How to get eight pizzas for less than $20 - but there's a catch

I take pizza very, very seriously. Perhaps it was the 10+ years I lived in New York where your favourite pizza joint is more crucial dating profile information than your age, height and whether you like dogs. Or perhaps it's down to my never-realised dreams of living in Italy where I could eat with abandon and drink wine at breakfast (thank you, Brexit, for my now utterly useless UK passport). Whatever the reason, it seems I am not alone as Aussies apparently eat more than four million pizzas a year - which translates to a LOT of... dough.

Think about it - a single, fancy pizza at your local pizza joint is surely going to cost you, on average, around $24 (more if you need it to be gluten-free or want to treat yourself to some extra toppings). Sure, you can get cheaper options (a large Margherita pizza will set you back just $11 at Domino's but you know they are going to sting you with that delivery fee) but why should you settle for less?

Well, friends, you don't have to. I've discovered a way to 'hack' the system to get 8 delicious pies for under $20 - you just need to be willing to work for it a little.

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We recently got the Gozney Arc after more than a year of debating what type of pizza oven we wanted and which one would best suit our needs (we are a family of two adults, one toddler and one dog who eats way too much human food).

Now for that catch: The oven will set you back about $1200 which is obviously a lot to spend in one go. But, if you think about how much money you can save long-term, it's worth the upfront investment. For example, if you're getting takeaway pizza twice a month for a family of four, you're likely spending, on average, about $60 each time or $120 a month on takeaway food. Times that by 12 months and you're spending close to $1500 a year.

So, once you've got the oven (which is stunning to look at by the way), it's time to impress your mates with your culinary skills and get to cookin'!

I've been using a Jamie Oliver recipe for the pizzas lately as they are not only really simple to make but they are incredibly cost-effective too as this particular recipe makes 8 pizzas. Let me break it down for you.

You need:

• Drum wheat semolina ($3.50 for 1kg)

• 2 x cans of tinned peeled tomatoes ($1.10 each)

• Bread and pizza flour (($3.00 for 1kg)

• Fresh basil ($3.00 a bunch)

• Dry yeast ($2.80 for 5 sachets)

• Fresh mozzarella ($5.00 for 250g)

The grand total? $19.50 spent at Woolies. Yep, this is how you can enjoy 8 mouth-watering pizzas for less than $20 - as long as you're not afraid of a little (or in my case, a lot) of mess.

Considering this poor bloke at HBF Park in Perth recently paid $20 for a Margherita pizza that looked like it belonged at the doomed Fyre Fest (literally and figuratively), I think it's clear that this kind of girl math that I am beautiful minding over here makes perfect sense.

I do have to address a few other obvious things here too - the first being that there is a reason we like to pay for the convenience of having pizza made for and delivered to us and this recipe does take a little bit of time and obviously requires cleaning up too.

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The other note I will make is that the above recipe is for very basic (but totally scrumptious) pizzas - cheese, tomato, basil = done. If you want to start adding extra ingredients (may I please suggest you try hot honey?), the price will start to creep up. The Jamie Oliver recipe also uses a couple of items I didn't include on the shopping list as they are staples you likely already have in your pantry (garlic, salt, sugar and oil).

Another thing I'd like to mention? The Gozney Arc is QUICK! This bad boy cooks your homemade pizzas (that taste like the proper wood-fire deal) in 60 seconds - so as long as you prep ahead, it's much quicker than waiting for delivery.

So now I've given you a 'pizza my mind' (and broken my brain trying to do maths), there's really only one thing left to do. Get the Gozney. Make the pizzas. And don't forget to invite me.

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