I don’t know much about men. Honestly, I know the stereotype is supposed to be that you are blindingly simple, but I can’t seem to figure you out on any sort of deep level.

I have, however, found three things to be true of almost every man I’ve met:

You like beer.
You like activities where small objects fly through the air and people in uniform run around a designated space and compete to control its whereabouts.
You like pizza.

This knowledge has actually gotten me surprisingly far.

As a rule, I believe in finding what you are good at and excelling in that arena, which is why I am not going to instruct you about beer and I am definitely not going to even attempt to talk about sports .

But I do know pizza. More specifically, I know how to make it and I don’t understand why more people don’t. Fresh pizza is easy, inexpensive, and consistently popular amongst guests (ahem…and dates). Believe me, if you always have a ball of pizza dough in your fridge you will never, ever go hungry. You will also save money and impress your friends. Oh, and I know I’m not the only woman who finds kneading dough unbelievably attractive.

So get in your kitchen already. Let’s start with the dough; this recipe is enough for 2 large thin-crust pizzas or 4 smaller ones.

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups flour


• 1 cup warm water


• 1 packet dry active yeast


• 2 tbsp sugar


• 2 tbsp olive oil plus more for the bowl


• 1 tsp salt

Directions

Combine water, yeast and sugar and set aside in a warm place until it begins to foam (4-5 minutes). Meanwhile combine salt and flour in a bowl. Slowly stream in the yeast mixture and add the olive oil. Stir until the ingredients come together into a soft dough. Turn out on a floured surface and knead (flattening and folding the dough over and over until it becomes elastic) about 20 times. Set aside in an oiled bowl, covered with a dish towel for 20-30 minutes or until dough has doubled in size.
There. That wasn’t so hard was it?

First let’s talk about the basic elements of pizza. You need dough (you’ve got that covered already), sauce (or something similarly textured, like ricotta, as in the following recipe), and in most cases, cheese. Toppings are optional, but highly recommended. If you have a pizza stone, great. If not, a regular pizza pan (about $5 at most well-stocked grocery stores) will do just fine. Even a cookie sheet will do. Below you’ll find my favorite ways to make pizza at home, but have fun experimenting with your own combinations.



(By the way, there are many, many other cool things you can do with pizza dough .)

Salami Pizza

This is a great pizza for those who love meat on their pizza but want an air of sophistication. I like to use green heirloom tomatoes in this recipe because they contrast so beautifully with the pink salami.

Ingredients

• 1/2 recipe pizza dough


• 8 slices salami


• 1/2 onion, sliced


• 1 small heirloom tomato, cut into chunks


• 1/4 cup ricotta cheese


• 1/4 cup s...

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