Make pizza crust 'as good as fresh bread'

"Years ago I clipped a very easy, very good pizza dough recipe from the pages of the Tribune food section," writes Steve Rotolo of Tampa.

"Time passed and I lost that recipe and I haven't made a decent crust since," he writes. "The ingredients were few, and I don't believe it required any kneading, but the result was a great tasting crust that rose nicely on its own and tasted as good as fresh bread."

I went all the way back to the dusty archives of 2007 to find the most recent recipe, Steve. Is this what you're looking for? I'm including a pizza recipe so you can put that dough to good use.

Leftover requests

Maria A. Vega of Tampa wants the delicious cherry cream pie that used to be made by Peg's Pies in Tampa.

Cindi Lee Campbell of Valrico wants the Crazy House Salad recipe from The Old Meeting House on South Howard Avenue in Tampa.

Martha Altman wants a recipe for the sauce and barbecue preparation from Old South Pit Bar-B-Que, formerly located in downtown Tampa at the bottom of the old Hillsborough Hotel.

ITALIAN-STYLE PIZZA PIE

1/2 cup olive oil

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 small onion

1 small green pepper

1 cup whole tomatoes

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

15 dashes hot sauce

1 dash oregano

Pizza dough (above)

Heat olive oil, chopped garlic, onion and green pepper. When onion is half done, add whole tomatoes and cook for 5 to 10 minutes, then add tomato paste, salt, sugar and hot sauce. Let it simmer for 5 minutes, cover pizza dough with mixture, and sprinkle oregano on top. Bake at 425 degrees for 30 minutes.

PIZZA PIE DOUGH

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 package dry yeast

1 cup lukewarm water

Sift flour; add salt and olive oil. Dissolve yeast in a cup of lukewarm water, and add to flour mixture. Work dough until it is well-mixed; let rise at room temperature for 45 minutes. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface; knead lightly. Mold into flat loaf; place loaf in greased 8-inch layer pan and work into a pie shape.

Serve pizza hot and cut into wedges. Makes 8 servings.

Note: You can add anchovies, meat sauce or shrimp to the following pizza. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan or mozzarella cheese