Breakfast Pizza

What You Need:

• 1 cup water
• 1 pack active dry yeast
• 2 cups flour
• 2 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons sugar

(If you don't want to make your own dough, disregard above items and use frozen/refrigerated pre-made pizza dough)

• Rolling pin
• Measuring cups
• Mixing spoons
• Pizza stone or pan

For toppings, choose from:

• Cheese (any)
• Bacon
• Vegetables: tomatoes, peppers, celery, asparagus, etc.
• Peanut butter or other nut spread
• Fruit: bananas, strawberries, blueberries, sliced pears, sliced apples, etc.
• Anything else your little one can think up!

What You Do:

(If you are not making your own dough, skip to Step 4!)

1. To make your own dough, dissolve the yeast in one cup of tepid water.
2. Mix the flour, sugar, salt, oil, and water/yeast mix in a large bowl. Cover with a towel and allow to rise. This may take approximately half an hour. The dough should double its size.
3. Make sure that your child takes part in measuring and mixing the ingredients! Set up the yeast and water mixture as a mini-science experiment and predict what will happen when it is added to the other ingredients or research why it makes the dough rise.
4. Once it has risen, mold the dough (either your own or pre-made) into a sphere. On a floured work surface, roll the dough out into a traditional pizza circle shape.
5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees or follow the directions on the pre-made dough package. This step should only be done by an adult. Take time to talk to your child about kitchen safety and always supervise him or her during this entire process.
6. Come up with an imaginative breakfast pizza menu. Try a cheese and sliced veggie pie, peanut better pizza (add the peanut butter to a cooked crust, do not cook the peanut butter), or a breakfast bacon treat.
7. Bake the pizza for approximately 20 minutes or until fully cooked and golden brown.

Sneak in a pinch of learning, and let your little one add and subtract while measuring ingredients or try some simple number conversions. Discuss nutrition and help your child to understand how to make his or her pizza more healthy.