The Ugly Pizza

Homemade pizza is pretty amazing. You can get as creative as you'd like with endless combinations and flavors. My favorite mix will always be tons of veggies. This week I wanted to make something extra fancy and threw some ricotta cheese and basil into the mix. I also used raw dough instead of a pre-made pizza crust for the first time. The difference is unbelievable.

That's not to say that it didn't come with some challenges...but I'll get to that later. Now that we've tasted the amazingness of this pizza, I don't think we'll be able to go back to pre-made crusts ever again! This whole recipe is easy peasy, which means it will be a new go-to meal in our house. Not to mention my husband is an avid pizza lover (who isn't, right?). But seriously, he could probably eat it everyday if he had his way.

Printable Recipe Card HERE

Feel free to print the recipe card above! It's my new way of keeping track of all my favorite recipes so they are easy to access for future meals. Plus I will finally get to use the recipe box I got at my bridal shower :).

Follow the recipe card or the step by step pictures below:

After you preheat the oven to 500 degrees (with pizza stone on lowest rack), take out your pizza dough and let it sit for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, chop your veggies and toss with olive oil and pepper.
Then bake in the oven at 500 degrees for 15 minutes.

Roll out pizza dough to a 15" diameter circle. 
Spread 1 1/2 TBS oil onto pizza dough.

Spread tomato sauce over dough, leaving a 1/2" border for the crust.

Sprinkle 1/2 cup Mozzarella cheese on top of the sauce.

Top with roasted veggies. It may seem like there are too many veggies for the pizza, but that's what makes it so good! They will cook down quite a bit, but if it's still a little overwhelming for you feel free to use less for your pizza.

Top veggies with remaining 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese and red pepper.

Dollop the ricotta all over the pizza. 
Next, admire how pretty your pizza looks.

Ah yes, so very pretty.

I should also mention that I was supposed to be assembling the pizza on a baking sheet...not this impossible to lift heavy marble. We didn't have a baking sheet big enough, so I thought I was improvising.

And then the battle of 'how to get the pretty pizza to the pre-heated pizza stone in my oven' began. It involved 6 spatulas, two cutting boards and a lot of failed maneuvering and lost toppings. In the moment I was overheated, covered in flour and about to lose it. But looking back it was actually quite hilarious. I really wish I would have snapped a pic of the whole debacle.

Did I also mention that I burned through a couple of dish towels by laying the pre-heated pizza stone on top of them? Well yes, that also happened. Enter, glass of red wine to save my day:

But alas, I finally did it. And now, I introduce to you, the Ugly Pizza. Actually, ugly seems a bit harsh...let's go with un-pretty. The un-pretty pizza. ;) While it's not the picture-perfect pizza pie I had envisioned, it is out of this world delicious!

Chris was legitimately impressed, and even said this homemade pie beat his favorite pizza place. Success! And let's face it, I'm pretty sure the last thing he cares about is how pretty his pizza looks. Ha!

And rest assured we also ordered a new cookie sheet to avoid the whole 'transfer of the pizza' drama. I'm told it will allow for a smooth transition, but we will see! Even if it still proves to be a pain in the neck, this pizza is very much worth the hassle!

What's your favorite homemade pizza?!