I want to be a person who doesn’t judge. I really do. But I also want to be an honest person, and so I have to be forthcoming about this: if you don’t like pizza, I think you’re very strange.
There. I said it. That feels better. I’d rather be a judgmental person and own up to it then a lying liar who lies.
I’ve made great personal progress on this. I used to have a deep skepticism for anyone who didn’t like chocolate, desserts, booze – I’ve come a long way in narrowing my judgment zone to just pizza. Baby steps, right?
Try to see where I’m coming from here. We’re talking about the perfect food. There’s bread. There’s cheese. It’s literally infinitely customizable. How can anyone have a blanket dislike for something that can take almost any form or flavor? Help me, enlighten me – I’m open-minded. I just don’t understand.
Learning to make my own pizza dough took my pizza love from warm fondness to borderline obsession. There’s something almost empowering about making your own crust – getting to know the exact right level of stickiness, the smell of yeast as the ball of dough rises, the near-elation when you begin rolling it out and it doesn’t fight you even a tiny bit. Plus, there’s the added bonus of not being a slave to pizza delivery. I hate Papa John’s because a) I think the Papa himself is a total wackadoo and b) that sauce is so sugary I can barely stomach it, Pizza Hut and Domino’s are just not very good, and the local artisan pizza joints around here are so expensive I can’t really justify ordering from them. Pizza is one of the most inexpensive foods you can make at home – with just some flour, yeast, sauce, cheese and toppings, you’ve got a big, delicious pie (and you know exactly what’s in it!) for under $5 a pop.
I’ll admit I was intimidated the first few times I tried this, but that dissipated when it continued to turn out absolutely perfect every single time. I don’t remember the last time we ordered delivery, and now I make an off-the-wall pizza/stromboli/flatbread/calzone concoction almost weekly (see the buffalo tofu pizza pictured at the top of the post). This will change the way you do pizza – and it’s easy as pie (see what I did there?).
- 11 ounces (approximately 2 cups) bread flour
- ¾ tsp kosher or sea salt
- ¾ tsp granulated sugar
- ¼ cup warm water (about 110 degrees F)
- 1⅛ tsp active dry yeast
- ½ cup plus 2 Tbsp room temperature water
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- Cooking spray (or a little extra olive oil) for oiling the bowl
- In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine flour, salt and sugar.
- Add yeast to warm water and let stand for about 5 minutes. Add the rest of the water and the olive oil and stir to combine.
- With the mixer on low (or with a wooden spoon), slowly drizzle in the water mixture until the dough forms a cohesive mass (if it doesn't come together, drizzle in a bit more water by the tablespoon). The dough should be slightly tacky but shouldn't come off on your fingers when touched.
- If using a mixture, switch to the dough hook. If kneading by hand, turn out onto a work surface. Knead on medium-low or by hand for 6 minutes. If you're using a mixer, the dough should stay together and, by the end, should be lightly slapping the sides of the bowl.
- Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a towel. Let rise in a warm place (I use my oven, which stays around 100 degrees) for 1½ - 2 hours, until doubled in size.
- Punch down the dough and turn out onto a work surface dusted with flour or fine cornmeal. Cover with a damp paper towel and let rest for 10-15 minutes.
- Remove paper towel and roll out with a rolling pin to desired size and thickness.
- Preheat oven to 475 F.
- Top rolled out dough with desired sauce and cheese. Brush edges of crust with olive oil.
- Transfer to a baking sheet (or a heated pizza stone in your oven) and cook for 9-11 minutes, until edges of crust are puffy and slightly browned. Let cool for 5 minutes, slice and serve.
Source: very slightly adapted (and halved) from Baking Illustrated
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