A "Pizzie" Party!

It's a Pizza Party...or as my girls call it a "Pizzie Party"!  Ok..so this is it...this is the finale.  We finally had the last of the two year old birthday celebrations!  This past Saturday we had my family over to help celebrate.  My girls love pizza!  We could have taken the easy way out and just ordered a bunch of pizza's...but that can get quite expensive &also it just does not feel like a complete celebration without some home-made food. So I took it one step further and decided to have a pizza party where our guests created their own pizza's!

A "do it yourself" pizza party not only is fun for everyone, but it is also not that expensive.  If you have the dough prepared ahead of time and all the ingredients cooked and ready to go the putting together of the pizzas is quite simple and fun!  Have all the ingredients on a table or kitchen island and each guest could either make thier own personal pizza or share a pizza with someone else.  Put them in the oven and in 10 minutes your guests will be devouring the pizzas!

THE MENU:  A PIZZA PARTY

Speciality Cocktail:  Apple Sauce

Dinner:  Home Made Pizzas & Layered Salad with Buttermilk  Ranch Dressing

Dessert:  Banana Cake

RECIPES

 APPLE SAUCE COCKTAIL

• 1 oz. Spiced Rum
• 3 oz. Apple Sauce
• 4 oz. Sweet & Sour mix
• 1/4 oz. Triple Sec
• 12 oz. crushed ice

Receipe Pour all ingredients into a blender, and blend until slushy. Pour into a tall glass; highball, hurricane, or collins, and serve.

Courtesy of :  http://www.drinksmixer.com/

PIZZA DOUGH
     * Makes enough dough for one large 12" pizza or two individual 6" pizzas

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 package quick rise yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1 tsp. olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• cooking spray
• corn meal

1. Measure out flour and add to large bowl.  Add salt and olive oil.  Make a "well" in flour mixture.
2. In a small bowl dissolve the yeast along with the sugar in the warm water.
3. Pour the yeast water into the "well" in the flour mixture.
4. Stir with spoon to form dough.  Using hands form a ball with the dough.
5. On a lightly floured surface knead dough until smooth and elastic (5 - 10 minutes).  If dough is sticky add 1 TB. at a time of flour to dough.
6. Place dough in a bowl coated with cooking spray.  Cover and let rise and double in size.  About 30 to 35 minutes.
7. Punch dough down and roll onto floured surface.  With rolling pin roll out to a 12 inch. circle.  You can also cut dough in half and roll out to two individual pizza circles.
8. Coat a pizza stone or pan with cooking spray.  Sprinkle with corn meal.
9. Place the dough on the stone/pan.  Roll the edges of dough to form a crust. Prick dough with fork for air ventilation.
10. Place in oven and cook at 400 degrees for about 5-10 minutes until dough gets a slightly firm.
11. Once dough is done you can either place toppings on pizza and cook or you can freeze the dough.
    
    
    
    
    

PIZZA SAUCE
     Why make your own pizza sauce when you can go to any store and buy it?  Two reasons:  first to

     buy a large amount of pizza sauce for a pizza party can get very expensive.  The second reason is

     because this sauce is better, fresher and extremely easy to make!

     * Makes enough sauce for about 10 pizzas.  Can freeze extra sauce.

• 2 TB. Olive oil
• 5 garlic cloves finely chopped
• 2 - 29 oz. cans tomato puree
• 2 - 6 oz. cans tomato paste
• pinch of sugar
• 1 1/2 TB. dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp. dried rosemary
• 1/2 tsp. dried crush red pepper flakes
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat olive oil in a heavy bottom sauce pan.  Add garlic.  Cook for about 2 minutes.
2. Add tomato puree, tomato paste, sugar, oregano, rosemary, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper.  Stir.  Cook on low for half hour to 45 minutes until flavors combine.

  PIZZA

     * Suggested pizza toppings:

• Cooked crumbled italian sausage
• Pepperoni
• Shredded mozzarella cheese
• Fresh mozzarrella cheese
• Sauteed  sliced mushrooms
• Sauteed sliced red, orange, yellow and green bell peppers
• Sliced black olives or green olives
• Sliced fresh tomatoes
• Chopped or whole pieces of fresh basil

     To make pizzas:

1. Drizzle some olive oil onto prepared pizza dough
2. Ladle sauce over dough
3. Add toppings of your choice
4. Place in 400 degree oven for about 10 m inutes or until crispy

KARA'S LAYERED SALAD

I love the look of all the fresh ingredients in a layered salad.  In this recipe I use all my favorite ingredients.  Feel free to take away or add your own.  Even a non-salad eater will love this salad!  To make it a meal add some grilled chicken.

• 2 heads romain lettuce chopped
• 1 cup tomatoes chopped
• 1 cucumber chopped
• 1 - 15 oz. can sliced black olives
• 1 - 15 oz. jar roasted red peppers chopped
• 1 - 15 oz. can garbanzo beans (drained)
• 1 - 16 oz. package frozen green peas (thawed)
• 5 hardboiled eggs chopped
• 1 - 8 oz. package shredded montery jack cheese (can substitute for feta or blue or cheddar)
• 1/2 chopped red onion
• 1 cup cooked and crumbled bacon

1. Starting with lettuce layer ingredients in a clear glass bowl or trifle dish.
2. Layer salad ingredients however you would like.  I choose the layers trying to mix up color.

BUTTERMILK RANCH DRESSING

* All the buttermilk ranch dressing recipes that I read had too much mayo in them and not enough herbs.  Here is my own version that I created.  It is best made day ahead so all the flavors combine.

• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup mayo
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
• 1 TB. cider vinegar
• 2 TB. fresh chopped chives
• 2 garlic cloves finely chopped
• 1 TB. chopped fresh basil
• 1/2 tsp. chopped fresh dill
• 1/2 tsp. chopped fresh taragon
• 1/2 tsp. chopped fresh parsley
• salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl with a wire whisk.  Place in refrigerator.
Makes about 3 cups of dressing

BANANA CAKE

I try not to "re-invent the wheel" so I add fresh bananas to a boxed cake for this recipe.

• 1 box French Vanilla cake mix
• 1 can cream cheese vanilla frosting
• 1 banana mashed
• 2 bananas sliced

1. Follow mixing directions on box of cake mix.
2. Add mashed banana to cake mix.
3. Bake according to package directions for 2 - 9 inch cake rounds
4. Cool cake according to box directions.
5. Once cake has cooked place one cake round on cake dish.  Ice the sides and top of this cake layer.
6. Place sliced bananas on top of icing on this first layer of cake.
7. Add second cake layer to top of bananas.
8. Ice the sides and top of the second cake layer
9. Decorate sides and top of cake with sprinkles of choice