make your own pizza party

Who doesn’t love pizza night? Especially when you’re making one for yourself with all of your favorite toppings! Making homemade pizzas has become one of our favorite meals. Over the last couple of years we’ve experimented with a bunch of different combinations and really mastered our pizza making technique and tonight we’re hosting a fun make your own pizza party for a small group of friends.

Here are some tips for hosting your own pizza party –

Plan as much as you can in advance. This morning I set out all the bowls, plates, glassware, flatware and napkins. At our house pizza nights can be messy so I covered the table with a long sheet of kraft paper for easy clean up. I doodled some recipes on the paper but I also think it will be fun to jot down the ingredients to everyone’s pies. No need for a centerpiece, the spread of meats, cheeses and veggies in pretty little bowls will do the trick.
Cut and prep all the pizza toppings before your guests arrive. Have everything chopped, measured or mixed together if necessary. Tonight we have roasted tomatoes, green peppers, pepperoni, fresh thyme, onions, italian sausage, diced chicken, basil, olive oil and fresh mozzarella. One of the best things about a pizza party is that the possibilities are endless!
Lay everything out in separate bowls on a large table and mark each ingredient. It’s nice to let everyone know what’s available so they can build their own favorite combos.
Plan for a few different flavors. Marc will be making a barbecue chicken pizza and I’ll be trying one with hot italian sausage and fresh thyme. If you want to do something crazy like pineapple and anchovies that you’re not sure everyone will like, I suggest sending it our first and then following up with a classic margherita or something simple.
Cooking one pie (or two small ones) at a time is hard when you’re feeding a crowd so I recommend using a quick cooking recipe. We plan on making 6-8 personal sized pizzas (at least one per person) and popping them in the oven as soon as they are prepped. I bought the crust pre made but if you want to get fancy you can make your own dough. Small pizzas cook for 7-10 minutes. So by the time we get one pizza sliced and served the next one will almost be ready. Keep in mind that even a few extra minutes in the oven can make a big difference between soft crust and crunchy crust.
Have something for guests to munch on while the pizzas bake. Toss together a simple salad or set out a cheese plate and some olives.
Have a rimless sheet pan ready. We cook our pizzas right on the rack so the rimless cookie sheet makes it easy to slide the pizzas in and out of the oven. Serve pizzas on oversized wooden cutting boards right on the table so guests can dig in.

Have any other good tips for a make your own pizza party?photo credit kate zitzer