Culinary Distraction

OK kids. I'm distracting myself from today's events in Nevada (what the hell is wrong with you people???) with pizza and beer. But here's the thing: I have a great recipe that makes pizza way less waistline- and cholestorol-expanding than the Domino's stuff. And it's good.

Got a breadmaker? Haul that sucker out of the attic corner where it's been banished since your wedding. Clean it off and find a place for it in your actual kitchen. Once you taste this, that machine is going to be your and your kids' new best friend.

To make my yummylicious pizza, you need:

1 cup warm water (should feel like body temperature out of the tap)
1 tbsp regular yeast
1 1/2 cups white flour
1 1/2 cups wheat flour
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp olive or canola oil

Pour the yeast into the cup of warm water and let it bloom. Don't stir it. Just let it sit on top of the water.

Into your bread machine, dump the other ingredients. Just dump them right in there. Then, pour in the yeast/water mixture. Set your machine on the dough setting, turn it on, and walk away.

When it's done, plop the dough onto your floured kitchen counter. Roll it into a ball. Cut it in half. Each half will make one 12 - 14 inch pizza. If you don't need both, freeze one half. (Thaw it on the counter for about two hours later on)

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees with your pizza stone in it. You get that at Target for about $15, and it lives in your oven all the time. Trust me. And get the ceramic one. Those metal ones are just round cookie sheets and we're not making cookies here.

Roll the dough into a circle. Let it sit about 15 minutes. Then prick it all over with a fork. Transfer it to a rimless cookie sheet that you've sprinkled liberally with cornmeal. Top it with sauce, cheese...whatever you want. Slide it carefully onto the hot pizza stone (also sprinkled with cornmeal here) and let it bake about 12 minutes. When it's done to your liking, use a spatula to carefully nudge it back onto the cookie sheet and remove it from the over. Let it sit for a few mintues, slice it up, and serve it.

I use regular pizza sauce and lowfat italian cheese for a really yummy dinner. :) And I didn't make up the dough recipe. I tried a bunch of them from Recipezaar and this was by far my favorite.