Month-of-Few Ingredients: Pizza Party Dough

My pizza with anchovies-YUM!

We entertain out-of-town guests good bit. Depending upon how long guests are staying we might end up making individual pizzas for lunch one day. Our observation is that whether we’re talking youngsters, grown friends of our sons, or old geezers like us, people like playing with food.

Yep. Now some fastidious types don’t get into the early part (mixing the dough), but everyone loves decorating their pizzas with just the ingredients in the just the right amounts that he or she wants.

Back in the day, I would buy fresh dough at an area grocery store, and we’d make our individual pizzas (or one big one apportioned by each person’s choices—with anchovies, I knew my section was safe from poaching). Have I mentioned how yeast and I don’t have a very successful relationship?

So when I found a pizza dough recipe from The Impatient Foodie that didn’t require yeast (Wahoo!), I was all over it! I had to have a go. 

Messy, messy, messy. Yep, kneading this dough is messy. That may be one reason children

kneaded pizza dough

love making it. But it couldn’t be easier or quicker. I do the initial mixing of flour and yogurt, then hand balls to each guest to knead.

Fill small bowls with toppings that you know they’ll like: sauces (red and white), cooked protein (anchovies, pepperoni, ham, sausage, hamburger), veggies (black olives, tomatoes, green onions, yellow onion rings, bell and hot peppers, mushrooms, spinach, or just about anything else), cheeses (fresh mozzarella, Asiago, parmesan, romano, and more), and you might even put out a dish of pineapple. Herbs, like fresh basil, are nice.

Really, this part is the most creative. What kinds of pizzas will your guests make?

If you really want to make this pizza party about pizza, make the dough with honey yogurt or vanilla yogurt. Add cinnamon and sugar to the dough after spreading into pizza rounds. After baking, top with a jam for “red sauce” and arrange with fresh fruits.

So what are the ingredients in this magical three-ingredient pizza dough wonder? Here you go!

Pizza Party Dough (one large or two individual pizzas)

1 cup Greek yogurt, plain

1-1½ cups self-rising flour, plus more for kneading (see NOTE)

olive oil

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Prepare pan(s) with non-stick cooking spray.

pizza dough rounds

Mix yogurt and 1 ½ cups of flour, adding in more flour until you have a smooth ball. You’ll do this part with your hands.

Keep as a single ball or divide into two balls.

Knead dough ball on a floured board for 8-10 minutes, adding in more flour if dough is too sticky. (It is, trust me!).

With fingers and palm of hand, spread dough ball on prepared pan. Brush surface with olive oil right to edges of the pizza disk. (These will have that artisan, rustic look you pay big bucks for in specialty restaurants.)

Add toppings of choice and bake for 10-12 minutes. With a nice crisp salad, this makes a spectacular lunch and gets your guests involved.

NOTE: If you don’t have self-rising flour, you can substitute 1½ cups all-purpose flour, 2 ¼ tsp. baking powder, and ¾ tsp. of salt well sifted several times.

DH’s Rating: 5 Tongues Up “What’s not to like. I made this pizza my way.” DH is one of those who doesn’t like the messy kneading part of this recipe. He doesn’t mind the toppings, but the kneading . . . He claims he was toilet trained too early since his mom didn’t like messes, thus, nor does he. Sigh!

If you liked this recipe, I’d really appreciate you spreading the word on your social media outlets. Here are some pre-made Twitter and Facebook posts you can use or modify.

Twitter: #recipe for no-yeast Pizza Party Dough with three ingredients by @good2tweat athttp://bit.ly/2lWz8E9

Facebook: On Sharon Arthur Moore’s blog, Parsley, Sage, and Rosemary Time, learn to make three-ingredient, no yeast Pizza Party Dough at http://sharonarthurmoore.blogspot.com/2017/02/month-of-few-ingredients-pizza-party.html

A reminder:

House rules for what counts as an ingredient:

Salt and pepper are not ingredients.

Oil is not an ingredient when it’s for the cooking pan, not the recipe.

Water is not an ingredient.