Plain Pizza No More

Pizza doesn’t have to have the same old pizza base. There are wonderful ways to serve pizza that creates your own signature pizza for family and guests. For example, start with the pizza crust. The basic pizza crust ingredients are flour, olive oil, salt and yeast.

Tips for Pizza Crust with a Difference

Pizza crust can be made in a variety of thicknesses. The thinnest pizza crust can be made from the basic recipe or for added interest, make pizza crust from buttered sheets of phyllo dough.

For thicker crust, choose sour dough rye or Ciabatta bread. When making pizza crust from scratch, after flour, olive oil, salt and yeast are blended, add dried basil or your favourite finely grated cheese before forming the dough.

Top Pizza Toppings with Flare

Create your pizza toppings to suit the occasion. Make pizza for children’s parties whimsical by designing a smiley face with pepperoni slices for the eyes, a large olive for the nose and thinly sliced pimento for the mouth. Add mozzarella cheese to fill these in for a more realistic look.

Make pizza for quick family meals from six or eight loaves of toasted Ciabatta bread sliced in half and topped with melted Swiss or Monterrey Jack cheese. Place on a large circular serving dish. Set each loaf around the dish clockwise. Leave a space in the centre large enough to a fit toppings dish.

Brush each loaf lightly with olive oil and lightly sprinkle with dehydrated garlic powder. Since this is a self-serve meal, arrange thinly sliced ham, raw onion, olives and tomato slices on a small serving dish.

Consider Stone Baked Pizza Catering

If you’re pushed for time or simply want to enjoy a party or gathering without having the stress of cooking you could consider hiring a stone baked pizza caterer. When hiring they will turn up at your place with a stone baked oven and create a variety of pizzas based on your choices of toppings, Whilst the cost of hiring a caterer will be a lot higher this gives you great versatility and takes the hassle away from shopping for ingredients, preparation, cooking and of course cleaning.

Fun and Fancy Pizza Toppings

Other delicious pizza toppings that marry well with pizza crusts are broiled pineapple and ham, pesto with anchovies and Chinese vegetarian pizza topping of steamed snow peas, thinly sliced water chestnuts, chopped scallions (green onion), broiled green peppers, bean sprouts and drizzled with soy sauce and peanut oil.

For a wonderful twist on pizza for dessert, choose an ultra thin pizza crust. Spread strawberry jam or favourite fruit preserves and finely chopped walnuts or pecans on the top of the crust before baking.

Bake just until the topping begins to bubble. Spread prepared instant lemon pudding on top of the baked crust. You can add fresh or stewed fruit slices like kiwi and strawberries, raspberries, melon balls and blueberries. For a holiday English Pudding pizza, add citron, currents, white raisins and walnut halves. Top with a “wreath” of mint.