When I was a very little kid, my family didn't have much money. We almost never ordered takeout or went out to eat. Pizza wasn't something that came from the pizza parlour, it was something my parents made at home. When my mom was doing the cooking for the family, this meant a Pillsbury pizza crust topped with tomato sauce, mozzarella, and, usually, kielbasa for some reason. Maybe it was cheaper than pepperoni. When I got older, we were a little better off, and would once a week or so order in pizza from the local Greek-owned House of Pizza. Greeks tend to make pizza with a crispy but fairly substantial crust, and this place did it quite well, topping that crust with flavorful sauce, cheese, and all kinds of tasty toppings. I discovered pepperoni and olives first, and stuck with those for a long time. Sometimes, when my father became the family cook, we'd still have homemade pizza, though we traded the Pillsbury crust for Boboli pre-made shells, which were better, and the kielbasa was replaced with pepperoni or Italian sausage, and more vegetables were added.
Over the years, my pizza tastes have broadened. I've learned to love all kinds of interesting things on pizza. (Though by the gods, nothing will ever make me like a Hawaiian pizza with pineapple and ham. That's just not right.) I've topped pizzas with bacon, caramelized onions, shrimp, and fresh basil. I've topped them with roast chicken, thinly-sliced baby Yukon gold potatoes, and garden-grown thyme and sage. I've topped them with chunks of roast butternut squash, blue cheese, and more of those caramelized onions. I've topped them with smoked salmon, fresh dill, capers, and onions. Yes, damn it all, I AM a pizza yuppie.
One thing I've never done, though, is make my own crust. I've bought the Boboli crusts like my father did, though I've taken to getting the whole wheat variety most of the time. I've also bought whole wheat pizza dough from Trader Joe's, and stretched that out nice and thin. When dieting, I'm most likely to make little pizzas on whole-wheat pitas. Am I intimidated by the idea of homemade crust? Yes, a bit. A bad crust can really ruin a pizza, and when comfort food disappoints, it somehow feels like a betrayal. Also, there's the stupid dithering going on between the "healthy" and "traditional/dependable" sections of my brain. Whole wheat is healthier. More nutrients. More fiber. It is not, however, as easy to create a good whole wheat pizza crust as it is to create a good white flour pizza crust. I think I'm going to eventually compromise on this, and replace SOME of the white flour in a pizza dough recipe with whole wheat, though not all of it. Probably not even half. It won't kill me. I will also buy myself a proper pizza peel for the occasion, because without one, I've been forced to cook my non-precooked-crust pizzas on a cookie sheet, rather than directly on top of the pizza stone that makes its home in the bottom of our oven. I will remember to use plenty of cornmeal on the peel, so that I won't end up swearing up a blue streak when I am unable to get the pizza off the peel and onto the stone. And because I've got that stone, I really hope that the crust will have that perfect combination of crispy and chewy that I love so much. I hope it supports the toppings without drooping. I hope it's neither too thick nor too thin.
The only other question is...what will I use to top it? Oh, the possibilities! Do I go for traditional-simple Margherita, with fresh tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil? Or do I go for classic pizza-joint pepperoni, onions, and peppers? Do I yuppify it with unusual meats, veggies, and cheeses? One thing's for sure: I'm going to read up about how best to freeze pizza dough, so I can pull out another crust's worth from the freezer after a week or two, and try it with new toppings. Yum.
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