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Anonymous wrote:My husband buys the dough at Whole Foods, and then does the rest. It allows each member of the family to get a customized slice. I like how he can make the dough thinner than ready-made pizza.

However it's a lot of work. If I lived in France, my home country, I would never make pizza at home, but would just go to a restaurant and have delicious ultra-thin pizza with interesting toppings you don't seem to have here...

What interesting toppings would you have in France?

Things that are hard to get as a combination here. For example, Provençal: tomatoes, tuna, olives, red onion. I love artichoke in my homemade pizza. Generally way less cheese and oil than pizzas here. Or the flammkuchen/tarte flambée, a pizza from Alsace without tomato sauce or cheese, but creme fraiche, thinly sliced onions and lardons (similar to bacon). Italian seafood pizza, although I suppose you can find it here too, but it's less popular.

NP. If only we had tuna on pizza. Then it would be so good.

PP you replied to. Yes, I love tuna on pizza. Coming back to note that Spaniards have their own pizza recipes, and Turkish/middle eastern pizza with spiced ground beef is a delight.

Basically every nation is making delicious variations while here it's tough to find anything but the few usuals. So in that context, when you have the time, please experiment at home with other countries' recipes! It's cheaper than going there...

“Basically” you either haven’t traveled widely throughout the US, or you haven’t adequately sampled the pizzas during your travels. It’s ok. Just know that generalizing about a whole entire nation based on your own limited experience isn’t exactly accurate. Do you really think that while you’re experimenting with “other countries’ recipes” at home, that people from those other countries aren’t making and selling pizza throughout the US? If you stopped at Domino’s, then you should know that there’s a lot more out there. If you’ve traveled and tasted widely, then you really should have managed to come across at least a few “delicious variations “ in the process.

I’m curious. How much time have you spent eating pizza in New Haven and New York? Or Baltimore? Can you tell the difference between pizza cooked in a coal oven and your home experiments? I’m not doubting that you make great pizza. I am, though, wondering exactly what pizzas you’re comparing with your own.

I totally understand you're patriotic, PP, but I'm very sorry to say 99% of restaurant pizza in the US is objectively bad. No, I'm not talking about take-out pizza. It doesn't matter what city it's from, or how it's cooked, usually it's too oily, cheesy and salty. Bread depth isn't proportional to toppings either. The USA is a wonderful country in so many ways, but food isn't what people admire about it. I don't want to get you all prickly and offended, but it's the truth.

I’m hardly patriotic, and tastes, of course, differ. I am pointing out though, that unless you’ve actually had “99% of restaurant pizza in the US” you might not be qualified to make statements like that. If I’m wrong, then please list the 1% of restaurants that you can recommend. I’ll seek them out as I travel.

I personally get take out pizza from the same places that I eat in for restaurant pizza, so your distinction is not one that I get. I have, though, lived in a few East Coast cities which have had generations of people from Italy and Greece, among other places, making pizza that many people are happy with.

As to the rest, Baltimore, New Orleans, and NYC all have admirable food options. I don’t really care whether you agree with my tastes or know how to find those options. No offense taken. I’m not all that personally identified with pizza options, so that’s hardly an issue that I’d get offended about.

Oh, in DC I like Timber Pizza, among others.

Even if she has been to 99% of the restaurant pizza places in the US she can't make the statement that "99% of restaurant pizza in the US is objectively bad." Taste preferences are subjective, not objective

Anonymous wrote:… you should be! I can’t get over how delicious home made pizza is, and how easy it is. Dough is so easy to make, especially if you have a stand mixer, but only marginally harder if you don’t. You can make a lot at once and freeze it. So easy to customize it based on your preferences.
And then making the pizza is so easy. Tip #1: parchment paper. Tip #2: 500 degree oven.
That’s all I have to say.

I'm sure there are things you buy but others make from scratch. I will continue to buy my pizza . No need for the public service announcement that nobody wanted.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:… you should be! I can’t get over how delicious home made pizza is, and how easy it is. Dough is so easy to make, especially if you have a stand mixer, but only marginally harder if you don’t. You can make a lot at once and freeze it. So easy to customize it based on your preferences.
And then making the pizza is so easy. Tip #1: parchment paper. Tip #2: 500 degree oven.
That’s all I have to say.

I’d appreciate your tips on how to work/roll out the dough into pizza shape (mine is always too thick in areas and too thin in others, and once I get it on the baking sheet in the shape I want, the dough shrinks back ruining it).

