Growing up, my mom received a bread machine for Christmas one year and we were lucky enough to have homemade bread often. Authentic Alaskan Sourdough with halibut chowder, French bread for grilled cheese, whole wheat muffins drizzled in butter and honey to go with chili, we were a pretty spoiled crew.
Oftentimes we'd make homemade pizza for dinner using the breadmachine, and it was good (we didn't turn it down!) but it never quite tasted like the kind you'd get at a pizza parlor (sorry mom!). It always tasted like French bread dough, never crusted up quite right, and was more of a means to transmit toppings to the mouth, than an enjoyable crispy crust in itself.
When T. and I got married my aunt, who is an amazing baker herself (seriously, she wins prizes for it and teaches people how to bake!) gave me the Essentials of Baking book as a gift along with some beautiful bread pans and a few other baking essentials. Though I am still making my way through the recipes, one that I go back to again and again is the pizza crust. I have tried making several different recipes and always come back to this one. The crust always cooks up hot and crispy and it has the perfect authentic pizza dough flavor that we never quite found growing up. Since I made up a batch on Friday for our "Lenten" meal of Pizza Marherita, I thought I'd share it with you!
- 2 packages (5 teaspoons) active dry yeast
- 2 1/2 cups warm water
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 5 cups bread flour (though I've used AP flour with no problems!)
- 1 Tablespoon kosher salt
- All purpose flour and cornmeal for rolling and shaping
In a large bowl dissolve the yeast in the warm water and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Add the sugar, oil, flour and salt (in that order - salt can kill yeast so don't put it directly on top of the yeast water) and stir with your hand or a wooden spoon until a rough ball forms. Scrape the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead until soft, smooth and elastic, about 8-10 minutes. Add up to 1 cup of flour to the work surface while kneading to prevent the dough from sticking.
Form the dough into a ball and transfer it to a large, lightly oiled bowl for rising. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set in a warm, draft-free spot until it doubles in bulk, about 90 minutes to 2 hours. For a more flavorful crust, make the dough up to this point, punch it down, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Let the dough come to room temperature before shaping.
FOR BAKING:
Place a pizza or baking stone on a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 500 degrees Fahrenheit for at least 30 minutes before baking (though I've done just fine using a pizza pan). Turn the dough out of the bowl onto a lightly oiled work surface. Cut in half with a sharp knife or bench scraper. Gently shape each half into a loose ball. Cover loosely with a kitchen towel and let rest for 10 minutes. One at a time, lightly dust each dough ball with all purpose flour and roll it out into a round of 12-14 inches in diameter. Spread 1/4 cup cornmeal on a baker's peel (or your pizza pan) and transfer the dough round to the peel or pan.
Top the pizza crust with your desired sauce and toppings (be creative! Our favorites range from the traditional Margherita, to Cajun with leftover chicken and andouillie sausage and peppers, to Thai style with peanut sauce!) and then either slide the pizza from the peel to the baking stone, or just slide the pan in the oven, and bake until the crust is crisp and brown, 10-15 minutes. Once baked, remove from oven and let rest for about five minutes before cutting to serve.
Enjoy!
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3 comments:
This pizza crust is awesome! I am making it for the second time today. I added italian seasoning (Cento) & garlic powder (alas, no fresh roasted garlic...)
I added the italian seasoning the first time and it really worked well. Thanks!
This is yummy! I've made lots of pizza crusts (we make homemade pizza most Saturdays), usually whole wheat, and this one is definitely very good. My children devoured it. I used 3/5ths sprouted wheat flour and 2/5ths white flour. Although it was way too sticky, so I used probably 1 1/2 cups additional white flour. Very good! Thank you.
Further improve your pizza dough!
I have tried various techniques to get my pizza dough to have that perfect blend of flavor, crunch, and chewiness. The thing that really made the difference for me was planning ahead. Make it the night before, but instead of proofing the yeast, mix it into the flour, salt mixture, then mix with cold water and knead. Then let it sit with some sprinkling of water on the top in the fridge for as long as you want, up to 5 days or so to develop flavor. Overnight is fine though. Then when you're ready to use it, take it out a few hours before and let it go through one rising cycle. then shape as much by hand as possible to avoid pressing all the bubbles out of the dough with a rolling pin. I gently use a wine bottle to roll out the middle if I need to but leave the edges bubbly. Then I bake on 450 on a stone. Amazing and bubbly. Also mix in a sprinkling of semolina sometimes for an extra crunch on the outside if you want it. Yummy!!!
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