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Deep dish pizza is one of the dishes the city of Chicago is known for, so what better way for the Green Bay Packers to treat the bears than to bury them at home. Homemade pizza is a snap to make and fun if you set up a pizza bar.

Roll out premade pizza dough into individual disposable greased pie pans. Make sure the dough comes up the sides of the pan to create the deep dish.  Let rise 30 minutes in a warm place during pregame activities.

Set out tomato sauce, ranch salad dressing, and a white sauce such as Alfredo.

Offer an assortment of toppings with suggested combinations for those who are culinarily  challenged much like the Bear’s quarterback’s offense line is challenged.

Combine chopped bacon, spinach, and fresh tomatoes and parmesean cheese for a BLT pizza.

Use tomato sauce, chopped onions, green peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms and mozerella cheese for a classic Chicago pizza.

Go upscale with cooked chicken breast, olives, artichoke hearts and ranch salad dressing, smothered in mild Havarti cheese.

Always use raw vegetables and cooked meats.  Bake in a 425 F pre-heated oven until the pizza dough browns on the bottom, about 20 minutes.

Use your imagination with the toppings.  A Mexican pizza could be black beans, green peppers, jalapeno peppers, chorizo sausage and tomatoes blanketed by cheddar cheese.

An oriental pizza could be pork, scallions, shredded carrots, mushrooms and water chestnuts.  No cheese but brush with plum sauce before baking.

Pizza isn’t difficult even if you start from scratch. Pizza dough is hard to ruin. The most important factor, besides clean hands, is to proof the yeast. That’s easy enough to do. Take a package of yeast and add it to a 1/4 cup of very warm, but not hot water, to which you’ve added a 1/2 teaspoon of sugar. In five to ten minutes the yeast should have dissolved and the water become foamy.

Here’s an easy recipe for pizza crust. It’s the crispy kind and makes enough for two 12 inch pizzas.

3 cups flour
3/4 cup of water
1/4 cup of the warm water the yeast has been dissolved in
2 tablespoon olive oil.

Add the oil to the water. Add the oil and water mixture to the flour. Stir with a spoon until too thick to stir. And here’s the part where you need clean hands. Using your hands incorporate the rest of the flour into the dough. The dough will probably be a little sticky, that’s okay. Dust a clean kitchen counter with a little flour. Place the dough on the flour and flatten it with the palms of your hands, pushing the dough away from you. Fold over the dough, give it a quarter turn and flatten it again. This is called kneading the dough. Kids love to help with this part of the process. Knead the dough for 10 minutes. That may seem like a long time so keep your eye on the clock. After the dough has been kneaded for 10 minutes it’s shouldn’t be sticky any more and be a bit elastic.

Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover with a towel and put in a warm place to rise. Get a good look at how big the ball of dough is because you want it to double in size. Depending on the temperature that will take from an hour to 2 hours. Don’t rush the rising by putting it in the oven.

When the dough has doubled in size divide it in half. Flour the counter so the dough doesn’t stick. Roll out two 12 inch circles. If you’re busy or don’t trust your dough making skills buy ready to use pizza dough. Place the circles on an oiled cookie sheet or pizza pan. Put back in a warm place while you ready the pizza toppings.

One trick for great pizza is to always cook the meat ahead of time thoroughly and leave the vegetables raw.

Top your pizza with a cup of tomato or pizza sauce, favorite meats such as pepperoni and sausage and veggies like mushrooms, onions, and green peppers, finish off with a generous sprinkling of cheese.

Bake in a pre-heated 425 degree oven for about 20 minutes until the crust is golden brown and the cheese melted