- 6
Ingredients
- crust
- 4 1/2 cups flour
- 1 3/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp yeast
- 1/4 cup olive oil (optional)
- 1 3/4 cups water, ice cold
- semolina flour or cornmeal for dusting
- white sauce (enough for 2 pizzas)
- 2 Tbsp butter
- 3 Tbsp flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp pepper
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 2 Tbsp fresh basil, minced
- 1/2 cup parmigiano-reggiano cheese, shredded
Preparation
Step 1
1. day one: stir together the flour, salt and yeast in a large bowl. stir in the oil and cold water with a big spoon until all the flour is absorbed. you may need to keep dipping the spoon in a bowl of ice cold water as you stir so it doesn’t stick. mix for 5-7 minutes until the dough is smooth and sticky. sprinkle some more flour in as needed. at some point in the mixing, i abandoned the spoon and used my hands to incorporate all of the flour completely.
2. transfer the dough to a floured surface and cut into six equal pieces. line a sheet pan with parchment paper and lightly oil it. sprinkle a bit of flour on the dough and gnetly shape them into balls. place the dough balls on the sheet pan and slip the whole pan into a large ziploc bag (i had to use one from each end of the pan to cover the whole thing. put the pan in the fridge overnight to rest. they will keep in the fridge for 3 days (or in the freezer for up to 3 months).
3. day two: remove the dough from the fridge 2 hours before making the pizza. dust the counter with flour, place the number of dough balls down you are going to use, and sprinkle with more flour. gently press them into flat disks (about 1/2 inch thick). sprinkle with a bit more flour and cover loosely with plastic wrap. let rest.
4. about 45 minutes before making the pizza, preheat the oven to 500 F (or higher if your oven goes that high) with your baking stone or tiles on the lowest shelf or directly on the floor of the oven. if you don’t have a stone, you can bake on the back of a large baking sheet, but don’t preheat the baking sheet.
5. if you’re going to make white sauce, now is the time. heat the butter in a small saucepan. add the flour flour and stir until thoroughly mixed. slowly whisk in milk, adding gradually. stir in remaining ingredients. the sauce will thicken upon standing.
6. to shape the pizzas, dust a pizza peel or the back of a sheet pan with cornmeal or semolina flour. dip your hands in flour and pick up the dough round. very gently lay the dough across your fists and carefully stretch it by bouncing the dough in a circular motion on your hands. keep it across your knuckes and it will slowly stretch as you bounce it. if it sticks, gently put the dough down and reflour your hands. eventually, you can move to a full toss instead of a bounce, and the dough will quickly shape into a large thin round.
7. lay it own the pizza peel or pan and top lightly with your favorite sauces, cheeses, veggies and meats. keep in mind that this is a pretty thin crust, so a little topping goes a long way. slide your pizza from the pizza peel directly onto the hot baking stone or place the sheet pan in the oven and bake for 5-8 minutes. the edges will puff a little bit, darken and crisp up. remove the pizza from the oven and transfer to a cutting board. wait a few minutes for the toppings to set before slicing and serving.