PIZZA DOUGH

By SMSchreiber

Ingredients

• • 1 1/2 Cups Warm Water (105-115 F)
• • 1 Package (2 1/4 tsp) Active Dry Yeast
• • 3 1/2 Cups Bread Flour (All-Purpose is okay-crispier crust)
• • 2 Tbs Olive Oil
• • 2 tsp Salt
• • 1 tsp Sugar

Preparation

Step 1

1. In the large bowl of a heavy duty electric mixer, add the warm water. Sprinkle on the yeast and let sit for 5 minutes until the yeast is completely dissolved. Stir to dissolve completely, if needed, at the end of 5 minutes.

2. Attach a mixing paddle to the mixer. Mix in the olive oil, flour, salt and sugar on low speed for about a minute. Remove mixing paddle and replace with a dough hook. Knead using the mixer and dough hook, on low to medium speed, until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. If you don’t have a mixer, you can mix and knead by hand.

3. Place ball of dough in a bowl that has been coated lightly with olive oil. Turn the dough around so that it gets coated with the oil. Cover with plastic wrap. Let sit in a warm place (5-85 F) until it doubles in size, about 1 to 1 ½ hours. If you don’t have a warm spot in the house, you can heat the oven to 150 degrees, and then turn off the oven. Place the bowl of dough in this warmed oven to rise. At this point, if you want to make ahead, you can freeze the dough in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

4. Place a pizza stone on a rack in the lower third of your oven. Preheat the oven to 450 F for at least 30 minutes, preferably an hour.

5. Remove the plastic cover from the dough and punch the dough down so it deflates a bit. Divide the dough in half. Form two round balls of dough. Place each in its own bowl, cover with plastic and let sit for 10 minutes.

6. Prepare your desired toppings. Note that you are not going to want to load up0 each pizza with a lot of toppings as the crust will end up not crisp that way. About 1/3 cup, each, of tomato sauce and cheese would be sufficient for one pizza. One to two mushrooms, thinly sliced, will cover a pizza.

7. Working with one ball of dough at a time, take one ball of dough and flatten it with your hands on a slightly floured work surface. Starting at the center and working outwards, use your fingertips to press the dough to ½ inch thick. Turn and stretch the dough until it will not stretch further. Let the dough relax for 5 minutes and then continue to stretch it until it reaches the desired diameter – 10 to 12 inches. Use your palm to flatten the edge of the dough where it is thicker. You can pinch the very edges if you want to form a lip.

8. Brush the top of the dough with olive oil to prevent it from getting soggy from the toppings. Use your finger tips to press down and make dents along the surface of the dough to prevent bubbling. Let rest another 5 minutes. Repeat with the second ball of dough.

9. Lightly sprinkle your pizza peel with cornmeal. Transfer one prepared, flattened dough ball to the pizza peel. If the dough has lost its shape in the transfer, lightly shape it to the desired dimensions.

10. Spoon on the tomato sauce, sprinkle with cheese, and place your desired toppings on the pizza.

11. Sprinkle some cornmeal on the baking stone in the oven. Gently shake the peel to see if the dough will easily slide. If not, gently lift up the edges of the pizza and add a bit more cornmeal. Slide the pizza off the peel and onto the baking stone in the oven. Bake pizza, one at a time, until the crust is browned and the cheese is golden, about 10-15 minutes. If you want, toward the end of the cooking time, you can sprinkle on a little more cheese.