michelle picker cooks

Everyone loves to make their own pizza, so I divide a batch of dough into pizza-sized balls, prepare all the topping ingredients and let everyone else take over!  A pizza stone (or unglazed terracotta tiles) preheated in a hot oven or covered barbecue does an excellent job of cooking the pizzas. For the dough, take 2 cups of strong pizza flour, 2 teaspoons of caster sugar, a tablespoon of salt, 2 teaspoons of dry active yeast, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 4 tablespoons of milk and a cup of lukewarm water. Combine the dry ingredients then add ¾ of the water with the oil and milk, mixing to make a smooth pliable dough and using the remaining water as necessary until the right consistency is reached. Form into a ball, cover and leave in a warm place to prove for at least 15 minutes. Now cut the dough into portions of approximately 120g each and roll into balls. Cover once more and allow to prove a further 30 minutes or until ready to use. To make each pizza, roll the dough out to the desired thickness and place onto a tray or board which has been sprinkled with semolina. This will allow you to slide the pizza off onto the stone to cook. Now you can have fun with the ingredients! Whether you use tomato or make a pizza bianco, make sure to brush or spray a little oil on the edges as well. This pizza has ham, cheese, tomatoes (cherry and sun-dried) and mushrooms:

And this one has thinly sliced raw potatoes, garlic, pepper and cheese: