My dad makes the best homemade pizza on Earth. He is not really an everyday-supper kind of guy as far as his cooking goes, but a few of the things he can whip up are absolutely out of this world. When you taste this pizza, there is simply no comparison to any pizza you have ever had in a restaurant, ever. It’s just impossible to look back.

I have never quite been able to match the final product, but I do have the recipe, and I am more than willing to share it with you. I believe it’s one of those recipes that gives good results every time but takes a lifetime to perfect… so check back with me in 30 years or so to see how I’m doing.

In the meantime, get the following things together:

FOR THE DOUGH
• 1 package (about 1 ½ teaspoons) rapid-rise yeast
• 1 cup warm water (but not so hot that it hurts your fingers)
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 ½ cups flour
• 1 ½ tsp dry basil
• 1 ½ tsp dry oregano

FOR THE PIZZA
• 8 oz can pizza sauce (note: NOT tomato sauce)
• 2 cups mozzarella cheese
• various toppings (my favorite combo is pepperoni, mushrooms, green olives, and black olives)

To make the dough, pour the warm water in a large bowl. Sprinkle the package of yeast over the water. Stir briefly. Add the olive oil, salt, basil, and oregano, and stir in the flour ½ cup at a time. Mix everything until you have a stiff dough. Remove it from the bowl (along with any flour it hasn’t yet absorbed), and knead it on a countertop or other smooth surface for 5-10 minutes. Thump it hard!

When you’re done kneading, wash out the big bowl and coat it thinly with olive oil. Roll the ball of dough in the oil to coat, then stretch some plastic wrap tightly over the top of the bowl.

Leave everything for about two hours. When you come back, the dough should have puffed up in a major way—it should be about twice the size it was before. If not, wait another 20 minutes or so and check it again.

If the dough is huge, preheat the oven to 500. Take out the massive dough and punch it down gently. It should be quite elastic. Take out your flour and your pizza pan. Sprinkle a big, flat surface with flour, and use your hands (NOT a rolling pin) to stretch out the dough to the desired size of your pizza (this recipe makes one pretty big pizza, about 17” or so). Lay the finished circle gently on the pizza pan (it helps to fold it into quarters first).

Now for the fun part. Use a spoon to spread the pizza sauce evenly on top of the pizza. Add the toppings and cheese. Pop it in the oven, and let it cook for 20-25 minutes. The smell will be overpowering. When you take it out, all nice and brown and sizzling, you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing that you made your very own pizza!

[Image courtesy of greenpanda.wordpress.com.]