Pizza crust and sauce

This is a staple at my house. We had it last night. I took the recipe from the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook, but I have changed it enough to make it my own. I added whole wheat flour and reduced the amount of oil.

Pizza Crust:
1 c. warm water
1 Tbsp. yeast
1 Tbsp. oil
¼ tsp. salt
1 ½ c. whole wheat flour
1 ½ 1 ¾ c. white flour
Soften the yeast in the water. In a large mixing bowl (I use my kitchen aid stand mixer) add water and yeast, salt, oil and the whole wheat flour. Beat on high speed for 30 seconds, and scrape bowl. Beat on medium speed for 3 minutes. Then add remaining flour ½ c. at a time (I change to a dough hook here). Knead the dough (or let the mixer do it) until it is moderately stiff, smooth and elastic (about 6-8 minutes). Cover and let rest for 10 minutes.

Now the recipe calls for this to be divided into two 12" thin crust pizzas. But I like a nice thick crust, so I make one 16" pizza. You can do it anyway you like. Spray the pan with non-stick spray (you can sprinkle with cornmeal if you wish, but our pan has holes in it, so we don't) After 10 minutes I roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to fit the pizza pan. Then I turn on the oven to 425º F, and let the dough sit while it preheats. (this isn't how you are supposed to do it, but I like it!) When the oven is ready I prick the crust with a fork all over and bake it for about 7 minutes. Then I spread on the sauce, and toppings. Then bake for about 5-7 minutes more or until the cheese is melted and I like it to brown and bubble just a little.

I don't know why all the recipes say to put the cheese on top, no commercial pizza is made like that . I put the cheese on after the sauce and then sprinkle just a little bit after the rest of the toppings. Also I have found that I use about 8 oz. of shredded mozzarella cheese, usually I little less (because I am cheap). Some of our favorite toppings are pepperoni, olives, green pepper, and mushrooms (if we have them). We've done all sorts of toppings as you can imagine. We also dip it in ranch dressing and BBQ sauce.

Just a few more notes. This does take some time to prepare. It takes about an hour from the time you start the crust. There are enough rest times (while it's kneading, resting and baking etc.) that I will prepare my toppings, including the sauce. Oh, that reminds me I should post my sauce, okay here it is:

Pizza sauce:
Truthfully I completely made this up. It doesn't make much, but I am too cheap to buy the canned pizza sauce, and 16 oz. is way too much for one pizza. So I make do with 8 oz.

1 Tbsp. onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
1 tsp. dried parsley
scant ½ tsp. dried basil
scant ½ tsp. dried oregano

Spray a sauce pan with non-stick spray (you can use oil, but my pans are non-stick, so this cuts down on the fat and calories). Sauté onions and garlic over medium heat for 1-2 minutes. Add tomato sauce and spices and simmer over low heat for about 5 minutes. I'm a little sketchy on the measurements, because I usually "eye-ball it" (as Rachael Ray would say). I tried to measure it last night, but ½ tsp. was too much for the oregano and basil, to just a little less than that would be good. I usually start this just after I have rolled out the dough, and let it simmer until I put it on the crust.
Okay, that was long, sorry!