I want to make a homemade frozen pizza for a friend that just had a baby. Any tips on freezing an assembled uncooked pizza so it doesn't get soggy? Should I pre-bake the crust?

Ms. T
  • Posted by: Ms. T
  • November 18, 2010
  • 7545 views
  • 5 Comments

5 Comments

stilltrying November 19, 2010
I love food o' del Mundo! but I thought I would jump in as long as I'm here - I always par bake crusts and freeze them. I prick the dough with a fork before I put it in the oven - sometimes I still get bubbles,which I just smoosh down after the crust cools a bit. I use a baking sheet to transfer the crust to the pizza stone preheating in the oven, and put cornmeal on the baking sheet - enough so the dough slides around . I never have trouble removing it from the stone after it has cooked about 5 min. good luck!
 
Ms. T. November 19, 2010
Great, thanks all for the tips! i failed to mention that I'm planning a sauce-less pizza, as I'm looking for something to complement the roasted tomato soup I already made for her. Might try the broccoli rabe, potato pizza recipe from this site, or something similar.
Food o' del Mundo: If I try the par-bake method, do I need to weigh down the dough with dried beans like when par-baking a pie shell? And should I still use my pizza stone, or will it be too tough to remove the partially baked dough from the stone? Thanks for the advice :)
 
Food O. November 18, 2010
I've frozen many, many pizzas. The trick: Par bake the crust, then freeze the crust, then put your sauce and toppings on the frozen crust. Wrap and freeze again.
Your friend is lucky to know you!
 
CHeeb November 18, 2010
Keep the tomato base really dry with good paste,not sauce;I flavor the dough with good Italian spices,top of crust and bottom + salt;dry mozzerela next;all toppings next;one last glue layer of mozzerela lightly sprinkled on top-super hot pre-heated 425 degree oven-baked on tile in the bottom rack --- NJOY-no need to pre-bake the crust-wrap if freezing in Saran .

If frozen bake 30 minutes-fresh 15-20 minutes-watch for smoking if frozen and take out when cheese is browning
 
campagnes November 18, 2010
I'd imagine that you could make the crust, par-bake it just until it's set, spread cold sauce on, add toppings and cheese, and flash-freeze it, then wrap tightly in foil and plastic for longer storage. If I were going to do this, I'd make a test pizza for myself from beginning to end, to be sure it works out.

If you aren't able to do a test run, then I'd par-bake the crust, freeze it, and give it to the new mama with some pre-measured baggies of sauce, toppings, and cheese that she can store in the freezer with the crust. Or to make it even easier on her, you could give her a good-quality canned/jarred tomato sauce that wouldn't require thawing (she can sprinkle the frozen cheese and topping directly on the pizza without thawing). A pizza "kit" isn't as super-quick as an assembled pizza, but it's still pretty quick to assemble.

If you test a homemade frozen pizza and get good results, please share your results! I'd love to know if it works out.
 
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