Four Cheese & Mushroom Pizza

It's real easy to get fat where we live. Pizza is my most favorite food (well, tied with ice cream) and our town has some of the best pizza around. Pizza so good, there really is no reason for me to attempt making it myself, but you know me... I just have to try.

So, I used Alton Brown's recipe for pizza dough. I couldn't find instant yeast, so I went with rapid release yeast. It turned out okay, but I think next time I'll just search a little harder for the instant stuff. While flattening, I realized I probably could have kneaded my dough a little longer. It was stretchy in most parts, but it had a few tears I had to repair. Nothing too tragic.

I made my own pizza sauce by blending roasted tomatoes, one clove of garlic, fresh oregano, and dried thyme, all in the food processor. I added a little sauce to the pizza, then stored the rest for other plans. I then added some fresh basil, right on top of the sauce. I learned that hiding the basil under the cheese keeps the basil from burning. It's also a nice aromatic surprise when you take a bite.

On top of the basil, I added sliced mushrooms and cheese. The cheese was the real star of this pizza. I added fresh mozzerella, parmesan, fontinella, and spoonfuls of ricotta.

I would normally use a pizza stone; however, I just got this new pizza pan and I was curious. I baked it at 500 for only a few minutes. I was surprised at how quickly it baked!

I also made a nice garden salad on the side.

It had butter lettuce, tomatoes, mushrooms, and poppy seed dressing.

It was good, but it wasn't quite as good as my local favorites. However, there's something a little more special about home cooking, right?

***It's been a few months now, since I've last seen the memory card that contains all of the wedding crafts Brian and I did. I haven't lost hope yet, but please know that I'm still looking for it, because I have so much to share! In the meantime, I've been working on another little wedding craft, for our friends Chris and Susana, who will be getting married in Seattle at the end of this month! Look out for that craft in August...