With these last few posts, you might think this blog should be called something like "An American Who Loves Italian Food." Ok, it's not a great title; but it does suggest the Italophile phase of my cooking at present.
Last year Christine Hickman taught a class in making The True Pizza of Italy. She is quite serious about this. So serious that she won't eat pizza here. While I will chow down on a USA pizza, I can understand Chrstine's bias. The class was terrific and her dough recipes, especially the "Easy Pizza Dough", have been enormously useful to me this past year. When we were at Bluestone Farm we fed very hungry young interns with this dough as the basis for some really good pizza and in Philadelphia we made a great casual dinner very quickly using Christine's recipes. Once you've made this I think you, too, will make it often.
EASY PIZZA DOUGH
1 package (2-1/4 tsp.) active-dry yeast
1 ¾ cups very warm water (110°F)
4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
1-1/2 tsp. salt
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook, dissolve the yeast in the warm water and set aside until it is bubbly and frothy, about 10 minutes. If it doesn’t bubble, discard and try again.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Add to yeast mixture. Mix on low speed for 4 minutes or until dough forms a coarse ball, then knead on medium-low speed, 2 minutes more, or until dough clears sides of bowl.
Scrape the soft dough out of the bowl and onto a lightly floured surface. With lightly floured hands, quickly knead the dough into a mass, incorporating any bits of flour or dough from the mixing bowl that weren't mixed in. Cut the dough into four equal pieces with a knife or a dough scraper. Roll each piece into a tight, smooth ball, kneading to push the air out.*
Put the dough balls on a lightly floured surface, cover them with a clean dishtowel, and let them rise until they almost double in size, about 45 minutes. Meanwhile, turn your oven on to its highest setting, with the baking stone in it, to let the stone fully heat.
Proceed with shaping and making pizza or calzone of your choice.
Makes 4 calzone, 8 Romano pizzas, or 4 Napolitano pizzas.
*The dough can also be frozen at this stage and treated as described in the Slow-Rise Dough recipe.
- 1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
- 4 cups “00” flour or a mix described below* plus more for dusting
- 1 ½ teaspoons fine sea salt
- Extra-virgin olive oil for bowl
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook, sprinkle yeast over 1 ¾ cups warm water (100˚ to 105˚ will feel warm on your inner wrist). Let stand until yeast is creamy, 5 to 10 minutes. If yeast does not become creamy, discard and start over with new yeast. It may not bubble but will look active, with particles rising to the surface.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Add to yeast mixture. Mix on low speed for 4 minutes or until dough forms a coarse ball. Let dough rest, with bowl covered with a damp kitchen towel 5 minutes, then remove towel and knead on medium-low speed, 2 minutes more, or until dough clears sides of bowl.
If dough is too soft and sticky to hold its shape, mix in more flour by the tablespoonful. If it is too stiff or dry, mix in more water by the tablespoonful. (If not using a mixer, dough can be combined in a large bowl and, on a lightly floured work surface, vigorously kneaded by hand, following kneading and resting times above)
Lightly oil a large bowl. Form dough into a ball, transfer to bowl and turn to lightly coat with oil. Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature 30 minutes, then refrigerate overnight.
Punch down dough with your fist (dough will be stiff), then fold sides over one another, turn dough and return to bowl. Tightly cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours. Divide dough into 4 pieces; shape pieces into balls and place on a lightly floured work surface, leaving a few inches between balls. Loosely cover with a damp dishtowel (not terry cloth) and let rise at warm room temperature until doubled, about 2 hours; time may vary depending on room temperature and freshness of yeast. If skin forms on dough while rising, lightly spray surface with water.
Makes 4 (8 to 10-inch) Napolitano pizzas
Makes 8 (8 to 10-inch) Romano pizzas
For best flavor, start at least 2 days before you plan on making the pizza.
You can shorten the total time up to 1 ½ days, but no less than that.
It also freezes well by wrapping each ball individually in plastic wrap. If you freeze it, it’s easier to shape if you thaw it in the refrigerator for 8-12 hours before making the pizza. You can also thaw it at room temperature for 2-3 hours, but the dough is more difficult to handle when warm. The dough may be a bit wet. Don’t rework the dough too much once you thaw it or it will toughen up and you will need to reshape the ball and let it relax and rise again for an hour before shaping the pizza.
*This is a basic dough for both Romano and Napolitano style pizzas. To make dough for Napolitano pizza, use 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour and 1 cup bread flour. For Romano pizza, use 3 cups unbleached all purpose and 1 cup cake flour.
Real Italian 00 flour is difficult to find in the USA except by mail order. It needs to be ground from grain that has been harvested in Italy to make genuine Italian pizza dough. King Arthur sells 00 but the grain is grown in the USA. 00 refers only to the size of the grind and not the protein content, which differs greatly depending on what kind of wheat and where it’s grown.
BASIC PIZZA
Shape the Dough
With floured hands, transfer one of the dough balls to the floured work surface. Sprinkle the dough lightly with flour and gently press it with your fingertips into a round disk--you're trying to merely spread the dough not squeeze all the gas from it.
With floured hands, carefully lift the disk of dough and rest it on the back of your hands and knuckles. using the tips of your thumbs, stretch the outer edge as you slowly rotate the dough until it is 9 to 10 inches in diameter. The edge should be the only place where you exert any pressure. If necessary, let the dough hang off one of your hands so that gravity provides some of the stretch. Despite the pressure on the edge, it will remain thicker than the inner section of the dough, which be nearly paper thin.
Don't pull the dough forcefully into a circular shape or it will stretch from the center and possibly rip. If the dough begins to resist and keeps shrinking back into a smaller circle, lay it on the floured work surface and let it rest for about 2 minutes. While it is resting you begin to stretch and shape another dough ball. Return later to the first dough and finish shaping it.
Top the Pizza
Lay the shaped pizza dough on the floured peel and top it with 1/4 to 1/3 cup of sauce, if using, leaving 1/2 inch of the outer rim sauce free.
Continue with other toppings and cheese of choice, remembering always to use them sparingly.
Bake the pizza
Carefully slide the pizza onto the baking stone using a jerking motion to let it to slide. If it sticks to the peel, carefully lift the stuck section and toss a little flour under it.
Bake it until the edge is puffy and brown with a slight char and the underside is brown and fairly crisp, 5 to 7 minutes (the hotter the oven, the faster and better it will cook). Rotate it after 3 minutes for even browning.
Remove the pizza from the oven with either the peel or a long metal spatula and put it on a cutting board. Let it rest for 1 to 2 minutes before serving. While the first pizza is cooking, shape and top the remaining pizzas.
Pizza topped with smoked mozzarella and Meyer lemon
Pizza topped with artichoke hearts and feta cheese
Pizza topped with tomato sauce, smoked mozzarella, pepperoni and black olives
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