Basic Pizza Dough
Why I Love This Recipe
I make all kinds of pizza dough, but this one is the most basic. Easy Peasy.
Ingredients You'll Need
1 1/4 cups warm water (bathwater warm, about 110 degrees F.)
1 tablespoon sugar or honey
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons (or one package) dry yeast
3-3 1/2 cups bread flour (can swap out 1 cup of bread flour for whole wheat flour)
1 teaspoon salt
Directions
Place a pizza stone in the oven and preheat to 450 degrees F.
Place the water in a large mixing bowl. Stir in the sugar or honey and the olive oil. Stir in the yeast. Let this mixture stand for about 5 minutes or until it starts to foam (this way you know the yeast is working). Add three cups of the flour and the salt.
Attach the dough hook and knead the dough for about 5 minutes. It should clean the sides of the bowl. If the dough is too wet, add a little flour, a tablespoon at a time. Likewise, add a little water if it's too dry.
Place the dough in a well oiled bowl and turn it over so that both sides are oiled. Cover the bowl with a clean towel and let the dough rise in a draft-free area until it's doubled, about 45 minutes.
Punch the dough down and plop it on a floured surface ( I prefer my Silpat), then divide it in two. Put one of the halves of dough back into the bowl and cover it back up.
Spread the dough out into a 10-12 inch circle
Put a generous handful of cornmeal on a pizza peel and spread it around. Place the dough on top of the corn meal ---you are now ready to top the pizza with the toppings of your choice.
Slide it onto the pizza stone and bake for 10-12 minutes. I had my oven on convection and just had it in there for 8 minutes.
