Pizza Night

Homemade pizza is fantastic.  The toppings here are pretty simple, but think of it as a blank canvas for endless creations; infinite combinations of cheese, sauce, and veggies.  Let your creative juices flow. 


This recipe is for a Margarita-style pizza.  Traditionally Margarita pizza is topped with fresh tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and fresh basil.  Here I cheat a little and use canned tomatoes and shredded mozzarella, along with fresh basil.  But I highly recommend trying out this recipe using fresh ingredients at the peak of tomato and basil season.


The most difficult part of this recipe is the crust.  It is from scratch.  If you have never made yeast bread from scratch, pizza dough is a great starting point.  It has very few ingredients and can be pretty forgiving if you over kneed or under kneed.  Just plan ahead.  The dough will need to rise for an hour and a half before assembling the pizza. 



I've included two techniques for making the dough; utilizing either the simplest of all tools, your hands, or a stand mixer.  I've used both techniques.  Before receiving my stand mixer as a Christmas gift (Thanks Mom!) I sweated over many a pizza dough.  Just think of it as a great workout for your arms and shoulders.  If you have a stand mixer the dough couldn't be simpler; just add the ingredients and press go.


I learned this crust technique from a Venezuelan friend of mine who learned it from an Italian Grandmother.  It makes a thin crispy crust, just the way I like it.

Pizza

2½ teaspoons active dry yeast

1½ cups warm water

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon salt

3½-4½ cups all purpose flour

1 can crushed tomatoes (14.5oz)

2½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese (8oz)

½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese

20 fresh basil leaves  

Dough By Hand
Add the warm water to a medium bowl (about 2 quarts) and sprinkle the yeast over top of the water and let stand until foamy, about 4 minutes.  If the mixture does not turn foamy the yeast is no longer active and new yeast needs to be used.  Once foamy stir in 2 tablespoons of olive oil and salt until the salt dissolves.  In a separate, large bowl (4 quarts) add 3½ cups of the flour.  Create large well in the center of the flour, large enough to incorporate the water-yeast mixture.  Pour the water-yeast mixture into the well and with a fork bring the flour in gradually from the sides, swirling the four into the liquid.  Keep mixing, drawing in larger amounts of flour as the mixture thickens.  Once the dough begins to form work the remaining flour in with clean, floured hands.  If the dough is too sticky add additional flour, ¼ cup at a time.  After all of the flour has been incorporated turn the dough out onto a clean floured surface and kneed by hand for 10 minutes or until the dough becomes smooth.  Form the dough into a ball and place in a lightly oiled bowl.  Turn to coat the dough on all sides with the oil.  Cover the bowl with towel and let rise in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Dough With a Stand Mixer
In a stand mixerIn a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water and let stand until foamy, about 4 minutes.  Add 2 tablespoons olive oil, ½ cup of flour, and 1 tablespoon flour; mix until creamy.  Add the rest of the four, ½ cup at a time, and kneed with the dough hook until the dough is smooth and not sticky, about 10 minutes.  Form the dough into a ball and place in a lightly oiled bowl.  Turn to coat the dough on all sides with the oil.  Cover the bowl with a towel and let rise in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size, about 1 hour.


Pizza Assembly 
Preheat the oven to 500°F. 

Punch down the dough, transfer to a lightly floured, clean surface, divide equally into three balls, and knead the balls briefly to shape them.  Cover and let the balls rise for an additional 30 minutes.

Flatten each ball and gently roll into round, thin crusts about 12-14 inches in diameter.  Place the crusts onto cornmeal dusted pizza stones or greased pizza pans.  Place the pizzas in the oven.  Once the crust begins to puff, poke with a fork, about 5 minutes.  Brush the crusts with the remaining olive oil and sprinkle with salt to taste.  Place the dough back in the oven until the crust becomes golden brown, 5-10 minutes.  Remove the crust from the oven and spread 2/3 cup of the crushed tomatoes onto each round, leaving a ½ border around the edge.  Distribute the basil evenly among the pizzas and spread over the top of the tomatoes.  Sprinkle the mozzarella and Parmesan evenly over the top of the pizzas and place them back in the oven for 5-10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and golden on the edges.

Serve and savor.