Sorry for my lack of blogging lately. My mom was in town visiting from Wisconsin, so blogging took a back seat for a few days. I have a couple of recipes in the hopper, so I’ll post them as quickly as possible.

This recipe is for a simple tomato, mozzarella and basil pizza, but it is delicious! I’ve made it several times now and I seem to like it more every time I make it. I think the key to making it taste great is the use of fresh ingredients and homemade pizza dough. Enjoy!

Caprese Pizza (makes one 18 inch pizza)
Dough Ingredients:

1 packet of active yeast (not rapid rising)
1 cup warm water
2 cups bread flour
2 tbs olive oil
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried marjoram
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Mix yeast and warm water in a bowl and let sit for 10 minutes, until creamy. Mix in flour, olive oil, sugar, herbs and spices. Place into a bowl that is greased in olive oil and let rest, covered with a clean towel for 30 minutes.

Pizza Topping Ingredients:
1 large tomato, sliced
8 oz fresh mozzarella, sliced
1 cup of basil, chopped
1/2-3/4 cup fresh Parmesan cheese
3 cloves of garlic
4 Tbs olive oil

Preheat oven to 350F.

To assemble pizza, roll out risen dough into an 18 inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Transfer the dough to a large pizza pan. In a small ramekin mix together minced garlic and olive oil. With a pastry brush, apply garlic/olive oil evenly on the entire pizza crust. Add a little more olive oil if necessary. Next, evenly spread the chopped basil, followed by tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. Lastly sprinkle Parmesan cheese on the pizza. Bake for 30-35 minutes.