all your ingredients together first as the cooking goes pretty quickly. Make sure to pre cook any meats, like sausage or bacon, as they will only spend a few minutes in the oven. Again, sprinkle flour on your hands and surface to work the with dough and to gently remove it from the bowl. Take your dough and flatten it with your hands into a round shape, about 8” wide. No need to be exact as you see my shape above isn’t precise. Us your fingers or the heel of your palm to spread the dough outward as your turn it. If dough becomes too thin simply ball it up again and start over. Once you have shaped your dough, preheat oven broiler to 500*. Place cast iron skillet on the stove on medium high heat. Add the dough to the pan and cook until a good crust forms on the bottom, about 3 minutes. Flip the dough over in the pan and quickly add your pizza toppings. I like to add the marinara, then sprinkle about 1/2 of the cheese before adding my toppings and then the rest of the cheese. Once you’ve added your toppings, put the pan in the oven under the broiler until desired crispiness, about 4 minutes. Remove, allow to cool enough to handle, slice and serve.