Pizza Dough

This is a recipe we use for pizza dough. Once you have the dough laid out, you can put pretty much anything on it and then bake it at 500 for ~15 minutes (checking it often). The entry before this details precisely what we did put on it, though the possibilities are limitless.

Somewhat limitless anyway.

Ingredients

• 2.25tsp active dry yeast
  
• 2/3c warm water plus or minus (about as hot as tap water will go, maybe a little cooler. You should be able to put your finger in the water for about two seconds comfortably. Minor variation won't matter.)
  
• 2.5c flour plus or minus
  
• pinch of salt (aim for a little less than a teaspoon)
  
• 4T olive oil
  
• 1tsp sugar
  
• Cooking spray (PAM)
  

I've made this in two ways. The first way requires proofing the yeast: put the yeast in the water along with the sugar. Stir it around. Mix the dry ingredients together while it sits and add the olive oil. Then pour the water/yeast/sugar mixture in and mix together into a dough, adjusting water and flour as needed until it's just a little bit sticky. (For the second method, just put all the dry ingredients together INCLUDING the yeast and sugar, mix them together, and then add the oil and finally the water while mixing together to create a dough. This is mainly for if you're pretty sure your yeast is still alive. Won't make too much difference cooking, though.)

Take the dough out of the bowl and flour the counter a little. Knead the dough for about seven minutes, until you could describe it as 'silky' and smooth. PAM the bowl and put the dough in, and then PAM the top of the dough so it's covered in oil.

Now set the dough to rise. Pro tip I learned from my father: microwave half a mug of water until it boils, about three minutes. Set the mug in a corner of the microwave, and then put the bowl of dough in the microwave with it and close the door. It makes a super humid and warm chamber that is perfect for rising bread, and it prevents the dough from drying out.

When the dough has approximately doubled in size (about an hour, although the original recipe says two hours), take it out and, without punching it down, divide it in two. Roll each half out onto a floured surface to about 1/8" thick (it's much easier if you didn't punch it down!) and transfer to a LIGHTLY floured baking sheet or bread stone of an appropriate size. I can usually pretty well cover two 9x13 baking sheets. Brush lightly with olive oil and add the toppings of your choice.

Thoughts: This produces a pretty standard pizza dough, and when you cook it at ~500 degrees you get a nice crisp crust all around, even if you cook it on a baking sheet rather than a bread stone. This recipe is pretty consistent. The only thing I can think of is that there is a prime opportunity to introduce some flavors here. For future pizzas I will consider mixing in oregano, basil, and/or parsley into the dry ingredients. Actually, depending on the type of pizza, you could put pretty much any herb in. I imagine using dill with a more Greek-style pizza, or cilantro with something more South American in flavor. Be adventurous. It's hard to screw up.

Note added 04/11/2008: To get a pizza onto a 500* pizza stone is not an easy task. You cannot merely make the pizza on the counter and then pick it up and put it on a bread stone. It will be a disaster. I've tried it. Instead, after you roll out the dough, transfer it to a thin silicon cutting mat that is LIBERALLY sprinkled with corn meal. Shake the mat back and forth to make certain the dough can slide off if you give the mat a little shake. Add the toppings to the pizza as usual. When it comes to transferring the pizza to the stone all you have to do is open the oven and slide the pizza off the cooking mat. Getting the pizza OUT is much easier - just slide the mat back under the pizza and, supporting the pizza's weight with a hand and hot-pad, pull the pizza away. Le voila.

Disaster Index: 1/10 - works very well for a good solid pizza crust and shows promise for modifications.