Thursday was Ryan's birthday party. We had it a week early because my folks are going to Indonesia for a few weeks, and Rudy will be in Arkansas on Ryan's actual birthday. So after considering hosting a family party during the week, a real party on the weekend, and cupcakes for his class, I decided to combine parties and just have the real party on a Thursday evening. Would have been totally undoable if I had a job, but this is one time that being unemployed paid off.
I'm not a big believer in over-the-top kid's birthday parties. So far, all of the boys' parties have been at home, with fun, games and usually a bouncy house. I'd consider a more elaborate event at SuperFrank's or PumpItUp for any birthday that's divisible by 5. But I think a normal party should be at home, with about 1 friend per year of age. Family doesn't count in this calculation. Ryan invited 6 friends to the party, but only two could make it. Adding family and near-family, we had 17 people.
I had planned a simple party - we'd have pizza, a couple of salads, a pinata, and a few classic games. The theme was Superheros - Spidey, Batman, the Hulk. I wanted to have capes for all the boys, but I couldn't find affordable ones. And I didn't think of making them out of felt from a fabric store until just now. See, immediate proof that I'm not Martha. She'd have had tailored personalized superhero costumes hand stitched months before the party. Hell, she would have invited people more than 1 week in advance.
Things started to go wrong just as the first guest was arriving. I was making the pizzas from scratch. I tested them out over the weekend so I'd be sure they worked. I wasn't thrilled with the crispy crust from the practice round, so I chose a new recipe. I have always had great luck with recipes from Fine Cooking, so I knew this dough would be really tasty. I started the dough the night before so it could rise in the fridge. I took it out to rest for 2 1/2 hours before the party. I just glossed over two tiny little details: that I was supposed to hand-toss the dough, and that I only had 1 pizza stone. I didn't think these would be a problem. The article made the hand-tossing look really easy, and I had 3 pizza pans. I'd do one on the stone, and 3 on the pans. No problem, right? HA!
It turns out that hand-tossing is not so easy. The dough is really malleable and simple to work with, but if you put pressure in the wrong place as you're rotating, great big holes get torn in the dough. My first round was appropriately thick at the edges, translucently thin on half the middle, and about right on half. My second round never got round: it was an equilateral triangle, but the dough was appropriately thick. My third and fourth rounds were just like the first one, except they also had giant tears in them. I had to tear off part of the crust to patch the holes. I was afraid to re-work the dough, because I thought it would turn out tough. So I topped the pizzas and put them in the oven.
It also turns out that a pizza stone is also a pretty critical component of successful pizza baking. Those perforated pie pans are worthless. The triangle pizza cooked on the stone was perfect. The crust was golden brown and flavorful, and it held the toppings well. But the 3 pizzas in the pans were disasters. The bottoms of the pies never crisped up at all. In the center, the pies were liquid. There was nothing but topping, because the sauce and dough combined to be mush. The outside 2/3 of the pies cooked on pans were delicious, but the centers were inedible.
As frustrating as the pizzas were, everyone got fed. The pizza and the salads were a big hit, but they were nothing compared to Jessica's amazing Spidey cake. Jessica is our nanny, shared between my boys and their cousin Mac. She's a wonderful person who just fell into our lives, and I thank God every day that we have her. Best of all, she has hidden talents: she's a professionally trained baker. Family birthday cakes have been her job for the past two years, and we've never had cuter cakes. Or better tasting ones: the cakes taste MUCH better than they look, and I think they look great.
Between dinner and cake, we burned off some energy in classic races. The boys had head-to-head sack races. We paired up for a 3-legged race: me & Dylan, Gram & PopPop, Jessica & James, Ryan & Thomas, with big Zach supervising from the slide. The boys had a simple obstacle course, then a pinata, cake, and gifts. 
All in all, it was a perfect kids' party. I'm sure the boys would have been just as happy with Pizza Hut pies. I know there will be a time when they beg for store-bought food and Safeway birthday cake. They'll complain that their friends get to eat at Chuck E. Cheese and have over-sugared fake cake. They'll think that our insistence on homemade food is evidence of their deprivation. And then, in their 20s or 30s, they'll realize how much love went into all that cooking, and how very special it was that Jessica agonized for 2 days decorating their cakes, and that Mom spent 36 hours working on pizza that she could have ordered in 10 minutes. Like so many other things in parenting, homemade birthday parties are an investment that pays off only over time. At least that's what I hope.
The Birthday Menu
- Caesar Salad (made without chicken)
- Fruit platter of watermelon, pineapple, grapes
- Pizzas: Used 2 batches of Fine Cooking Dough to make 4 large pizzas. Made 1 batch with 1/2 whole wheat pastry flour and honey instead of sugar. Cooking time for large pizzas is about 20 minutes in a 450 degree oven on a pizza stone (preheat for 30-45 minutes).
- Nacho Pizza: Wheat dough, red sauce, 1/2 can drained rinsed black beans, 1/2 cup thawed frozen corn, chopped green onions, smoked mozzarella, cheddar cheese
- Roasted Veg Pizza: Wheat dough, red sauce, 2 sliced grilled zucchini, 1 sliced grilled red bell pepper, 1 sliced grilled yellow bell pepper, fresh mozzarella, cheddar
- Sausage Pizza: White dough, red sauce, fresh Italian sausage (crumbled and sauteed, then boiled for 10 minutes to make sure it's cooked through), mozzarella, cheddar
- Cheese Pizza: White dough, red sauce, smoked mozz, fresh mozz, cheddar, parm. Top with fresh basil immediately after removing from oven.
Although I was unhappy with how the dough cooked on the pan, I loved the flavor and texture, and I will use the recipe again. I will probably roll in and shape the edge rather than hand-tossing it, and I will cook it on a stone, never a pan. I would not use this recipe to make pizza for a party where everyone is eating all the pizza at the same time. It would work for a party where pizzas were served one at a time.
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