What's the big difference between Spain's pizza and ours, you ask? A lot, actually. First of all, we didn't order from a chain "pizzeria" like Jet's or Pizza Hut. This came from nice, non-chain restaurants where, I assume, a chef or team of people work hard to establish really great recipes in order to keep their business afloat. Sure, I have a bias against chain restaurants, but you have to admit unique, privately owned establishments tend to have better food! Anyway, these pizzas were thin crust, just as I like them, and made with fresh ingredients, which, in my opinion, bring a new light to pizza...I am not a pepperoni and packaged mozzarella fan (surprise, surprise!). I think, after so many years of regular eating, I just got sick of the generic American pizza. Having it prepared in a different way, though, created something completely new for me, which is exactly what homemade pizza does.
What I like about making pizza yourself is that you can have it exactly as you like it best. I don't usually prefer meat on my pizza, at all...I think we all know I'm not a big meat person, in general...but, on occasion, I do like a nice sprinkling of Italian sausage! The problem is that it's different everywhere you go--sometimes it's large chopped pieces, sometimes little crumbled bits, sometimes hot, sometimes mild! So, to be safe, I usually just don't bother asking for it. At home, though, I can prepare it my favorite way and I can do as many different topping combos on one pizza as I like without paying more, which is another plus!
The pizza Billy and I made last night actually had three different combinations. Half of it was just pepperoni (Billy's favorite), a quarter was the same with the addition of caramelized onions, and the last quarter was caramelized onions topped with wedges of fresh tomato. For the purposes of this blog, I've simply posted the recipe for the latter portion, since the remaining only requires you buy some cheese and pepperoni or any other toppings you'd like.
Now, I think meals made completely from scratch are almost always the best; you just can't beat something freshly made at home. So, a pizza made with home prepared dough and sauce is exquisite. However, sometimes you haven't given yourself the time to make these things, so I think it's completely acceptable to go out and buy them...though, I must say, the sauce doesn't take but half an hour and truly does make a total difference in the outcome.
Since I haven't been able to get too much cooking in after finally having the baby (yup, she's here! I know I hadn't announced that in my blog yet), Billy just picked up some pizza dough at a local Italian bakery--you can really find it any number of places, though. Our local produce stores tend to carry them in the freezer aisle and, I assume, some grocery stores may as well. Anyway, Billy picked up the dough for us to make calzones a few nights ago (delicious!), so we just used the leftovers for pizza last night. I did make my own sauce, though, and encourage you to do the same! Then, simply gather together your favorite toppings and go to town :)
