Pizza and wine and beer...oh yes

Well hello there blog. It's been awhile. (which might explain forgetting to take pictures) And do I have an alcoholic treat for you. First the cocktails. It was a beautiful snowy day here in Louisville and I opted for an after work run in its fluffy white glory. A run to the wine shop that is...where I picked up a bottle of 6th Sense Syrah, on sale because I knew the Facebook special deal. I must say it reminds me a lot of bacon. Or maybe I'm just hungry for bacon.

However, to settle my pizza craving, and because I have no bacon, I made that instead. Only there was a problem. No yeast. Hmmmm, beer has yeast.

The Crust

• 3 cups flour: I used 2 cups white and 1 cup whole wheat
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 can frothy, wholesome, delicious, yet cheap beer (Miller Lite in this case)
• a dash of your favorite spices (oregano, basil, garlic, and black pepper)

Mix all together, flop onto a floured surface (tip: oil your hands first, this dough is sticky). Kneed into a ball and work it out to cover your baking pan/pizza stone/etc. If you're using a pan, I would suggest oiling it first. *Read the rest before topping with sauces, I suggest pre-cooking your crust a bit to avoid sogginess.

The Sauce

• 8 ounce can tomato sauce
• 6 ounce can tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon ground sweet paprika
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• A splash of vinegar

The Toppings
Do as you wish. I chose veggies for this one: Mushrooms, green pepper, tomato, pineapple, and pepperoncinis. Topped with standard Mozzarella. Nothing too fancy since this was a last minute, pull shit from the cabinet/fridge decision.

So to cook this sucker. I started by preheating my oven to 400 and using a pizza stone for my crust. I went ahead and pre-cooked my crust for about 10 minutes since it was a little thicker than normal.

The Verdict: Not to shabby for a Tuesday night on the couch watching Working Girl. It was quick, simple, and the flavors aren't like the typical Spinellis slice I spring for. The crust is a tad doughy in the middle, but that can be fixed. It's a shame Upstairs Megan filled up on potatoes.