27-minute Pizza from Scratch . . ready . . set . . go!

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I feel like pizza tonight . . . you too?

The topic today: homemade pizza, and if it’s feasible for make one in under 30 minutes.

Question: When one has a hankering for pizza, is it possible to make one in less time than it takes to call one in at the local pizza place and then run and get it?

Answer: Yes. Now that you have my recipe, absolutely.

This is a rich, full life out here on the farm. I love it. I’m not complaining.

Growing cut flowers, summer squash, beans, and tomatoes means that I must harvest something every day, or else the flowers go to seed, the beans turn to lumpy strips of cardboard, the tomatoes drop and rot, and the summer squashes–overnight–grow to the size of dirigibles. Harvesting and tending is happy work, though. I’m outside and that’s where I prefer to be.

Also, I love this word: dirigible.

Dirigible (1931) Image from Wikipedia

Sure, it may sound like a lot

. . . but I doubt that it’s any more than you face every day, gentle reader. Thankfully (my heart sings!) I don’t have to climb into the car and drive to a job in the city every day.

I noticed not long ago, Mack and I (Bryan works a lot of evenings) started skipping dinner. . . . I mean we ate, sure–Mack just turned 17 years old, and like a baby chick must eat constantly, lest he wither away and starrrrve!–but we started rushing through dinner, and then afterwards would hurry off to our personal pursuits. Mack slipped off to his room to practice his banjo, and I headed back outside.

Just as soon as I noticed that we had begun this careless habit, something funny happened: I started missing dinner. Not the food, per se, but the ritual of dinner itself.

The ritual of making time for dinner is worth making time for. Even if you’re just fighting your own compulsive habit of trying to do more each day than you maybe should.

I sat down recently and wrote out a running list of daily non-negotiables. “Writing a weekly blog post,” (happily!) is back on the list. Also daily walks with our goofy dogs. I added “Actually sitting down to dinner together” to my list, too.

Aaaand we’re back to the topic of this post.

In reclaiming this sacred dinner hour, I discovered the fact that if you have the ingredients on hand (and you probably do), you can have delicious hot pizza on the table in 27 minutes. 27 Minutes. You didn’t read that wrong.

That’s from start to finish. From pulling the flour container out of the cupboard, to carefully easing the hot, cheesy pizza out of the hot oven and trying not to burn your fingers.

Honest. 27 minutes. I timed myself.

And yes, that includes a really yummy, chewy, delicious crust. Homemade pizza. From scratch!

After all, there are nights that you really want a pizza: hot, steaming, melty-cheesy, oh gosh, and you don’t really feel like running to town to buy one. And you know that homemade is cheaper and better in every way, anyway.

And, somehow, you know that you can make many things and if you can make many things so well, what’s so hard about making an excellent pizza quickly?

Nothing, that’s what. Nothing’s that hard about it.

You just need a great recipe.

(But the crust . . ? you stutter, confused and possibly, immediately, intimidated.)

Here’s the thing about the crust

Making your own pizza dough is actually very quick and easy, gentle reader. All you need is a good simple recipe. And guess what–I’m sure I’ve mentioned it–I’ve got it right here. And I like to share.

Aren’t you lucky you stopped by?

So let’s get at it.

Gather up your ingredients (this will still take only a few minutes, one hopes) and set the timer. A fresh hot pizza is 27 minutes away.

Let’s do this thing.

1. Gather ingredients (or mise en place)

• flour, salt, yeast and warm water for the crust
• cornmeal
• mozzarella cheese, shredded
• pizza sauce (one hopes you always keep a jar in the pantry; I do)
• Parmesan cheese
• cream cheese, if you like (we are recent devotees to cream cheese on pizza!)
• toppings that you already have on hand (You probably don’t need ideas, but I’ve found that pepperoni, red onion, fresh basil, and arugula, is VERY GOOD INDEED, and usually my go-to. Today, I have bratwurst in the ‘fridge that needs to be used up, so I’m going to go with bratwurst, cheeses, red onion, and sauerkraut.)
• olive oil
• garlic (peel and smash it, so it’s ready) (By the way, if you use a lot of garlic in your cooking, take my advice and buy yourself one of these. I love mine and use it nearly every day. It makes quick work of peeling and mincing garlic cloves.)
• red pepper flakes
• a pizza peel or a cookie sheet with a parchment paper, for ease of sliding pizza onto your pizza stone
• a pizza stone

2. Turn on the oven.

• Preheat the oven to 500°F (Yes, it’s hot!)
• Place your pizza stone into your oven.

3. Mix up your dough

Dough is basically just flour, water and salt, with a bit of yeast to leaven it a little. And with a pizza crust, you don’t want it to rise much, obviously.

Swallow your fears and stir together:

• 2 – 2 ¼ cups bread or all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar (optional)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2.5 tsp yeast
• 1 cup warm water

Pro tip: I use one of these when I stir dough together by hand. It’s a non-negotiable in my kitchen.

4. Let the dough rest for a few minutes while you prep your toppings.

Cook your meat if you need to; chop your onions; smash and dice your garlic; grate your cheese. Et al.

5. Take a minute to knead your dough just a little.

Do this, of course, on a well-floured surface. When it’s satiny and smooth (which ought to happen in only a minute or two), roll your dough into whatever pizza shape you like. Don’t obsess. I never do.

If you don’t have a nice rolling pin, give me a holler. Dad is still making rolling pins for me, and you can purchase them in my blog shop.

Did I mention that I prefer an asymmetrical shape in my pizzas?

5. Assemble your pizza very quickly

Remember, your timer is ticking . . . ! (This is the timer I use every single day.)

Sprinkle your pizza peel or parchment-lined cookie sheet with cornmeal.

Roll the dough out very thin, and then take a few seconds to ridge the edge so the sauce doesn’t drip off. Carefully fold your crust in half and transfer to your peel or cookie sheet. Slather with olive oil, and sprinkle with garlic. Spread the sauce on (as thickly or thinly as you like: this is a free country), and then pile your toppings on lavishly (or thinly). Top with the shredded cheeses.

We’re nearly there . . . . !

A bit of a fancy edge never goes amiss, not in my book, anyway.

6. Pop it into the oven.

Carefully slide your pizza from the pizza peel or the cookie sheet into the preheated oven, onto the pizza stone.

Set your timer for 10 minutes and check for doneness when it goes off. (Reminder: this is a very hot oven!) The cheese on top of your pizza ought to begin to bubble and turn golden, and the crust should also be beginning to turn a nice golden color.

Pull out of the oven, slice carefully and call the troops. Dinner is served!

Once you’ve made this recipe a time or two, set your timer and see if you can beat my 27 minutes!

Gosh, now I’m really hungry . . . !

Here you go, if you want to print this recipe:

Pin it for later!

Have you got 27 minutes? You can make it too!

Thanks for popping in! I’d love to hear back from you, if you make this recipe, especially if you can beat my 27-minute time!

• ← A timely return to my beloved Frigidaire Flair stove
• Rosemary Olive Artisan Bread recipe →