Ingredients
• 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 1/2 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
Directions
1. In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast and brown sugar in the water, and let sit for 10 minutes.
2. Stir the salt and oil into the yeast solution. Mix in 2 1/2 cups of the flour.
3. Turn dough out onto a clean, well floured surface, and knead in more flour until the dough is no longer sticky. Place the dough into a well oiled bowl, and cover with a cloth. Let the dough rise until double; this should take about 1 hour. Punch down the dough, and form a tight ball. Allow the dough to relax for a minute before rolling out. Use for your favorite pizza recipe.
4. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). If you are baking the dough on a pizza stone, you may place your toppings on the dough, and bake immediately. If you are baking your pizza in a pan, lightly oil the pan, and let the dough rise for 15 or 20 minutes before topping and baking it.
5. Bake pizza in preheated oven, until the cheese and crust are golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes.
Nutritional Information
Amount Per Serving Calories: 119 Total Fat: 2.1g Cholesterol: 0mg
Amount Per Serving Calories: 119 Total Fat: 2.1g Cholesterol: 0mg
Cooked By: Aaron
Recipe Provided By: Allrecipes.com
Exquisite Pizza Sauce
Ingredients
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
6 fluid ounces warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon anchovy paste (optional)
3/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
salt to taste
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
6 fluid ounces warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon anchovy paste (optional)
3/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
salt to taste
Directions
1.In a small bowl, combine tomato paste, water, Parmesan cheese, garlic, honey, anchovy paste, onion powder, oregano, marjoram, basil, ground black pepper, cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes and salt; mix together, breaking up any clumps of cheese.
2.Sauce should sit for 30 minutes to blend flavors; spread over pizza dough and prepare pizza as desired.
Nutritional Information
Amount Per Serving Calories: 89 Total Fat: 1.4g Cholesterol: 4mg
Cooked By: Aaron
Recipe Provided By: Allrecipes.com
Other Pictures
Commentary
Aaron: I've been terrified of this meal all weak. I have always wanted to make pizza dough or any kind of dough at that. I had attempted helping Stephanie's dad when we went to St. Louis and you could tell that he was not impressed with my dough making ability. And I thought it was going to turn out bad when I first started rolling the dough, it was so sticky and Cristina was just laughing at me saying we needed to call Papa Johns....but after adding more flour and rolling and more flour and then letting it rise for an hour, it turned out great! This whole meal turned out way better than I expected. For the dough itself I give it a A- because I would have liked to have added some type of flavor, maybe a tomato basil flavor...I did however bursh the crust with a garlic butter for flavor...The sauce I was impressed with, great flavor once it hit the taste buds and left with a bit of a kick from the cayenne and red pepper flakes..just to my liking...If you are a ridiculous wuss when it comes to spice like Stephanie it may not be to your liking...I give the sauce a solid A. The wine was very good. It wasn't too dry or too sweet. I give it a B+.... Now for the pizza as a whole...I just kinda went with things I liked for the toppings...[Sage flavored pork sausage (rolled), pepperoni, red and green bell pepper, red onion, fresh mushrooms, black olives]...I also bought artichoke hearts and roasted red peppers but didnt use them this time. I may try making Calzone later this week to finish off my ingredients. I give the pizza as a whole an A-. This meal was accompanied by spinach and balsalmic vinegarette.
Cristina: This Pizza was good. Who knew, especially while watching him make the dough! lol. The crust was actually my favorite part though. It was thick but not too heavy, and with all the toppings he kept adding, I was a little concerned the crust wouldn't support them, but it was great. I might have added a little less toppings, but I guess he was going for a Sbarro style pizza. The sauce had a little more kick them I might have liked. When he first had me try it, there was no real flavor at the beginning, but after you swallowed, the peppers hit your throat. After a little more revamping with the spices, the sauce had a really nice flavor in the beginning, but he still couldn't do anything about that final kick. I give the Pizza at 9.1. It was good and I hope he'll make it again for me. I was in charge of the wine this week and I actually really liked it. I went into the wine shop and told them what was for dinner and they helped me find a good blend, and even better, it was on sale for the month of September! Score!. I'm a sucker for a red Zin, because I don't like really dry red wine. This was a blend of zin and merlot, so I was a little skeptical, but I really liked it. Not too sweet, not too dry, complemented the pizza and spinach really well. I will definately be buying it again. Vino score of 8.7.
Stephanie: This pizza was awesome! The texture was great, the taste was awesome, the toppings were juicy, the crust was thick and it was all cooked to perfection! Aaron really outdid himself with this recipe. I know that when we visited my parents recently my dad tried to show him how he made the dough for pizza. I don't know if Aaron learned anything from him or if he just figured this out on his own but the crust was PERFECT! Sauce was spicy, especially for me. Even with the heat, I would've eaten two slices if I would have had room for it. The slices were huge! Overall, I was super impressed! A+ I'm looking forward to having this again soon.
Guest Judge (Mr. Brendon Chill):
Best pizza in town? Maybe. Worst conversation? Absolutely.
Pizza: The key element of any good pizza is the crust and my slice far exceeded my expectations. Deep dish Chicago style crust made from scratch. AMAZING! It was slightly crispy, very thick and held up under the weight of the massive toppings.
