Wastin’ Time: Pizza means amore time in the kitchen with Jess Mancini
Slicing a pizza. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
The cast iron pizza pan is heavy, but makes a pizza crispy on the bottom. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
I roll the dough on the pizza pan with a miniature rolling pin that I made. You can use hands that have been oiled or floured. The pan is heated in the oven before spreading the dough on it. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
Italian sausage is among my favorite pizza toppings. I use links and remove the casings, then cook the sausage in a microwave until nearly done. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
Don Pepino’s pizza sauce is my favorite. I spread the dough with sauce after it has cooked for about five minutes in the oven. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
I shred whole milk mozzarella for the pizza. I prefer it over low skim. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
Into the oven she goes and cooks at 550 degrees for about 10 minutes. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
Notice the bottom of the crust is toasted. No soggy pizza pie here. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
Slicing a pizza. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
The cast iron pizza pan is heavy, but makes a pizza crispy on the bottom. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
I roll the dough on the pizza pan with a miniature rolling pin that I made. You can use hands that have been oiled or floured. The pan is heated in the oven before spreading the dough on it. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
Italian sausage is among my favorite pizza toppings. I use links and remove the casings, then cook the sausage in a microwave until nearly done. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
Don Pepino’s pizza sauce is my favorite. I spread the dough with sauce after it has cooked for about five minutes in the oven. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
I shred whole milk mozzarella for the pizza. I prefer it over low skim. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
Into the oven she goes and cooks at 550 degrees for about 10 minutes. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
Notice the bottom of the crust is toasted. No soggy pizza pie here. (Photo courtesy of Jess Mancini)
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I like big pizzas and I cannot lie. I can eat a piece of pizza for breakfast, lunch or dinner.
I have no prejudice against pre-made or ordering from the story, but I prefer to make pizza at home from scratch or near scratch. I don’t make pizza dough from scratch. I don’t have the time to do that. Well, I guess I have the time, so it’s more accurate to say I don't have the desire to make the crust. I think many people feel the same way. They don’t have time or are unwilling to put the time into it. Since I don’t want to make the crust from scratch, I had to come up with easier ways besides buying the pre-made crust from the grocery store. Pre-made bread dough is an option, but it's frozen and I have to wait for it to thaw if I'm in a hurry.
I tried Pillsbury crescent rolls for a pizza crust and baked the pizza at 425 for about 30 minutes. The crust was soggy rather than crispy, so much so I threw the pizza away. I did something wrong. Unfortunately I did not determine what I did wrong, but my suspicion is the oven was not hot enough.
Pre-made crusts are convenient, but lack something. One day a few years ago I was at Walmart where I found Pizza Buddy pizza dough. Now that's all I use. It doesn't have to be Pizza Buddy, by the way.
I bring the dough in the plastic pouch to room temperature then press or roll it onto the well-oiled pan while preheating the oven to as high as it goes, over 500 degrees. I cook the dough for about 10 minutes. I think this helps crisp the bottom of the crust. In addition to the crispy bottom, this cooks the dough enough that the sauce won't make it soggy. I use a 16-inch cast-iron pizza pan, the largest I could find. Cast iron always seems to make things taste better. The down side is while the pan is indestructible, it's heavy.
After removing it from the oven, from this point on it’s making a pizza. I pour a can of pizza sauce onto the crust, spreading it so it evenly covers the crust. I also don’t make pizza sauce. I like the convenience of sauce in a jar or can. I use Don Pepino’s. It tastes the best and reminds me of homemade sauce. I bought about a dozen cans from the former Piggly Wiggly and my stash will soon be depleted.
I sprinkle parmesan cheese, salt and pepper or crushed red pepper over the sauce before I cover everything with mozzarella cheese. Toppings are your personal preference. I like about everything, except anchovies. My dad loved anchovies. Mom made pizza with just oil, salt, pepper, garlic and anchovies. At least dad feasted. I generally top with pepperoni (not the turkey pepperoni), hot or mild Italian sausage, mushrooms and either hot or mild banana peppers - the basic food groups for pizza. I remove the casings from the sausage, microwave the links until they are nearly done, then slice them before putting them on the pizza.
The completed pizza is then baked with the oven as high as it goes until it’s done. Until it’s done? Now that's good advice. The waiting is the hardest part while it's cooking. A minute seems like an hour.
You’ll have to determine your times, but I usually cook for about 15 minutes or until the crust is slightly brown. Check the bottom for crispiness, too. I wait a few minutes before slicing so the pizza cools enough to eat. The cast-iron keeps the pizza hot because of its ability to retain heat.
Man, I'm getting hungry just thinking about it.
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with Jess Mancini" to Jess Mancini at jmancini@newsandsentinel.com.