The Creative Homemaker

At my house, nothing goes over better than pizza and a movie on the weekends. I have three sons and a husband, all with huge appetites, so ordering the 2-3 pizzas that we consume for one meal can be quite costly. I’ve come up with an alternative that is easy, fast, and frugal, and even more fun than ordering out.

To make your own pizzas you will need:
Frozen Bread Dough Loaves (1 for each pizza, wheat or white)
Spaghetti Sauce
Mozzarella Cheese
Toppings
Flour
Non Stick Spray

The first step is to thaw out the bread dough. I usually pull them out of the freezer a couple of hours prior to pizza-making time, stick them in an oven-safe dish, and stick them in the oven. I turn on the oven to its lowest setting for about 10 minutes, then turn the oven off and leave the dough to thaw and rise in the oven until it is pizza time. Alternately, you can allow 4-5 hours and let the dough thaw on the counter top.

The next step is to preheat the oven to 350 degrees (be sure to remove the dough before preheating) and spray your pizza pans with nonstick spray.

Sprinkle a little flour onto the counter top, and with your rolling pin, roll the dough out into a circle. I sometimes find it helpful to pick up the dough and swing it around a bit to loosen the elasticity of the dough (and entertain the kids!).

Once your dough is rolled out, place it on the pan, continue to roll, or spread with fingers to get it to the desired thickness and size.

Next, add some spaghetti sauce, cheese, and desired toppings. Pop in the oven and bake approximately 15 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and starting to brown.

We use one loaf of bread for one 16 inch pizza pan.

Here’s the estimated cost breakdown:
Bread dough - Meijer Brand- bag of 5 for $3.69 - $0.74 each
Sauce- Aldi Brand - 1 jar for 5 pizzas for $0.99 - $0.20 each
Cheese - Aldi Brand - 1 16 oz bag for 4 pizzas for $3.69 - $0.92 each
Pepperoni - Aldi Brand - 1 8 oz bag for 5 pizzas for $1.99 - $0.34 each

Total for One 16 inch pepperoni pizza = $2.20

For $2.20 and a few minutes of your time, you can make your own restaurant quality pizza at home. Not only is it delicious, but young children absolutely love making their own pizzas. A fun and frugal activity and dinner all rolled into one!

Some toppings that may be a hit at your home:
chopped hot dogs
pineapple
apple
mushrooms
green pepper
hamburger
sausage
onion
Italian seasoning

Another idea that my husband absolutely loves is adding toppings to just one side of the pizza and folding the crust over to make a to-die-for calzone. We sprinkle some mozzarella cheese and garlic salt on top before sticking it in the oven. I then serve it with the remaining spaghetti sauce for dipping.

At my home we usually make 3 pizzas to have enough for leftovers for a couple of days. At a cost of $6.60, we can make 3 homemade, restaurant-quality pizzas for about the same price as a frozen rising crust pizza.

Try starting the night off by making pizzas together, then have family movie night with popcorn. The whole family will have a blast and ask for a repeat performance next week. You may even find that word has gotten out about your fabulous pizzas, and extra kids may show up next time.

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