On to the sauce. Many people can kill a pizza by overloading it with sauce, not this chef, the quantity was just right. The flavor was good as well, a bit on the spicy side which is great for me but may have been overwhelming for some. I wish it would have been a little sweeter though. That would have landed the sauce a five star rating for sure.
I can’t recall exactly what toppings the pizza had but all the classics were accounted for, pepperoni, sausage, peppers, onions, mushrooms and a healthy dusting of cheese. Aaron mentioned that he wanted to add a few additional toppings such as artichoke hearts, but I’m glad he held back. The ratio of toppings to cheese and sauce was perfect. Any more and it would have been too much.
Overall I was very pleased with the pizza. My only regret is not going back for a second slice but as a guest judge I didn’t want to show my inner fat kid.
Side
Raw spinach leafs with bottled dressing were served as a side dish. I chose the walnut vinaigrette dressing which I did not care for but I typically don’t like vinaigrette dressings. I’m more of a Caesar guy. Given the level of effort that went into the pizza I can’t hold it against Aaron for going with such a simple side.
Wine
I am by no means a sommelier, so any wine review on my part should not hold much weight. I honestly can’t discern between the cheapest bottle and the best vintage, so I am usually happy to drink whatever is on hand. What I do know is that it did not come from a box and was served in an actual wine glass, that alone scored a favorable review.
Dessert
For dessert I was introduced to the wonderful world of PeachWave. Despite the guidance of PeachWave veterans I made the rookie mistake of selecting my yogurt flavors before evaluating the potential toppings. To say I was overwhelmed once I hit the toppings would be an understatement. Despite my first timer error I was still very pleased with the yogurt and will be back soon!
Setting
It was my first visit to Casa de Mora so I received the grand tour. It is a very nice space with great décor and furnishings. One of the items I was very interested to see was the “As seen on TV” Shake Weight. Now I know how Aaron has been looking so buff recently.
Another area of interest was the art work / photography in the men’s room. I was greeted by an eye level photo of John McDonald which was disturbing and heartwarming all at the same time.
Once we sat down to eat the conversation took an interesting turn. Now don’t get me wrong, I thrive on awkward situations like this but the topic of conversation was just a bit too controversial for me.
Overall it was a very entertaining evening and I really enjoyed myself.
And the icing on the cake…I got a new friend, well Facebook friend anyway.
Rating
Pizza 4.33/ 5
• Toppings 4/5
• Sauce 4/5
• Crust 5/5
Sides 3/5
Wine 4/5
Setting 3.5 / 5
• Cleanliness 5/5
• Décor 5/5
• Company 3/5
• Conversation 1/5
Pizza: The key element of any good pizza is the crust and my slice far exceeded my expectations. Deep dish Chicago style crust made from scratch. AMAZING! It was slightly crispy, very thick and held up under the weight of the massive toppings.
On to the sauce. Many people can kill a pizza by overloading it with sauce, not this chef, the quantity was just right. The flavor was good as well, a bit on the spicy side which is great for me but may have been overwhelming for some. I wish it would have been a little sweeter though. That would have landed the sauce a five star rating for sure.
I can’t recall exactly what toppings the pizza had but all the classics were accounted for, pepperoni, sausage, peppers, onions, mushrooms and a healthy dusting of cheese. Aaron mentioned that he wanted to add a few additional toppings such as artichoke hearts, but I’m glad he held back. The ratio of toppings to cheese and sauce was perfect. Any more and it would have been too much.
Overall I was very pleased with the pizza. My only regret is not going back for a second slice but as a guest judge I didn’t want to show my inner fat kid.
Side
Raw spinach leafs with bottled dressing were served as a side dish. I chose the walnut vinaigrette dressing which I did not care for but I typically don’t like vinaigrette dressings. I’m more of a Caesar guy. Given the level of effort that went into the pizza I can’t hold it against Aaron for going with such a simple side.
Wine
I am by no means a sommelier, so any wine review on my part should not hold much weight. I honestly can’t discern between the cheapest bottle and the best vintage, so I am usually happy to drink whatever is on hand. What I do know is that it did not come from a box and was served in an actual wine glass, that alone scored a favorable review.
Dessert
For dessert I was introduced to the wonderful world of PeachWave. Despite the guidance of PeachWave veterans I made the rookie mistake of selecting my yogurt flavors before evaluating the potential toppings. To say I was overwhelmed once I hit the toppings would be an understatement. Despite my first timer error I was still very pleased with the yogurt and will be back soon!
Setting
It was my first visit to Casa de Mora so I received the grand tour. It is a very nice space with great décor and furnishings. One of the items I was very interested to see was the “As seen on TV” Shake Weight. Now I know how Aaron has been looking so buff recently.
Another area of interest was the art work / photography in the men’s room. I was greeted by an eye level photo of John McDonald which was disturbing and heartwarming all at the same time.
Once we sat down to eat the conversation took an interesting turn. Now don’t get me wrong, I thrive on awkward situations like this but the topic of conversation was just a bit too controversial for me.
Overall it was a very entertaining evening and I really enjoyed myself.
And the icing on the cake…I got a new friend, well Facebook friend anyway.
Rating
Pizza 4.33/ 5
• Toppings 4/5
• Sauce 4/5
• Crust 5/5
Sides 3/5
Wine 4/5
Setting 3.5 / 5
• Cleanliness 5/5
• Décor 5/5
• Company 3/5
• Conversation 1/5
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