A few things I think help: 1) I use a rolling pin to roll it out. It still doesn’t always get really circular, but it is evenly thin. 2) Semolina flour on the counter or whatever surface you are rolling on. Or roll directly onto your piece of parchment paper (I put my crust on parchment to bake). And semolina flour on top of the dough to keep the rolling pin from sticking. Don’t be afraid to use a good amount of semolina flour 3) I now use 00 flour (pizza flour) to make my crust, which I think helps make it stretchy without breaking. And 4) make sure the dough rests. I make my dough in the morning or at lunch, let it double in size, then stick it in the fridge. I get it out 45 min-1 hour before I start making and put it on the counter, on top of some semolina flour, and put a kitchen town over it, and just let it relax. That helps a lot with it being ready to roll out. If I’m taking it out of the freezer, I do that at the end of my lunch break and just let it sit out on the counter until I’m ready to make the pizza at like 6:30 pm. So it sits out and has time to relax, and is ready to roll out.

Anonymous wrote:A large pizza at a local pizzeria is only like $25. They do a far better job than I'll ever do. And I know for a fact they use prime ingredients.

Maybe if we lived in a food desert I'd make my own. But we live 2 miles from a great pizzeria. And their house made tiramisu is also spectacular!

My family requires two pizzas. $50 doesn’t break the bank, but I can make it all at home for about $10.

A large pizza at a local pizzeria is only like $25. They do a far better job than I'll ever do. And I know for a fact they use prime ingredients.

Maybe if we lived in a food desert I'd make my own. But we live 2 miles from a great pizzeria. And their house made tiramisu is also spectacular!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:… you should be! I can’t get over how delicious home made pizza is, and how easy it is. Dough is so easy to make, especially if you have a stand mixer, but only marginally harder if you don’t. You can make a lot at once and freeze it. So easy to customize it based on your preferences.
And then making the pizza is so easy. Tip #1: parchment paper. Tip #2: 500 degree oven.
That’s all I have to say.

I’d appreciate your tips on how to work/roll out the dough into pizza shape (mine is always too thick in areas and too thin in others, and once I get it on the baking sheet in the shape I want, the dough shrinks back ruining it).

One thing you should do when working with any yeasted dough that shrinks back after you stretch it, is to leave it alone for a few minutes and then do it again. It allows the dough to relax further, and you will have better luck that way. I shape the dough over my knuckles. It's definitely not a professional job, but once you do it a few times, you do get better. Also, make smaller/individual pies. It's MUCH easier. If you like thin crust, you need far less dough than you think. A bit bigger than golf ball sized for a personal pizza is good.

I always have to resort to using a rolling pin when stretching my dough.

I make my own pizza. I buy naan, pour some pizza sauce from TJ's on it, sprinkle some shredded mozzarella on top, toss some Everything But the Bagel seasoning on, and bake. I'm not going to screw around with pizza dough or flour. I have a tiny kitchen with one square foot of counter space on either side of my sink and there's no space for things like that.

Anonymous wrote:You can't make good pizza in a 500 degree oven.

That's why pizza ovens exist.

Homemade pizza is fancy cheese sandwiches

We make a fantastic pizza in our oven at 550. And it tastes way better than any pizza delivery near me.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:… you should be! I can’t get over how delicious home made pizza is, and how easy it is. Dough is so easy to make, especially if you have a stand mixer, but only marginally harder if you don’t. You can make a lot at once and freeze it. So easy to customize it based on your preferences.
And then making the pizza is so easy. Tip #1: parchment paper. Tip #2: 500 degree oven.
That’s all I have to say.

I’d appreciate your tips on how to work/roll out the dough into pizza shape (mine is always too thick in areas and too thin in others, and once I get it on the baking sheet in the shape I want, the dough shrinks back ruining it).

One thing you should do when working with any yeasted dough that shrinks back after you stretch it, is to leave it alone for a few minutes and then do it again. It allows the dough to relax further, and you will have better luck that way. I shape the dough over my knuckles. It's definitely not a professional job, but once you do it a few times, you do get better. Also, make smaller/individual pies. It's MUCH easier. If you like thin crust, you need far less dough than you think. A bit bigger than golf ball sized for a personal pizza is good.

You can't make good pizza in a 500 degree oven.

That's why pizza ovens exist.

