Stuffed Crust 3 Cheese Spiced Pizza {Easy Pizza Dough Recipe Included}

 I’m quite the fan of pizza, and so is the husband, so because of the extra time I had on my hands this weekend I decided to make one! It’s funny though, because this pizza really doesn’t take much time at all to make… This pizza has a particular blend of spices and ingredients that I really like, but obviously you can make a pizza to your own tastes. That’s the best part about pizza; you can pretty much add anything to them that you would enjoy the taste of when combined. There’s also something so relaxing about rolling out pizza dough. It’s so smooth, and has such a nice “bread smell”. {I LOVE the smell of bread…} So, here’s my pizza! If  you decide to try it, I hope you enjoy!

Nikki’s Stuffed Crust 3 Cheese Spiced Pizza

Ingredients:

1 batch of Simple Pizza Dough {recipe is posted directly below the method for this pizza! You can use store-bought pizza dough if you like, and are short on time, but there’s just something special about making it yourself!}
About 1/2 cup tomato sauce {let’s not get snobby now people, if you don’t have time to make your own sauce, use the stuff out of a jar. There’s no shame in it! I had a hungry husband asking “is it ready yet?” every 60 seconds, so there was NO time to prepare my own little sauce…}
About 1 cup total grated cheeses, mixed {I used freshly grated: mozzarella, havarti and parmesan… Mmmm, what a great combination!!!! I really suggest grating cheese as you use it, as opposed to buying the packaged stuff. It only takes about 30 seconds to grate it all, and it’s truly worth it…}
1-2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1-2 tsp dried rosemary
About 1/2 tsp each dried oregano and coriander seed
Light sprinkling each of cayenne pepper and garlic powder
About 1/2 cup thinly sliced grape tomatoes {optional}
Enough slices of pepperoni to layer on the pizza {also optional}
About 1/2 cup pickled hot pepper slices
Narrow slices of mozzarella cheese set aside {enough for all of the pizza crust around the edges. If there is any left over, just chop it into chunks and sprinkle it on top of the pizza before putting it into the oven!}

Method:

Roll out your pizza dough, and allow to sit for 15 minutes under a paper towel. This is a perfect time to pre heat your oven to 500 F. Because of the high temperature, the 15 minute pre heat will allow the oven to heat up nicely…
After your dough has set for a little while, move the dough to a parchment paper lined baking sheet or rack. {If you use a rack, you’ll get pretty “grill lines” on the bottom of the crust!}
Drizzle and smooth the extra virgin olive oil over the entire top of the rolled out dough.
Sprinkle the spices {oregano, coriander seed, rosemary, cayenne pepper and garlic powder} over the pizza dough.
Now, spoon the tomato sauce over the dough, spreading it evenly with a spoon. Ensure that you leave a 1 inch border around the edge of the dough.
Sprinkle half of the grated cheese over the pizza.
Layer the sliced tomatoes, pepperoni if using, and hot peppers over the cheese.
Sprinkle the remaining grated cheese over the pizza.
This part is a bit messy, but that’s okay! Place the narrow slices of mozzarella cheese around the border of the pizza, about 1/4 of an inch from the edge. It’s okay if some of the sauce gets into this part, it doesn’t need to be perfect!
Roll the edges of the dough, one section at a time, over the cheese slices. Press the edges of the dough down firmly to make the dough stick together. Don’t press too hard, otherwise you’ll poke right through the bottom of the pizza, but press hard enough to make it stick down.
After you’re finished, brush a light layer of extra virgin olive oil over the rolled crust of the pizza, and place in the oven.
Bake at 500 F, 10-15 minutes, depending on how crispy you want the crust.
Allow the pizza to cool for a few minutes before cutting into slices. This way the cheese sets on the pizza and doesn’t come off as you’re cutting it.
Eat, and enjoy!

***

Simple Pizza Dough {enough for 1 medium-sized pizza}

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp instant yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Method:

Sift together flour, yeast and salt in a bowl.
Add about 1 cup of water along with the oil, and mix until well combined into a somewhat sticky ball of dough. if the dough is too dry, add a bit more water (1 tbsp at a time) and continue to mix. (You can use your floured hands to mix it at this point.)
Bring the dough onto a floured work surface, and knead for a minute or two. form it into a round ball, then place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap and a towel for an hour or two.
You can now either freeze the dough in a tightly sealed freezer bag, or you can now make your pizza/calzone/rolls/whatever! This dough works great for making baked flat breads or anything of the sort. If freezing, allow to thaw at room temperature for about an hour or two before you knead the dough into the desired shape.
When rolling out the pizza dough, allow it to sit for 15-20 minutes before preparing it with toppings.








Filed under: appetizers, dinners, Recipes Tagged: appetizer, cheese, culinary, dinner, dough, hot peppers, pepperoni, pizza, pizza dough, recipe, sauce, spice, spicy, tomato