We like a little bit of everything on our pizza, though sometimes it is simple and just half canadian bacon and half mushrooms.
The boys prefer pepperoni or just cheese
Pizza Dough
Makes 1 thick crust or two thin crust*
1 1/4 cup warm water
1 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
3 1/3 cup flour
1 1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoon yeast
Put all ingredients in order listed into the mixing bowl of your kitchen aid with the dough hook, set on stir and let mix until all moisture is gone, then turn up to 3 and let knead for 3-5 minutes or until it is smooth. Then take bowl off and place in warm spot covered with a towel. Let rise for 1 1/2 hours. Preheat oven to 425 degrees then take dough and spread out on baking stone*. let set and rest for 15 minutes, then top with your favorite toppings and cheese*, let rest again for another 15 minutes. Bake for 25 minutes.
Note:
*To make thinner crust pizza (not cracker thin) just divide one recipe into two pizzas
*I put a bit of olive oil on my baking stone even though it is very seasoned it helps the dough to spread out better. Also if you are using a baking sheet instead make sure you oil it so it doesn't stick.
*I limit the cheese to 8 ounces this helps everything to stay put and it won't cause your toppings to slide off. I also use a 50/50 of mozzarella and swiss cheese. I like the tang of the swiss.
Enjoy!
Will a hand mixer do? That's all I have. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, I've been looking for a good pizza dough recipe and will give this a try. I'm very picky about pizza, like I've shared before on my blog. Chicago thin crust is what I crave and had the pleasure of having recently with some friends in the suburbs. I've determined that even more than just the crust, it's also the way they use cheese, or the lack thereof, down here in Central Illinois. The order-out pizza in this area is like cardboard with a little cheese sprinkled on it - hardly can be called pizza in my book. :)
Oh, I want to try your crust recipe! It looks wonderful. I have a crust recipe, but it isn't super.
ReplyDeleteLinda~ I would suggest mixing it by hand then kneading it on a lightly floured surface until smooth 8-10 minutes. I am afraid a hand mixer would probably break, as I use a dough hook on my kitchen aid.
ReplyDeleteWe're big fans of homemade pizza too. Recently we had pizza ordered from someplace at a friend's house and Donald and I were both so disappointed lol. It's nice to find someone else in the same boat because usually when we say we make our own pizza people think we mean that we use Boboli crusts =P
ReplyDelete