I had some dough in the refrigerator from last week for tonight. When I opened the container, I noticed the dough was more moist than usual, and it also had a bit of a sour, funky sort of smell. It was more like sourdough.
I’m bloody hopeless at shaping pizza dough. Take a look at tonight’s effort. I really need help.
Pizza
Tonight’s toppings included tomato paste, mozzarella cheese, porcini mushrooms, gorgonzola, and basil. I also threw on a few cherry tomatoes. Check out the apron I wore tonight.
I’ve now been making a pizza on Friday nights for a few months. I’m grateful to my Italian pizza mentor, GC, who has been helping with flavour combinations for toppings and different ideas.
Me in my Spam Hawaii T-shirt with a tin of Bacon Spam with a background of Acacia pycnantha Wattle
It’s been a most enjoyable exploration into an area I never thought I’d venture.
While I remain very much the student, my “big kid” attitude started thinking on Thursday about venturing somewhere beyond the traditional (and possibly acceptable).
Out of respect for GC, I did ask if we’d still be friends if I went out on a limb. Fortunately, GC is a very accommodating soul and agreed we can remain friends. 😊
Hawaiian pizza Yummy Lummy style
I’ve noticed on some on-line food forums the thought of pineapple on a pizza stirs up high emotions. I’ve certainly eaten pineapple on pizza before, and I don’t mind it. Given a choice though, like if I’m paying for a pizza or making one, generally, I avoid pineapple. Tonight will be the exception which proves the rule. 😉
Pizza base (bread making machine)
Ingredients
Water 200 mL
Olive oil one tablespoon
Iodised salt one teaspoon
Caster sugar one teaspoon
Bread flour 375 g
Tandaco yeast one sachet (1¾ teaspoons)
Hawaiian pizza Yummy Lummy style
Instructions
Follow the dough making instructions for your machine
Split the dough into two and put one portion into an airtight container and refrigerate for a week.
Roll the remaining dough on a lightly floured surface into a 25 cm round for a thin based pizza.
Place onto a lightly floured baking tray.
Add selected toppings.
Bake in a preheated oven at 250 °C for 12–15 minutes.
Hawaiian pizza Yummy Lummy style
Toppings
Diced bacon flavoured Spam
Crushed pineapple
Tomato paste
Mozzarella
Gorgonzola
Baby capsicums
Hawaiian pizza Yummy Lummy style
Most people think ham and pineapple when they think of Hawaiian pizza, but for me, Hawaii means Spam. I mean check out my T-shirt. 🍕
Hawaiian pizza Yummy Lummy style
I was very happy with how this turned out. It tasted delicious and best part was the gorgonzola contrasting with the sweetness of pineapple. 🍍
Another Friday pizza, this time it was sans bocconcini and sans meat. The aim was to get a crispy base rather than a soggy bottom which happens when I load up on the bocconcini balls. I don’t like a soggy bottom 😜 I should listen to my friend GC more about achieving a crispy pizza base.
Pizza
Ingredients
Homemade pizza dough (from last week)
Tomato paste
Mozzarella cheese
Baby capsicums
Caramelised onions
Porcini mushrooms
Kalamata olives
Capers
Basil
PizzaPizza
Instructions
Remove the pizza dough (made from last week) out of the refrigerator and bring it to room temperature.
Rehydrate the dried porcini mushrooms in warm water and allow the mushrooms to plump up over about 20 minutes.
Drain the mushroom water from the mushrooms.
Cut the baby capsicums into slices.
Turn the oven on to its highest setting.
Begin to work the dough and attempt to form a circle (hoping one day I’ll learn the secret of how to make a circular pizza base rather than the weirdly shaped pizza bases I seem ‘good‘ at).
With the back of a spoon, smear the tomato paste across the surface of the pizza base.
Layout some slices of mozzarella on the pizza base.
With artistic flare add some caramelised onions, capsicum slices, mushrooms, olives, capers, and basil.
It’s Friday and I worked from home today. The last few Fridays I’ve been making a pizza for tea so I thought I would try to keep this going. Given I was home I figured I’d caramelise some onions in the slow cooker.
A blogger friend reckons if I leave pizza dough in my refrigerator for a week or more it will sour and the pizza base will have a sourdough-like taste. So this is an experiment. I am enjoying this pizza dough venture 😃🤤 I’m grateful to my friend GC for getting me on to it.
What I didn’t expect was how much gas was formed by the yeast as it fermented carbohydrates. If I remember my chemistry it should be carbon dioxide so I’m sorry for contributing to a little more CO2 in the atmosphere.
Pizza dough bubble after a week in the refrigerator
When I pierced the bag, there was definitely yeasty goodness feelings as I could smell the yeast. I don’t know that the pizza base tasted any different. It was nice and crisp and I really enjoyed it. This was a mighty fine pizza.
