Pizza is one of those foods that everyone loves. And people are funny about their pizza too - some people eat it with their fingers, not caring how greasy and sticky they get, while other people must eat it with a fork and knife... Some people like olives or mushrooms on their pizza, while others definitely do not... And some people say that pineapple most definitely does not belong on a pizza, but others can't imagine their favourite pizza flavour without it. But it doesn't matter how you eat it or what your favourite toppings are - it's still delicious!
The History of Pizza
The ancient Persians, Egyptians, Greeks and Romans had been putting toppings on flatbread centuries before the Italians first called it pizza (which comes from the Italian word for "pie"). In Italy, for centuries the pizza was considered poor people's food, and looked down upon as disgusting by the upper class. The toppings used at the time included garlic, lard, and salt, anchovies and other fish, basil, cheese, and, in the last few centuries, tomatoes. Tomatoes were introduced into Europe in the 1500s from the Americas and were mostly used by the poor because the rich disliked them and even rumoured that they were poisonous, thereby making tomatoes very cheap. When Samuel Morse visited Naples in the 1830s, he said about the pizzas he saw being sold on the streets that they were “A species of most nauseating cake… covered over with slices of ... tomatoes, and sprinkled with little fish and black pepper and I know not what other ingredients... it altogether looks like a piece of bread that has been taken reeking of the sewer.”
According to legend, when Italian Queen Margherita and her husband King Umberto visited Naples in 1889, chef Rafaelle Esposito cooked three pizzas in her honour, one of them being a pizza with tomato, basil, and mozzarella - supposed to represent the Italian flag of red, green and white. This one was her favourite of the three, and was named "pizza margherita" in her honour. It is very controversial whether this is true or not, but it makes a nice story at least. The other idea as to the origin of the "pizza margherita" is that the cook is supposed to put the mozzarella on the pizza in the shape of a daisy ("margherita" is the Italian word for "daisy").
Pizzas only started to become popular around the time of World War II due to migration and the fact that the Allies quite liked pizza when they went through Italy. It especially became popular in America, where it was called a "pizza pie".
But what about the Hawaiian pizza? Isn't pizza Italian? What do Hawaii and Italy have in common? Nothing! In fact, the Hawaiian pizza isn't Hawaiian at all, but actually originated in Canada. Greek immigrant Sam Panopoulos and his brothers opened a diner in Chatham, Ontario in 1956, where they sold Chinese and Greek foods and eventually pizza. Sam didn't like the limited variety of pizza flavours, so he experimented with other toppings, including the iconic ham and pineapple pizza. Panopoulos claimed that he named it "Hawaiian" after the brand of canned pineapple that he used. At first nobody liked it, but then it became quite popular, and still is today, although there are always some people who do not like the sweet-and-savoury flavour combination.
The Ingredients
For pizza bases, I use several ancient grain flours which are not usually available in grocery shops, however you should be able to find them in a health food shop - and if not, you can use just normal plain flour or any other glutenous flour you have on hand. It just needs to be a total of three cups of flour, whatever flour combinations you choose.
Most people use a pizza tray to make the iconic round pizza, but you can also just use a normal baking tray lined with paper, and make your bases any shape you want either to fit the tray or just as big as you want them. For us this pizza base recipe makes three rectangle pizzas, which I cook on a normal baking tray. You can also make them thick or thin according to which you prefer by adjusting the amount of dough you use for each one, how thick you roll them out, and the final rising time. For example, depending if you like your big round pizza bases thick or thin, after you divide your dough in half and roll it out to fit your round pizza tray, leave it to rise until thick and puffy (about 15-20 mins) for thick bases, or bake it right away after rolling them to have thin crispy bases.
I usually make a very large batch of pizza bases all at one time and then freeze them in a large sealer bag until needed (after they've cooled). They do keep for a very long time in the freezer, but we have pizza often enough that it doesn't take long to use them all up! You can double or triple the recipe to make as many as you want - I usually sextuple (6 times) the recipe, which uses 18 cups of flour and makes 12 smaller pizza bases!!
Pizza is very versatile - you can put anything you want on it, and it still turns out delicious! The recipe I've included here is the pizza I almost always make, but I've included lots of variation ideas for something different as well.
Homemade Pizza
Ingredients:
Light Rye Pizza Bases
2 cups khorasan (Kamut) flour *
½ cup light rye flour *
¼ cup quick oats*
¼ cup flour (I use emmer wheat, spelt, barley, extra khorasan, or any other glutenous flour) *
1/3 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1½ tsp instant yeast
3 tbsp olive oil
1 cup water
Homemade Pizza
1 pizza base, fresh or frozen
Olive oil, for cooking
2 medium or 1 large onion, sliced
½ capsicum, sliced
250g bacon or ham, diced (or salami, sausages, chicken, precooked mince....)
2 - 2½ tbsp tomato passata
Salt & pepper, to taste
2 tsp coconut sugar or brown sugar
60g fresh, frozen, or canned pineapple, diced (optional)
Olives, chopped (optional)
Barbecue sauce (optional)
Meltable cheese (Pizza cheese mix, mozzarella, cheddar....)
Any other topping of your choice: mushrooms (precook with the onion mix), diced tomatoes, spinach, fetta, sun-dried tomatoes, diced roasted or fried pumpkin, garlic.
Directions:
Light Rye Pizza Bases
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Knead for several minutes until smooth, then leave to rise for 30 minutes. **
Preheat oven to 220°C. Line two pizza trays or three baking trays with baking paper.
Turn out dough onto workbench. Divide into however many pizza bases you want, depending on how thick you want them to be and how big you want to make them. ***
Bake one at a time or multiples on different racks in the oven at the same time for 8 minutes. You may need to cook for longer if you are baking multiples at the same time.
Spread with toppings right away or cool on a wire rack until cold. Store in fridge for a few days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Homemade Pizza
Preheat oven to 220°C. Put pizza base on lined pizza or baking tray.
Heat oil in large frypan. Add onion, capsicum, and bacon or ham. Cook on medium-high heat for 10 mins, stirring frequently, until vegetables are soft and the mixture has caramelised.
Spread passata on pizza base. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and sugar.
Evenly spread the cooked onion mixture over the base. Sprinkle pineapple, olives, or other toppings of your choice.
Drizzle barbecue sauce over pizza, if desired. Sprinkle with cheese of your choice.
Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until cheese is melted and golden.
Cut into pieces with either a pizza wheel or a big knife. Serve and enjoy!
Cooking time: 20 mins
Serves: 2-6
* I use several ancient grain flours which are not usually available in grocery shops, however you should be able to find them in a health food shop - and if not, you can use just normal plain flour or any other glutenous flour you have on hand. It just needs to be a total of three cups of flour, whatever flour combinations you choose.
** If you're in a hurry, you actually can roll and bake your bases right away rather than letting them rise - they just end up thinner and heavier that way because the rising process aids in softening them.
*** Refer here for more info.
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