Homemade Pizza and Irving

Holy cow! We got 10 inches of snow overnight, soooo I am working from home this afternoon. Now the sun is out and there are huge clumps of slushy snow falling all around the house, I feel like I am working in and ice cave!

This weekend, my mom, my sister, and Zak's brother came over for dinner, and to wach the premier of Life on the Discovery Channel. We LOVED Planet Earth, we still watch the dvds every now and then, so we were so so so excited for the newest project from that team. My mom also brought over her new puppy Irving, a bichon friche. I usually don't really like small "lap" dogs, but he is so sweet I couldn't resist him :)

What a cutie! Oh yeah and my sister's pretty cute too ;)

For dinner I made Margherita Pizza. There was some very enticing pepperoni at the market, so I decided to throw them on too :) I like to make my own pizza dough, but in a time crunch I buy the uncooked dough from Sunflower Market (the Colorado equivalent of Trader Joes).

Margherita Pizza

Pizza Dough (I like this recipe from alton brown)

Extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced
Fresh tomatoes sliced thin
Salt
Pepper
Paprika
Shredded mozzarella (you could also use slices of fresh)
Fresh basil, cut chiffonade style

Pre-heat the oven to 425, Roll the pizza dough out onto a pizza stone* or pan (I love my stone because the bottom of the pizza never gets soggy). Rub a little olive oil over the dough and scatter the garlic across evenly, leaving enough space around the edge for a crust. Let the garlic sit for about 5 minutes, this will season the oil a little bit and also maximize the nutritional value of the garlic. Now add the tomatos, use as many as you like, but make sure to leave about 1/2 an inch of the dough showing so you have a crust on your pizza! Season the tomatoes with the salt, pepper and paprika. Now cover the tomatoes with as much cheese as you like (you can also add any other toppings like pepperoni, or my favorite, green olives!). Cook the pizza until the cheese is just beginning to brown, and the edge of the crust is brown as well. Then you're done, enjoy!

The pepperoni were GIGANTIC, and delicious! 

*I usually do not buy so-called "kitchen gadgets" that have only one specific use because they will more than likely end up forgotten, collecting dust in the back of the deepest darkest cubbard in your kitchen. The pizza stone is not one of these gadgets. I use mine for baking cookies, bread, scones, you name it! The stone provides constant, even heat, and keeps the underside of your baked goods from becoming soggy. I also place it in a warm oven when I make pancakes, french toast or waffles, transferring the done items on to the stone to keep them warm until I have used all the batter. That way you can have them all at once, and warm none the less!