Friday night is homemade pizza night in this house.  I make all sorts of varieties (4-cheese, pepperoni, margherita, buffalo chicken, balsamic onion with proscuitto, shrimp with cilantro pesto, etc.) but I always use the same kind of pizza dough: homemade in my KitchenAid mixer with *Hodgson Mill Active Dry Yeast*. My pizza dough recipe calls for "proofing" the yeast which means that you dissolve it in warm water and a bit of sugar for several minutes (until bubbles form) before adding it to the rest of the ingredients.  I don't bother with that step because I've found that it really doesn't make a difference and doesn't shorten the time required for the dough to rise.  I do follow instructions for proofing *Hodgson Mill Active Dry Yeast*, however, when I'm making other types of breads such as ciabiatta, focaccia, etc.  I have no complaints about *Hodgson Mill Active Dry Yeast*.  It is inexpensive (50 cents per pack), easy to find, effective in creating light and fluffy bread and pizza doughs, and something that stores well in the cabinet so I can always keep a large supply on hand.  My husband even uses this stuff in the carbon dioxide bubbler that he has for his fish tank, so we go through 2 or 3 packets each week.  I definitely recommend this *Active Dry Yeast* to anyone who is looking for a reliable product with which to make bread and pizza dough. 

njchicaa

New Jersey, NJ