How To Throw A National Pizza Day Party

I certainly hope you have polished off that leftover Super Bowl food, because I'm here to inform you that Feb. 9 is National Pizza Day. That's right, there's no rest for the hungry, so you should probably already be considering how you're going to throw an adult pizza party like a boss. Never mind that dinner is a few short hours away — you can put together a homemade pizza feast in no time. With the right amount of imagination, you may find that you already have lots of the ingredients already in your house. So put down that phone, because you're delivering the pizza tonight.

For starters, the most time consuming part of making pizza at home is prepping homemade dough. If you're making pizza for a crowd and you didn't, by some miracle, prep a large bucket of pizza dough last night, you'll want to scrap that step in favor of something simpler. Grab a couple of pre-made dough balls from the store, or make your pizzas on pita bread or flour tortillas. It's National Pizza Day, not Jonathan Gold's birthday. You do you!

So what are some other things you can do to take your pizza party from a pile of cardboard boxes to an event to remember? The answers will save you both time and money.

1. Have your guests build their own pizzas

Set out a buffet of pizza toppings so your guests can make their own masterpieces. This prevents you the trouble of having to commit to creating the flavor arrangements yourself. Vary the toppings from standard items like pepperoni and onions to hot chili paste, grilled fruits, and fusion items to keep things adventurous.

2. Keep the slices small so people can try lots of pizzas

This sports bar near my apartment used to do an all-you-can-eat pizza night where they would walk a revolving door of pizzas through the dining room as each pizza was at its most delicious. The slices were small so that everyone could feasibly try every pizza. You can absolutely do the same thing at your party! Then, everyone can vote on what their favorite pizza was.

3. Try making your pizza on the grill

Pizzas typically cook at 550 degrees, so you might want to move the actual cooking outside to the grill. Or, conversely, you could just crank up the AC rather than overheat inside your house.

4. Use leftovers as toppings

Have a whole bunch of chicken wings and BBQ sauce left from Sunday's festivities? Turn it into one of my favorite pizza flavors — BBQ chicken pizza. You can find a delicious recipe at My Baking Addiction.

5. Host a pizza potluck

Have each one of your guests bring their favorite pizza (homemade or from a restaurant), and have a pizza tasting tournament. This method saves you the trouble of physically making more than one pizza, which will keep your kitchen cleaner and your wallet happier.

For more ideas, check out Bustle on YouTube.

Images: The Kitchn (3); Mel's Kitchen; My Baking Addiction; Comfort Of Cooking