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| Photos (L, clockwise) courtesy of Steven Depolo, Jessica Spengler, Jay Cross, Alpha |
Although dinner parties make for fun, elegant gatherings, choosing the menu can be a tricky task to tackle. Why not throw a party where you don’t have to do all of the cooking yourself AND your guests can customize their own dishes? The solution...pizza! Found anywhere from childhood sleepovers to Superbowl parties, everyone loves a good pie. Here are some tips from Style at Home on how to perfect the pizza party.
- Do make the dough beforehand and freeze it in individual round portions. Defrost an hour or so before the fun begins.
- Don't buy the pre-made crusts, they just don't taste as delicious as home made dough.
- Do encourage your guests to stretch and roll out their own dough.
- Don't serve the pre-stretched, storebought dough, it tends to be more chewy and not as pizza parlour-tasting.
- Do offer up interesting pizza toppers to create unusual pizzas.
- Don't give too many choices as this slows down people's creativity and clogs up your kitchen.
- Do offer Italian wine and Italian beer to round out the dinner.
- Don't make a heavy dessert for the finale. A light refreshing sorbet will do just fine.
- Do interact with your guests. If you stay at the oven all night, it's no fun for anyone.
- Don't worry if there is a thin veil of white dust over everything the next day. It's just part of the fun.
Inspiration for pizza toppings
Move over pepperoni and mushroom, when it comes to topping a classic Italian pie, a little imagination and inspiration is required. Maxine Clarke says that the ingredients should be able to stand the intense heat of the oven, stay moist or crisp and complement the basic bland taste of the base.
Pizza Margarita
Super simple, but unbelievably flavourful, this classic is made from Buffalo mozzarella, cherry tomatoes and fresh basil. With so few ingredients, go local. The flavours will be that much more intense.
Caramelized Red Onion Pizza with Capers and Olives
There's no tomato sauce to splatter on your clothes, but this succulent pizza is always a hit. Onions are cooked until soft and caramelized and spread on top of mozzarella. The olives and capers make the sweet onions more savoury. It's a combo to die for.
Pear, Pecorino and Taleggio Pizza
This is a new twist on pizza, but the flavour combinations work magically together. Almost like a dessert course, the pears and cheese melt beautifully together. For a heartier meal feel free to add some Italian sausage scattered throughout.
Sicilian Shrimp and Tomato Pizza
Topped with mounds of whole roasted cherry tomatoes, shrimp, garlic, red pepper flakes and fresh parsley, this pizza will add a kick to your party. Make sure to offer plates as it's a little sloppy but well worth it.
Let us know if you try any of these recipes. We would love to see pictures of your gourmet pizza successes!
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