Pizza Dough with Parmesan and Herbs

In my cooking classes, homemade pizza is always a huge hit! I'm sure you're not surprised to hear that- most kids love pizza (as well as grown-ups too) and it is so easy to customize a pizza to your individual taste. Plus, I've found that not only do my kids love to eat the pizza they've made, but they seem to really enjoy the process of making it. From smelling the yeast before the flour is added, kneading the dough into a smooth ball, rolling it out and "decorating it"- it's always a hit! The angry-faced pizza pictured here was made by one of my students and it always cracks me up. There are no limits to your creativity when making pizza!
If you've never made your own dough at home before, I really recommend giving a try. It is a pretty simple process, the dough freezes well for future use, and it is made from the most basic of ingredients. I jazzed my dough up for dinner tonight by kneading some parmesan and herbs into my basic dough recipe and topped it with some sauteed veggies and cheese. It hit the spot and allowed me to use a few ingredients I had in my fridge. Yum!

Ingredients:
1 cup warm water
1 teaspoon sugar
1 1/4-oz. packet active dry yeast
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for coating
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon oregano or preferred spice blend (I like the Spice House Ratatouille seasoning)
1 teaspoon salt

Directions
1. Place the warm water and sugar in a large mixing bowl.
2. Stir the sugar until dissolved, then sprinkle the yeast onto the surface of the water.
3. Let the yeast float there for a minute, then stir it into the water. Make sure the yeast is dissolved into the water. Set the bowl aside and allow the yeast to proof for a few minutes while measuring and preparing other ingredients.
4. In another mixing bowl, stir together the flour, cheese, oregano, and salt.
5. Check the yeast- it should have bubbled a bit and look foamy. If not, your yeast may be outdated.
6. Into the yeast mixture, add the olive oil, flour and salt.
7. Stir the ingredients together until they start to form a ball.
8. On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough for 10 minutes, or until it is smooth and elastic.
8. Coat the inside of a large mixing bowl with olive oil.
9. Press the ball of dough into the bottom of the bowl, then flip the dough over so the oiled side is on top.
10. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, then let the dough rise in a warm place until it has doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours.
11. When ready to use the dough, preheat oven to 400 degrees.
12. Roll out dough on a floured surface roughly the length and width of a half sheet pan.
13. Place on sheet pan and brush surface with a little olive oil.
14. Bake for about ten minutes, or until it is barely golden.
15. Remove from oven and top with desired ingredients.
16. Return to oven and bake until cheese is melted and crust is golden brown, about 15 minutes.