HM Pizza Base Recipes Tips and Quick Questions

belfastgirl23

charleybabes wrote: »

hi there

it wasnt burnt.. it just didnt cook.. !!

the topping was cooked but the bottom wasnt touched, its a mystery !!!!!!!!!

The other question is what is the top temp of your oven? I know mine has to be at its max (250 deg) to cook it properly. Otherwise my best guesses would be that the topping was too liquid or the dough was too thick. I've never used a scone type dough though so maybe others will know better...

I'd say it's worth watching out for pizza stones too, you sometimes get them in lidl/aldi reasonably priced...for me I do think it helps the quality of the finished pizza.

charleybabes

hiya everyone..
thanks for trying to help with the great pizza base mystery!!

i had my oven on quite high.. and it had been on for quite a while as i was cooking potato wedges in there anyways

what i did notice though was that the very edge that didnt have any base on had cooked slightly so im wondering perhaps it would be best to cook it first without any topping on
my topping was half tin of chopped toms and half tin of puree.. it had been simmered down a lot so wasnt very runny..more of a paste,
i did use olive oil and not vegetable oil..do you think this would have made a difference??

squeaky

From what you're saying it really should have cooked through.

Apart from (possibly) your sauce making the base soggy the only other thing I can think of is the (beginner's)(?) mistake of adding water after each quick stir until the pastry makes. That would make the pastry too damp. The trick is to work the pastry hard because it will come together with a lot less water than you think. About two to four tablespoons should be plenty.

I don't know of you did this - just mentioning a possibility for those who are beginners with pastry.

catralense

belfastgirl23 wrote: »

Jamie Oliver recipe is good:

1kg strong white bread flour (or 800g SWB and 200g 00 flour)
650ml tepid water
14g yeast
1tbsp sugar
1tbsp salt

quote]

Just wanted to say THANK YOU for this recipe! I made a half batch tonight (call me pessimitic but I've had too many new recipes go wrong) but wish I'd made the full batch! We all loved it. We had sweet chilli, onion and lamb as a topping and even my picky 7 year old woofed the lot!

You've saved us loads of ££££'s cos we won't be ringing Dominoe's anymore! :drool:

belfastgirl23

charleybabes wrote: »

hiya everyone..
thanks for trying to help with the great pizza base mystery!!

i had my oven on quite high.. and it had been on for quite a while as i was cooking potato wedges in there anyways

what i did notice though was that the very edge that didnt have any base on had cooked slightly so im wondering perhaps it would be best to cook it first without any topping on
my topping was half tin of chopped toms and half tin of puree.. it had been simmered down a lot so wasnt very runny..more of a paste,
i did use olive oil and not vegetable oil..do you think this would have made a difference??

I usually use passata to make the sauce and just simmer it down with some oregano, a tbsp of oil and a tsp of salt. It isn't ready till it's spitting heavily out of the saucepan IYSWIM...so would be v thick.

I think if you try it again though get your oven to the max for a few mins before putting the pizza in and try not to open the door much. I know I have tried to do pizza alongside scones before (which go in at 220ish in my oven) and it has come out sort of soggy.

And Catralense glad it worked for ya it sounds a lot more complicated than it is ... I can make them in my sleep now..I always make too much since it's handy to freeze it anyway.

narabanekeater

Hi guys
Does anyone please know how I can make a pizza base with as little fat as possible?
Ive looked through the indexed collections on here but they all have fat in them or oil and im on a diet
Also please what flour is best to use
I have a bread maker and yeast etc

Plum_Pie

You will get a different texture if you leave the oil out. AFAIK, all bread making involves small amounts of oil, if only in the bowl it's left to rise in. (I don't know about bread makers.)

Also some fat is essential for normal brain function and olive oil won't clog your arteries!

pigpen

The amount of oil that is in them is next to nothing slice for slice... I'd use olive oil so the good it does negates the fact it is oil. The dough doesn't form properly with no oil at all.. you could use half the amount though, that should affect it too badly.

Gingernutmeg

Agree with everyone else - you do need some oil/fat, even if it's only a little bit. You're better off trying to reduce the calories in other ways, like by having a thinner base and by using more veggies rather than a lot of cheese or meat on the topping. You could also change the type of cheese - fresh mozzerella (the stuff that comes in a bag, in brine) is lower calorie than the harder Danish stuff, for example, or any hard cheese like cheddar.

LumpyCustard_2

One way to reduce calories is not to make a traditional pizza base at all, but use a pitta bread, or even a tortilla, which is especially good if you like thin and crispy pizza.

I always use the reduced-fat fresh mozzarella you can get in bags - it's about 215 cals for the whole ball, which is enough for one average-sized pizza if you slice it thinly (you can't grate the balls easily).