Last week Mike was out of town, and the girls and I decided to have a pizza party.  Despite the mess that was made, we had a ball, and the pizzas were delish! It was such a fun activity, and I find that when the girls have an active part in the preparation of dinner, they do a much better job of eating it.

E’s hair looks a lot closer to the mixer than it actually is… in retrospect, a ponytail would have been a good idea.

They had so much fun with the dough.

 My little chef.  Coincidentally, she has been saying for years that she wants to own a pizza restaurant when she grows up.

I gave Lou the leftover dough to play with when she was done making her masterpiece.

Pineapple, jalapenos and prosciutto for Mom, turkey pepperoni for the girls.

 The finished product.

The girls were uber grossed-out by my toppings, but I have to say… it was scrumptious.

I think we may have to make this a weekly ritual.

Make-your own pizza parties are also a great option for entertaining on a budget. I am not a baker, so I followed this pizza dough recipe online.   If you don’t want to make your own dough, I highly suggest Trader Joe’s pre-made dough.  It’s $0.99 and it’s delicious!  As most of you know (being Italian) I am a sauce snob, so I make my own pizza sauce.  What makes pizza sauce different from marinara is the sweet factor.  I add sugar to my marinara, but not to my pizza sauce.  I am also not typically a fan of oregano in sauce, but pizza sauce calls for it.  Here is my recipe.  Pretty simple, pretty good.

 

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