There are 2 parts of this recipe - the dough which is started ahead of time, and the topping.
The dough is started somewhere between 2 and 4 hours before assembling the pizza. This gives the dough time to rise and develop gluten. I tend to like a somewhat wet dough, as opposed to a stiff dough as I find it more tender and a wetter dough forms gluten faster and w/o kneading. Over time you may want to adjust the amount of flour and/or water to get the results you want.
| Quantity | Item |
|---|---|
| 2¼C (250g) | unbleached flour |
| 2t | active dry yeast |
| ¼t | salt |
| 1C (224g) | warm water |
| 1T | olive oil |
Tools : A measuring cup for the flour and water, measuring spoons for the yeast and salt, a bowl large enough to mix the dough without it spilling out, a wooden spoon or spatula to mix the dough with, a half-sheet pan (13"x18") to hold the pizza. A baking stone is recommended.
In a measuring cup, add yeast to the water, stir well, and set aside for a few minutes. Measure out the flour and salt into a mixing bowl and stir to mix, then after the above waiting time, give the yeast/water a good stir and add it to the bowl. You might want to add about half the water to the bowl and then stir the remaining water to get the yeast that's settled to the bottom, and then add that to the bowl. Mix it all together well to incorporate using a stiff spatula or wooden spoon. Keep mixing, incorporating all the flour, until the dough comes together into a ball. Add a little olive oil to the bowl and turn the dough ball to coat. Cover the bowl with a towel or plastic bag and leave in a warm spot for 2-4 hours to at least double in size.
After the dough has risen, start preheating the oven to 500° F. with a shelf with stone at middle height. Pour the olive oil into the half-sheet pan and distribute evenly with your hand(s). Using a spatula, scrape/coax the dough out of its bowl onto the pan and with oiled hands stretch it out the long way almost the whole length of the pan. It will be springy/elastic and want to contract so be gentle but firm. Then using your fingers, spread it uniformly to all sides, being careful not to make it so thin that holes appear. They can be hard to close. Once you have it stretched to all edges, you can brush the top with olive oil to reduce the likelyhood that the toppings will make the crust soggy.
If using a sauce, apply it thinly to avoid making the crust soggy. Also avoid watery toppings like tomatoes. See below for the toppings I mostly use. Once topped, wait for the oven to finish preheating before putting the pizza in to bake for 10-15min.
These are my favorite toppings.
| Quantity | Item |
|---|---|
| ½ C | seasoned tomato sauce |
| fresh spinach leaves, washed and trimmed | |
| fresh basil leaves | |
| 8 oz | fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into slices |
| ½ C | one of chevre or feta cheese, cut into ½in pieces |
| ⅓ C | parmesan cheese, grated |
| 10-15 | pitted kalamata olives, halved |
| 1 | red or yellow bell pepper, sliced into strips |
| ½ | red onion sliced into half rings |
| salt, fresh ground black pepper | |
| Penzy's Pizza Seasoning |
The ingredient order I follow is usually a thin layer of sauce, the mozzarella, olives, bell, onion, and then the chevre/feta. If using the spinach or basil, apply a tiling of the leaves over the sauce before adding the other toppings.
Finally a sprinkle of salt, grind of pepper, and the Pizza seasoning across the surface ending with a sprinkle of parmesan over it all.
We rarely ever put meat on our pizzas, but that's just us.