Stay in & Host a Pizza Party

If you want to make the boys in your family very, very happy, the secret is to hold a pizza party. Except you must stay in the room with eagle eyes until all the guests have arrived as the boys, in all their excitement, tend to hover around the table and pick off the lone toppings like vultures on the sidelines.

It was brilliant fun and it turned out we had toppings leftover (which once mixed together make a delicious pasta sauce for the following day). We provided everyone with a homemade pizza base on a baking tray (250g plain flour, 100ml of extra virgin olive oil, 2 large eggs, whole bunch of chopped fresh or dried chives - makes two small rustic (rough around the edges!) bases) and a tonne of tomato sauce (half a jar of passata, one tin of chopped tomatoes, four tablespoons of balsamic vinegar and a dash of Worcester sauce) and then we had great fun chopping up a selection of toppings and arranging them in lots of small bowls for guests to help themselves.

We covered the bases in plastic wrap to ensure they didn't dry out. Once uncovered though, the real fun began. The main theme for the evening was quadrants - split your pizza into sections and mix up your toppings. Your topping list could be endless, so get as creative as you like. The only thing I would change is to add garlic and chillies to the mix as well as a few different cheeses like blue and goats, but this is just a preference. Our list consisted of:

• Grated cheddar cheese
• Sliced mozzarella
• Chopped Cumberland sausages
• Chopped green olives
• Slices of salami
• Finely chopped anchovies
• BBQ'd sliced chicken breast
• Roasted cherry tomatoes and red peppers
• Chopped up smoked gammon
• Sweetcorn
• Diced sweet red peppers from the jar
• Chopped chorizo (lightly cooked beforehand)
• Rocket leaves to dress

This is definitely going to be a regular occurence at our place, particularly good for big kids and little kids alike - fussy or otherwise. Just beware of fights breaking out over the chorizo.