Inside: best quick and easy pizza recipe to make with kids.
If you’re looking for the perfect activity to do with your children this easy pizza recipe is just the thing. Not only does it give you a wonderfully fun way to spend time together but you have a meal prepared as well as saving you a job!
I recently held a pizza making party for my son’s birthday and made this with 12 children! Despite how overwhelming that sounds it was lots of fun and a little preparation went a long way.
If you want to make it into a special day we used stick-on Italian chef moustaches and ‘colour your own’ aprons.
We keep the recipe as simple as possible, Italian style and with these few ingredients, you will always have a quick backup meal in your cupboards.
Credit: Mammaprada.com
Pizza dough ingredients:
- 1kg strong white bread flour/extra strong
- 1 level tablespoon fine sea salt
- 2×7 g sachets of dried yeast
This makes 8 adult size pizzas or 16 child portions.
Method
- Put the flour and 1 level teaspoon of sea salt onto a large bowl and make a well in the centre.
- Add the yeast to 650ml lukewarm water, mix together and leave for a few minutes, then pour into the well.
- Using a fork and a circular movement, slowly bring in the flour from the sides and mix into the water. Continue to mix, bringing in all the flour.
- When the dough comes together and becomes too hard to mix with your fork, flour your hands and begin to pat it into a ball.
- Knead the dough by rolling it backwards and forwards, using your hands to stretch, pull and push the dough. Keep kneading for 10 minutes, or until you have a smooth, springy, soft dough.
- Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover with greased clingfilm (olive oil spray is great for this) and leave in a warm place to rise for 45 minutes, or until doubled in size.
- Once the dough has risen divide the dough into portions. Any extra which you don’t need that day wrap in clingfilm and freeze for another day.
- Divide the remaining dough into portions.
- Dust a clean surface and the dough with a little flour and roll it out into a rough circle, about ½cm thick.
- When the dough is rolled into the right size for each person, place the pizza bases onto greased tin foil.
- They are now ready for their toppings.
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Pizza Topping Ingredients:
- 2x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes drained and squeezed
- Mozzarella cheese, cubed
- Basil or oregano
Method
- Open the tins of chopped tomatoes and press through a sift to drain. Give them a bit of a squeeze to remove any excess liquid.
- Don’t use regular passata as this is too thin and will soak your pizza base.
- Spread the tomato sauce over the base, spreading it out to the edges. One tablespoon is enough per base. Spread thinly.
- Tear or cube the mozzarella and scatter over the tomato sauce.
- On top of this, you now add any toppings you would like and your herbs.
- If you have a pizza stone do use it to cook them, however, if not place on greased tin foil in a hot oven.
- Preheat the oven to 250°C/500°F/gas 9 and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, until the pizzas are golden and crispy.
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Classic Italian Pizza Toppings
If you need some flavour inspiration here are some of the delicious combinations you find in Italy.
- Rucola & Crudo – Rocket and Prosciutto Crudo (Parma ham).
- Diavola (Meaning ‘The Devil’) spicy Salami from Calabria.
- Proscuitto & Funghi – Ham and mushroom.
- Quatro formaggi – Four cheeses which usually include Gorgonzola.
- Tonno & Cipolla – Tuna & onions.
Pizza toppings are a bit of a controversial subject in Italy as many well-known dishes are not actually eaten within Italy but are more of an American or British invention.
Italians don’t add pineapple to pizza, chips or French Fries are sometimes offered for children or in a touristy area but you would not find this in an authentic pizzeria.
Those asking for the popular pepperoni pizza meat found in the US will be given a pizza with bell peppers ‘pepperoni’.
Chicken is also never used on pizza and (this is also true of pasta).
When making them at home of course you can add whatever takes your fancy as our children often do! I’ve even known them to add small chopped broccoli florets when on a pizza so maybe this is a way to sneak in some vegetables!
Credit: Mammaprada.com
Games
If you want to add a dash of excitement whilst the pizzas cook we enjoyed playing pin the topping on the pizza. It is easier to make than it looks! Just a board and some felt for the pizza and toppings.
We also enjoyed playing hot tomato which is an alternative game to the traditional ’hot potato’.
It was a huge success and I hope you find these tips useful for your own pizza gathering!
We were surprised how easy the pizzas were to make and this meal has become a regular in our weekly mealtimes.
Buon appetito!
Mangia mangia! (Eat, eat!)
About the author: Kristie Prada is an English writer married to a Milanese Italian man and together they are raising their two children bilingually. On her blog Mammaprada, she helps parents wishing to raise their children with languages and inspires others wishing to learn about authentic Italian travel and culture. Kristie is based in London, living parts of the year close to family on Lake Como and visiting the Italian mountains at every opportunity!
Learn more about Italy and how they celebrate Christmas over here. You could also play some fun You Tube videos or audio stories in Italian. Here are some recommendations.
Fun – thanks for sharing.