Homemade pizza is fancy cheese sandwiches

Anonymous wrote:… you should be! I can’t get over how delicious home made pizza is, and how easy it is. Dough is so easy to make, especially if you have a stand mixer, but only marginally harder if you don’t. You can make a lot at once and freeze it. So easy to customize it based on your preferences.
And then making the pizza is so easy. Tip #1: parchment paper. Tip #2: 500 degree oven.
That’s all I have to say.

I’d appreciate your tips on how to work/roll out the dough into pizza shape (mine is always too thick in areas and too thin in others, and once I get it on the baking sheet in the shape I want, the dough shrinks back ruining it).

I like making my own. It’s usually pretty good but not as good as the place we usually order from. Can’t get the dough/crust consistency quite right.

Anonymous wrote:Give us the dough recipe!

I am the OP and posted earlier that I use the Basic Pizza Dough recipe from Sallys Baking Addiction. (I use less sugar than called for and a bit more salt than the recipe says). I make it either in the morning or on my lunch break, let it rise, and then stick it in the fridge until it’s time to make the pizza. I just use the stand mixer bowl — mix it in there and let it rise in there (rub a bit of oil on the sides of the bowl and on top of the dough after I have mixed it.

Others have posted their favorite dough recipes.

https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/homemade-pizza-crust-recipe/

For the sauce, I do often use homemade, but I like Raos. My favorite was by SMT (the company that sells the really good San marzano tomatoes in the can with the white labels, and pictures of roma tomorrows on the front) but I can’t find it anymore.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My husband buys the dough at Whole Foods, and then does the rest. It allows each member of the family to get a customized slice. I like how he can make the dough thinner than ready-made pizza.

However it's a lot of work. If I lived in France, my home country, I would never make pizza at home, but would just go to a restaurant and have delicious ultra-thin pizza with interesting toppings you don't seem to have here...

What interesting toppings would you have in France?

Things that are hard to get as a combination here. For example, Provençal: tomatoes, tuna, olives, red onion. I love artichoke in my homemade pizza. Generally way less cheese and oil than pizzas here. Or the flammkuchen/tarte flambée, a pizza from Alsace without tomato sauce or cheese, but creme fraiche, thinly sliced onions and lardons (similar to bacon). Italian seafood pizza, although I suppose you can find it here too, but it's less popular.

NP. If only we had tuna on pizza. Then it would be so good.

PP you replied to. Yes, I love tuna on pizza. Coming back to note that Spaniards have their own pizza recipes, and Turkish/middle eastern pizza with spiced ground beef is a delight.

Basically every nation is making delicious variations while here it's tough to find anything but the few usuals. So in that context, when you have the time, please experiment at home with other countries' recipes! It's cheaper than going there...

“Basically” you either haven’t traveled widely throughout the US, or you haven’t adequately sampled the pizzas during your travels. It’s ok. Just know that generalizing about a whole entire nation based on your own limited experience isn’t exactly accurate. Do you really think that while you’re experimenting with “other countries’ recipes” at home, that people from those other countries aren’t making and selling pizza throughout the US? If you stopped at Domino’s, then you should know that there’s a lot more out there. If you’ve traveled and tasted widely, then you really should have managed to come across at least a few “delicious variations “ in the process.

I’m curious. How much time have you spent eating pizza in New Haven and New York? Or Baltimore? Can you tell the difference between pizza cooked in a coal oven and your home experiments? I’m not doubting that you make great pizza. I am, though, wondering exactly what pizzas you’re comparing with your own.

NP. Wait what’s up with pizza in Baltimore

+1
And how can you be sure you're getting authentic "Baltimore" and "New Haven" pizza and not Papa John style? Do you have to make sure the joint says "baltimore-style" pizza? I know Cleveland pizza is square and doughy. Not my thing but I would like to try it!

Try Matthew’s pizza.
I’m not sure if there’s still an Al Pacino pizza in Baltimore, but they had /have awesome pizza. (The one I went to when I lived there closed, but there was at least one other location).

For NYC, I like John’s on Bleeker, but that’s my personal preference.

For New Haven, I personally like Yorkside, but many prefer Pepe’s or Sally’s.

I’m not sure how to answer your question. Don’t go to chains. Ask people who live there. Read the reviews. Most cities regularly update articles and posts like: “Citiy’s best pizza…”. Also, the best places for slices ,pmight be slightly different but overlapping with the best places for pies.

Thank you!

Making your own pasta is even better. I've been making even thing from scratch for my family for over 20 years. I even can our own vegetables, soups, sauces, pickles and jams/fruit.