Being from New York, I know that homemade pizza dough will never quite be the same as the yummy kind that you can get at any local pizzeria in New York, but I do miss my pizza, so I have been trying the best I can to replicate it as close as possible. This dough rises perfectly, and puffs up nicely when it bakes. It's slightly chewy on the outside and soft on the inside-just the way I want my pizza dough to be! I've tried it with several different topping combinations and it really seemed to complement all the toppings nicely without overpowering the whole pizza. This recipe makes enough dough for 2 pizzas, if you aren't making 2 pizzas at once, go ahead an freeze the extra dough-I love having it on hand to make a pizza or a calzone later in the month!
Now that it's getting warmer out (and much more humid if you're in Maryland like me...) I'll be taking this pizza dough outside and putting it on the grill. Even though it's quite sturdy, I'd still recommend making smaller pizzas if you're grilling-it's much easier to flip smaller pizzas on the grill-you don't want to donate your dough to the flames!
Perfect Pizza Dough
1/2 cup warm water (about 110°)
1/4 teaspoon granulated sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons (1 envelope) instant yeast
1 1/4 cups water, at room temperature
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 cups (22 ounces) bread flour, plus more for dusting
1 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
olive oil or non-stick cooking spray for greasing the bowl
Measure the warm water into a 2-cup liquid measuring cup. Stir in the sugar. Sprinkle in the yeast and let stand until the yeast dissolves and swells, about 5 minutes. Add the room-temperature water and oil and stir to combine.
Place the flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Briefly combine the dry ingredients at low speed. Slowly add the liquid ingredients and continue to mix at low speed until a cohesive mass forms. Stop the mixer and replace the paddle with the dough hook. Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Form the dough into a ball, put it in a deep oiled bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Press the dough to deflate it.
Place a pizza stone in the lower third of the oven. Heat the oven to 500° (or as hot as you can get your oven) for at least 30 minutes. (Alternatively, I use a Gold Touch pizza pan from Williams Sonoma and simply preheat my oven to 450 degrees). Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Divide the dough into two equal pieces. Form both pieces of dough into smooth, round balls and cover with a damp cloth. Let the dough relax for at least 10 minutes but no more than 30 minutes.
Working with one piece of dough and keeping the other covered, shape the dough and transfer to a pizza peel or round of parchment dusted with semolina or cornmeal. Top as desired. Slide the dough onto the pizza stone.Bake until the crust edges brown and cheese is golden brown in spots, about 8 to 12 minutes. Repeat with remaining ball of dough or freeze for later use.
While preparing the dough, make your sauce and get your toppings ready.
Source: Baking Illustrated
1/2 cup warm water (about 110°)
1/4 teaspoon granulated sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons (1 envelope) instant yeast
1 1/4 cups water, at room temperature
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 cups (22 ounces) bread flour, plus more for dusting
1 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
olive oil or non-stick cooking spray for greasing the bowl
Measure the warm water into a 2-cup liquid measuring cup. Stir in the sugar. Sprinkle in the yeast and let stand until the yeast dissolves and swells, about 5 minutes. Add the room-temperature water and oil and stir to combine.
Place the flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Briefly combine the dry ingredients at low speed. Slowly add the liquid ingredients and continue to mix at low speed until a cohesive mass forms. Stop the mixer and replace the paddle with the dough hook. Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Form the dough into a ball, put it in a deep oiled bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Press the dough to deflate it.
Place a pizza stone in the lower third of the oven. Heat the oven to 500° (or as hot as you can get your oven) for at least 30 minutes. (Alternatively, I use a Gold Touch pizza pan from Williams Sonoma and simply preheat my oven to 450 degrees). Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Divide the dough into two equal pieces. Form both pieces of dough into smooth, round balls and cover with a damp cloth. Let the dough relax for at least 10 minutes but no more than 30 minutes.
Working with one piece of dough and keeping the other covered, shape the dough and transfer to a pizza peel or round of parchment dusted with semolina or cornmeal. Top as desired. Slide the dough onto the pizza stone.Bake until the crust edges brown and cheese is golden brown in spots, about 8 to 12 minutes. Repeat with remaining ball of dough or freeze for later use.
While preparing the dough, make your sauce and get your toppings ready.
Source: Baking Illustrated
Look at that perfect pizza! It looks like a photo straight out of Grimaldi's in Brooklyn! Bravo!
ReplyDeleteI seriously read this RIGHT after making a pizza dough for tonight (I'm doing Jim Lahey's no-knead dough). Ah! Gotta try yours next - pinning!
ReplyDeleteThat looks like one good pizza! Can't wait to try this crust recipe.
ReplyDeleteA homemade pizza does not take much longer than simply ordering over the phone and waiting for the food to arrive.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.oliviapizza.co.uk/