Recipe: Pizza Dough

What to do when you need to make time till your boyfriend’s plane lands? Cooking! So I made pizza dough, a nice tested and retested recipe. It’s very basic, but it turns out great!

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon active dry yeast (or one 5.5 grams package)
• 3 1/2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups warm water

Instructions:

1. Pour 1/2 cup warm water in a cup or small bowl. Stir in yeast, and let stand until yeast dissolves and turns creamy, 5 minutes.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour and salt. Make a well, and fill it with yeast mixture, olive oil and a cup of warm water. Stir with a fork, incorporating liquid little by little, until a ball of dough forms. Turn dough onto floured work surface, and knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. If dough seems dry and hard, add a few drops of water; if wet and sticky, add a little flour.
3. Shape dough into a smooth ball, dust it with flour, place in a large bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Let rest in a warm, dark place until doubled in bulk, about 90 minutes. Divide into 4 balls before using. Can freeze up to 3 months.

Yield: 4 10-inch pizza crusts

Notes:

• I like this pizza dough best once it’s been frozen and defrozen.
• For freezing, I rather not let the dough rise. Once you’ve finished kneading, divide dough in four, grease each portion with a bit more of olive oil, and wrap in plastic, then freeze.
• For thawing, put the dough at ambient temperature for a while, until you can unwrap it carefully, then place it in a deep dish slightly oiled and cover the dough with the same plastic it was frozen in. Put the dish over a bowl full of very hot water and let rest undisturbed, until dough has risen and at least doubled.
• Roll out the dough on a slightly floured surface, and cook over parafined paper. It’s easier rolling it out directly on the paper, still using flour.

Use your favourite ingredients for making the pizza: tomato sauce, veggies, different cheeses, meats… My favourites include mozzarella, olives, onion and a bit of tuna! Bake at about 180ºC. You can also make calzone: just put the ingredients mixed together on the rolled out dough covered with tomato sauce, fold in half, and close carefully. Brush the surface with some oil, and into the oven! Enjoy!

Sade