A family favourite that the kids can help make and can be very easily tailored to suit different people’s tastes

Makes: 4 medium sized pizzas

Preparation time: 20 minutes, plus 30 minutes proving time

Cooking time: 12 minutes

You will need:

For the dough:

350ml warm water (made from ½ boiling and ½ cold)

1 tbsp dried yeast

1 tsp caster sugar

600g strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

½ tsp fine sea salt

For the topping:

240g Tenderstem

300g passata (smooth Italian tomato sauce)

350g mozzarella, torn into bite sized pieces

120g chopped chorizo or equivalent weight in chopped ham

50g Parmesan cheese, grated

Method:

  1. Measure the water into a jug and sprinkle over the yeast and sugar. Stir well and set aside for 10 minutes, after which time a little beer-like head will have begun to form on the surface.

 

  1. Weigh the flour into a bowl and stir though the salt. Make a well in the middle and pour in the olive oil and the yeasty water. Use a metal spoon to stir and bring the dough roughly together then tip onto the work surface. Using a pushing and pulling action with the heel of your hands knead the dough for about 8 minutes until it is smooth and stretchy. Kids will love helping with this. When its ready, put into a clean, lightly oiled bowl and cover with a clean tea towel and leave to rise for 30 minutes.
  2. Blanch the Tenderstem in boiling water for 2 minutes, drain and allow to cool.
  1. Tip the dough onto a lightly floured worktop and cut into 4 pieces. Roll each piece to a rough circle of about 5 mm thick and lay each on a baking sheet. Preheat the oven to 220°C.
  1. Top each pizza by spreading out 2 or 3 tablespoons of passata in a thin layer, then divide the Tenderstem between each. Sprinkle over the mozzarella and chorizo and scatter over the parmesan. Bake each pizza in a hot oven for about 12 minutes until the crust is crisp and the cheese melted and bubbling.

Cooks tip:

For a vegetarian pizza, swap the chorizo/ham for sliced red peppers or halved cherry tomatoes, or for a super nutritious version, crack whole eggs into a well in the centre of the pizza.