My Favourite Pizza Dough made in a  Bread Machine:

1 cup beer

1 tbsp shortening

1 tbsp sugar

1 tsp salt

1 3/4 cups white flour

1 1/4 tsp yeast

Measure first 6 ingredients in order listed into Baking Pan.

Select: Dough/Pasta Setting

Press Start

When cycle is complete, remove dough from the machine to a lightly floured surface. If necessary, knead in enough flour to make dough easy to handle.

Grease pans (two 12 inch, one 14 inch or one 15 x 10 inch). Roll dough out and place on pan or pat in pan.

Top each with pizza sauce, meat and vegetable of your choice and sprinkle with cheese.

Bake at 425 F. for 15-20 minutes or until done. Pizza is done when edges of crust are golden and cheese is bubbly.

Cooking on the BBQ is another option. Preheat to medium heat around 350 degrees.  Cook with the lid closed for about 15 minutes.

Tips:

Spray or oil the baking sheets and sprinkle with cornmeal. Lay dough on top, then start adding your favourite toppings.

Make Calzones which are pizza pockets by folding the dough around the filling and sealing the edges. Make individual servings or larger sizes.

For a summer time twist, try your hands at cooking the pizza dough first directly on the BBQ.  Slide the uncooked dough onto a hot clean, oiled grill. Cook for a minute or two, then flip the dough and add your favourite toppings. Turn heat down to low and close the lid. It cooks quicker on the BBQ compared to the oven.

Adding the “Wow Factor”

Ice the cake with frosting. Use an alternate colour to pipe parallel lines about an inch apart across the cake. Rotate the cake a quarter turn.  Drag the tip of wooden skewer or knife back and forth across the lines.