I always thought pizza and soda were created for each other, until I had my first pizza and beer experience.

I knew then I had been wrong for the first 21 years of my life.

Growing up, my favorite pizza was Hawaiian pizza. The sweetness of the pineapple and smoked deli ham went well together.

Larson’s Pizza, in my hometown of Kelseyville, Calif., has my favorite version of a Hawaiian pizza.

Larson’s covers every single inch of the pizza with smoked deli ham. The pineapple chunks would float freely over a sea of curled deli ham, with the pizza sauce peeking through as if to say don’t forget about it.

I was highly disappointed when I ordered my first Hawaiian in Sacramento. The pizza was not covered in deli ham; instead it had cubes of Canadian bacon. The pizza sauce was exposed and the pineapples were lying on a layer of cheese.

I had two options: I could either drive two and a half hours to my hometown every time I wanted a Hawaiian pizza or learn how to make my own.

Hawaiian Pizza

For the dough:

1 cup warm water (between 100 F – 115 F)

1 package (2 1/2 teaspoons) dry active yeast

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon sugar

2 tablespoons olive oil

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon cornmeal

For the pizza:

1/2 cup marinara sauce

2 cups mozzarella cheese

9 ounces deli ham

8 ounces can of pineapple chunks, drained

For a few bucks you can make your own homemade pizza following these steps.

In a large bowl dissolve the yeast and sugar in warm water and let it sit for 10 minutes.

Water below 100 F will not let the yeast activate. Water warmer than 115 F will kill the yeast. Check with a thermometer to get an accurate reading. If you don’t have a thermometer handy, another way to test the temperature is to use the inside of your wrist. If the water is just barely warm on your wrist, it is close to 100 degrees in temperature.

After 10 minutes the sugar should have activated the yeast and the mixture will look bubbly.

Next add 2 1/2 cups of flour, the olive oil and salt. Mix for five minutes or until the dough can be formed into a ball.

Dust a clean counter with one-fourth cup of flour. Place the dough on top of the flour and start to knead the dough. If the dough becomes too sticky while kneading, add one-fourth cup of flour at a time and continue kneading. You’ll want to knead the dough for about 20 minutes until the dough becomes smooth and elastic.

When the dough is smooth, form it into a smooth ball. Grease a large bowl with olive oil and place the dough in the bowl. Turn the dough so it is coated entirely in olive oil.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and let it rise in a warm, draft free place until doubled in size – this usually takes about an hour.

After the dough has doubled in size, punch it down to push the air out of the dough. Flour the work surface, place the dough on the flour and knead the dough for another minute.

Shape the dough into a ball again, and let it sit for 10 minutes while you prepare the toppings. By letting the dough rest, it will make for a fluffier crust.

While the dough is resting, preheat the oven to 450 F.

Lightly grease a baking pan or sheet and sprinkle the cornmeal over the pan.

Start shaping the dough with your hands, turning and stretching from the center outwards.

When the desired shape and thickness is reached, place dough onto the pan.

Spread the sauce evenly onto the dough and then sprinkle the cheese. Top with deli ham slices and pineapple chunks.

Bake the pizza for 15 minutes until the dough is crispy and golden brown and the cheese has melted.

Remove the pizza from the oven, and let it rest 1-2 minutes before cutting.

Finally, grab a Miller Chill and enjoy a delicious slice of homemade pizza.

To make this pizza gluten-free:

Make a gluten-free dough by replacing the all-purpose flour in the above recipe with this combination of gluten-free flours:

1 and 1/2 cups sorghum flour

1 cup tapioca starch or potato starch

1/3 to 1/2 cup almond meal, buckwheat flour, or millet flour

1 teaspoon xanthan gum

Miguel Lopez can be reached at [email protected]