monday night dinner: quick and easy pizza

Home made pizza is so much better than take away or frozen pizza, and it's pretty quick and easy to make too. Using a combination of just about anything you happen to have in the fridge and pantry you can almost always rustle up a delicious meal.

Tonight, we had a thin and crispy pizza with wild mushrooms, spinach and walnuts, and a thick crust gourmet vego pizza (roasted sweet potato, caramelised onion, capers, basil and goats cheese).

To make the pizza base, you will need:

2 cups plain flour plus extra for dusting
3/4 cup tepid water
6g yeast (one sachet)
2 tablespoons of good olive oil (or truffle or chili oil if you're feeling adventurous!)
A pinch each of salt, pepper and sugar.

What to do:

I am seriously laid back in my pizza making. Pour all the ingredients into a mixing bowl and stir with a spatula until combined. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about ten minutes, until stretchy and soft. Don't over knead the dough. Once it's done, transfer it back to the bowl and cover with glad wrap. Leave to prove for ten minutes while you prepare the toppings.

Slice your toppings of choice - if you are in short supply, olive oil, garlic, rosemary and cheese (any cheese, every cheese!) makes a great simple combination!

Once the dough has proved, remove from the bowl and return to floured work surface. If it has risen too much, bash it once to flatten out extra air. I find the quantities above make 2 large pizzas. Slice the dough in half and roll each into a ball. Use a rolling pin to make the bases. For a really thin and crispy base, role it very thin and place onto lightly floured tray, top it and bake immediately (200'c for approximately 15 minutes, or until golden). For thicker pizza base, leave the pizzas a bit thicker when you shape them, and leave to rise for a further 10 minutes before adding the toppings and baking.