“When I think of my favorite family time it always involves baking or cooking! The fun part about making a pizza is it involves both, baking and cooking. Making a dough family-night-dinner-worthy takes some skills. These recipes have been adapted from my wood-fire pizza oven cooking class for a home oven. Hopefully, this recipe will reward you with the best homemade pizza you have ever made!
Assembling pizzas can be as involved or un-involved for the whole family as you like. Create bowls of pizza toppings for your kids to help out. You can even take your pizza-making a step further with a pizza-themed birthday party for a hands-on celebration. The little ones can bond over rolling out their doughs together and selecting their toppings (have a broom handy for all the shredded cheese that will inevitably fall on the floor).” – Chef Victoria Cosner
Cooking recipes as a family is lots of fun and a great way to help kids broaden their palates with new foods and flavors. We hope you enjoy making this delicious pizza at home and it becomes a recipe in regular rotation for your home.
Pippin Pizza Recipe
Ingredients
Pippin Pizza Dough (Yields 3 dough balls)
- ¾ tsp active dry or instant yeast
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1⅓ cups 00 flour
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1¼ cups water
- 1½ tsp salt
Pippin Red Sauce
- 3 cups San Marzano tomato crushed or whole peeled
- 8 tbsp olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ medium yellow onion, small diced
- 2 tsp salf
- 1½ tbsp sugar
- 8 basil leaves
- 1 tsp dried oregano
Instructions
Dough
- In an electric mixer tted with a dough hook, combine the yeast and both ours. While mixing on low,drizzle in the extra virgin olive oil. Then add water, sugar, and salt and mix until combined. Knead onlow speed for 2 minutes, then turn on medium for another 3 minutes.
- To ball up, split the dough in thirds. Begin by folding the ball onto itself to create surface tension, the dough will become tighter. Seal the seam at the bottom of the dough and transfer to a sheet pan that has been rubbed with olive oil.
- Brush the top with olive oil or a neutral oil such as avocado or grapeseed oil and wrap with plastic. Let this dough rest for at least 1 hour or until doubled in size.
- This dough can now go into the fridge for 1-3 days, over this time the avor will continue to develop.However, you can use the dough immediately if desired, by letting it sit out for an additional hour to release the gluten strands.
- To shape the dough, begin generously flouring a workstation, be sure to keep a good amount of flour on your hands too. Place the ball in the middle and gently poke your fingers in the middle of the ball to start the process of flattening it out while making a crust. Place your hand in the middle and turn to stretch the dough while maintaining the raised rim on the edge.
- At this point, pick the dough up and using closed fists, stretch the dough to a 10-12 inch circle. Place on your pizza pan, to ensure your pizza cooks properly use your sauce sparingly, and do not go too heavy on the toppings. You can always have a side of your favorite sauce for dipping.
Sauce
- In a small saucepan, saute the garlic and onion with the olive oil for one hot second over medium heat.
- Stir in the tomatoes, salt, sugar, basil, and oregano. Bring to a simmer. Turn down the heat and let the sauce reduce for about 10 to 15 minutes.
- Blend in a blender until smooth or if you used crushed tomatoes and like a little texture blend lightly.
- Turn on the oven to 450 degrees.
- Place a pizza stone, cast iron pan, or baking sheet in the oven while it is preheating and let sit in the oven for at least 30 to 40 minutes to ensure it is hot.
- While the pizza stone is heating up begin rolling out your dough, once you have achieved a smooth pizza dough place the dough on parchment paper to create an easy transfer to baking stone or sheet pan.
- Then the assembling begins, go lighter on the sauce and toppings than you would think so your dough has a chance to rise and cook properly.
- Once pizzas go in the oven check them in 10 minutes. You are looking for you toppings and cheese to have a little color on them, this may take up to 18 minutes depending on how strong your oven is.
- Remove from oven and cool down slightly before cutting and serving.
Notes
Tips For Dough
- To make mini pizzas separate the dough into 6 instead of 3 pieces.
- Have rolling pins nearby, the kids will be better at rolling the dough out instead of stretching it.
- Have extra all-purpose our on hand to sprinkle on the table before rolling it out so they do not stick to your countertop, or roll on top of a sheet of parchment paper.
- You can use all-purpose our for both of the ours instead of OO our.
- For a restaurant-quality pizza ensure the pizza stone, cast iron, or baking sheet has been heated through all the way (in the oven for at least 40 minutes). If you are looking for an easier pizza bake, you can omit heating the baking sheet and just place built pizzas on a baking sheet directly into the preheated oven.
Kid Friendly Toppings
- Pepperoni (JM Stock Provisions)
- Mozzarella (BUF Creamery)
- Ricotta Cheese (Caramont Farm)
- Escamillo Peppers or any variety of sweet pepper (Bellair Farm)
- Caramelized Onions (Bellair Farm)
- Cherry Tomatoes (Little Hat Creek Farm)
Photo courtesy of Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards
Pippin Hill Executive Chef, Victoria Cosner
Cosner attended CATEC in high school, which marked the start of her culinary career. From the beginning, she knew food was her passion. Prior to landing her ideal position as a prep cook at Pippin Hill in 2015, Victoria began her career as a chef in the Charlottesville area, working at restaurants like l’Etoile and RockSalt. Victoria’s career path began to take shape as she rose through the ranks to become Pippin Hill’s Executive Chef, Executive Sous Chef, Sous Chef of Events, and Sous Chef of Line. The ability to stroll through the lovely gardens and gather produce and herbs for the meals she cooks for guests is one of her favorite things about Pippin Hill. Cosner also really enjoys teaching cooking classes at Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards.
Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards
Nestled in the picturesque foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards is a culinary vineyard, winery, and event space. Guests are invited to experience the finest that Virginia Wine Country has to offer, with an emphasis on locally sourced cuisine, award-winning estate wines, and distinctive experiences, as well as specially created weddings and events. Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards is committed to the farm-to-table and even care for their own bees, chickens and a vegi garden on the property as well as teach cooking classes. The winery is a marvelous outing for a girls day out or a date night too.
Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards is part of Charlottesville’s award-winning Monticello Wine Trail which includes many family-friendly wineries that welcome kids on property.
