Classic Cheese Pizza (Kid-Friendly!)

Ingredients

1 complete batch herbed pizza dough halved and rolled out according to instructions
~1 1/2 C tomato sauce (you'll use it to taste. some like pizza with more sauce)
italian seasoning
garlic powder
salt
black pepper
mozzarella and parmesan cheeses, grated


Instructions

Preheat oven to 500. If using a pizza stone, make sure it's on the lower rack of the oven and has had at least 30 minutes to heat.

Combine the tomato sauce with spices in a saucepan, warming over low heat, adding spices to taste. Spread the desired amount on each pizza and sprinkle with mozzarella; top with shreds of parmesan.

Bake one at a time for 6-8 minutes, until the cheese has melted and just begun to brown. A pizza peel sprinkled with cornmeal is by far the easiest method of placing and extracting the pies.


Note: pizzas may be topped with the usual: mushrooms, olives, onions, roasted red peppers, etc.

Herbed Pizza Dough

Ingredients

1 C warm water
2 tssp dry yeast
1 tsp sugar
1tbsp olive oil + oil for coating dough
2 tsp chopped fresh herbs
1 tsp salt
3 C unbleached all-purpose flour (can substitute up to 1/2 C whole wheat)

Instructions

put the water in a large mixing bowl, sprinkle in yeast and sugar and stir, letting stand until foamy (~5 minutes).

stir well, add the olive oil, herbs, salt and 1 cup of the flour and mix well. Add the remaining flour 1/2 cup at a time, mixing well at each addition. If this becomes too difficult with a spoon, mix with your hands.

dump the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead until all the flour is incorporated. lightly coat the entire ball of dough with oil, return to the uncleaned bowl and cover with a towel. allow to sit in a warm place until it has doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

punch down the dough and divide into 2 pieces. form each piece into a tight ball and let sit uncovered for 5 minutes on the counter. on a floured surface, roll each ball into a 10-inch circle (12 inches for thinner pizza).


from the cafe flora recipe book.

Spaghetti Squash with Ricotta and Parmesan

Ingredients

1 spaghetti squash
2 roma tomatoes, chopped
2 tbsp ricotta
2 tbsp parmesan
1/4 c mozzarella shredded
freshly grated parmesan to taste
basil, italian seasoning to taste
salt
pepper
bread crumbs

Instructions

Cut the squash lengthwise; scoop out the seeds. Set face-down in a shallow pan with 1/4 inch water with a dash of olive oil and bake for 40 minutes at 350. Remove and scrape out the insides with a fork -- it will look like small shreds of angel-hair spaghetti.

Lightly oil a baking dish. Mix the spaghetti squash with all the ingredients, except the parmesan and bread crumbs.

Sprinkle freshly-grated parmesan across the top. Sprinkle a generous amount of bread crumbs on top and bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes at 400.