Kid Friendly Pizza Night

One of the most challenging endeavors I’ve experienced making meals is cooking for my kids. I love when they are babies — usually eating anything and everything in sight.

My 21-month old is still in this phase and is so happy and appreciative when I give him vegetables and healthy foods. My five-year old, Anthony and my three year old, Ashley are now entering different phases where depending on their moods do not like anything!

It never fails that I will spend two hours making a meal and they will turn their nose up at it and tell me "I don’t like that" or "This is disgusting!"

They would be much happier if I had just put a hotdog in front of them.

One strategy I use in the kitchen when cooking for my kids is to get them involved in the cooking process. Personal pizzas are a perfect choice for picky eaters since almost all kids like pizza! It can also be a healthy selection since you can add lots of vegetables and ingredients to give them their daily dose of vitamins.

At my house, we love New York style pizza and have an excellent recipe that the kids love to help make and eat.

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
• 2/3 cup warm water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 (10 ounce) can tomato sauce
• ½ cup grated Romano cheese
• ¼ cup chopped fresh basil
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

The first step is to sprinkle the yeast over the surface of the warm water in a large bowl. Let it stand for a minute, then stir to dissolve.

Mix in the flour, salt and olive oil. When the dough is too thick to stir, turn onto a floured surface, and kneed for 5 minutes. Knead in a little more flour if the dough is too sticky.

Place your dough into an oiled bowl, cover and set aside in a warm place to rise until doubled in bulk. Kids can become actively involved in this step by dividing the pizza dough into single portion sizes. They will have fun kneading the dough.

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees. When the dough is risen, flatten it out on a lightly floured surface. Roll and stretch it out or create fun shapes with the kids. Give each child a section of the pizza to spread the tomato sauce and sprinkle with oregano, mozzarella cheese, basil, Romano cheese and red pepper flakes. Encourage the child to add whatever extra toppings they would like on their section.

Bake for 12 to 15 minutes and cool for 5 minutes before slicing to serve.

For a quick and easy pizza night, start with pre-baked pizza crust or make your pizza dough ahead of time.

I am confident this will be a dinner treat enjoyed by all ages.