Pizza Makes The Heart Grow Fonder

Pizza has to be mine and Bethany's favorite food of all time.  In fact, we make it a point to seek and find great pizza wherever we go, and are always on the lookout for the Mecca of the pizza world.  Along this journey, I think there have only been 2 times that I have had pizza that I would classify as great.

Great Pizza #1 - Lombardi's Pizza, 32 Spring St., New York, NY
We took a trip to New York the summer before Charlie was born, and this place was everything I thought it would be.  This was my main event of the trip --- what I was looking forward to the most.  Forget the broadway shows, The Statue of Liberty, blah, blah, blah.   Give me a great pizza pie.  And that's exactly what we got at Lombardi's.  In 1905 it became the first official pizzeria in America, and they still use the same coal fired oven to make every single pie.  It was quite an experience --- a slightly charred, crispy crust, thin layer of sauce, slices of fresh mozzerella which you could tell were hand made by it's irregular shape, and topped with homemade sausage and fragrant basil leaves.  What could be better?  I was in pizza heaven.

 Great Pizza #2 - Pizza Shack, 115 West Montgomery St., Willis, TX
Yes, I know what you're thinking:  "Of all the places that you could find great pizza, you think you found it in Willis, TX?"  And that would be correct.  As odd as it sounds, I have not found anything that tops it.  Now as far as history and nostalgia goes, it can't touch a place like Lombardi's, but for flavor and texture, it is it's equal.  The crust is not as thin as a Lombardi pie, but it is not thick either.  It's right in between.  It is chewy and toothsome, yet crispy and almost flaky on the outside.  The crust alone is what makes this pizza great.  Then all it needs is a little sauce, cheese and basil and it becomes perfect.  What can I say, I'm a purist and a sucker for Pizza Margherita.

So, it's with this love of pizza that I have made many, many attempts to make my own version and enjoy those same experiences and smells and textures and flavors in my own home.  It has been a long journey of failure after failure after slight success, followed by an even bigger failure.  However, over time it started coming to me and I can say that I make a decent pie.  Not great, just decent.  But today it became the most special to me, exceeding anything that one from Lombardi's or Pizza Shack could ever be.  And that's because I got to make it with my son, Charlie.  As I've said before here on GFGS, Charlie likes to help daddy cook dinner and today was extra special.  We made our own tomato sauce (which by the way is probably the easiest thing to do, not to mention that your missing the approximately 3 TBS of sugar you would be eating from store bought brands), grated the cheese, sliced and sauted the mushrooms...and then came the dough.  Charlie loved the dough and how it felt in his hands.  He would pat it down and throw it up in the air just like daddy.  What a reminder to me that he is watching my every move.

He probably will not remember this time that we made pizza for the first time together, but I always will. He is what made this pizza the best I've ever had.

Paul's Easy Tomato Sauce

• 3 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 large red onion, medium dice
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped fine
• 2 14oz. cans whole or diced tomatoes
• 1 Tbs tomato paste
• 6 large basil leaves, sliced, chopped or just left whole
• Salt to taste

- Heat oil over medium low heat in a large saute pan for a few minutes.
- Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook for about 7 minutes until the onions turn translucent and start to brown a bit (The sweetness of the onions is a perfect substitute for any additional sugar that is added to store brand sauces.  You don't need the sugar, it's already there in the onions.  Carrots would also be good).
- Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Add the tomatoes and tomato paste and basil to the pan and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the sauce reduces slightly, approximately 20 minutes.
- At this point you can leave it as is, slightly chunky, or put the spurs to it with the stick blender or food processor for a more consistent texture.  I suggest the latter for pizzas, and the former for pastas.  Enjoy!!