Homemade Pizza Dough

You. Yes, you there.  I know you’re guilty of it. I am too.  Yes, I’m talking about buying ready-made pizza dough.  It’s really a crime how simple this stuff is to make. For the longest time, I’ve been daunted by the thought of making dough, especially anything involving yeast.  It just seemed beyond my capacity as a home chef.  But no more! Liberate yourself, and have a go at making your own dough. I promise, you will never look back!  This dough also doesn’t require kneading, so it’s super easy to put together.

Use this dough to make my Margherita, Cajun BBQ Chicken, or Chorizo & Egg pizzas!

3 ½ cups of bread or AP flour, plus more for shaping & rolling
(Note: Using bread flour will give you a much crisper crust. If you can’t find bread flour, you can substitute it with all-purpose flour which will give you a chewier crust.)
1 teaspoon sugar, honey or agave
1 envelope active dry yeast (2 ¼ teaspoons)
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 ½ cups water, 110 degrees F
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus 2 teaspoons

Fit a stand mixer with the dough hook. Combine the bread flour & kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and combine.

In a measuring cup, mix the water, yeast, sugar. While the mixer is running, add the olive oil and water/yeast mixture and combine until the dough forms into a ball around the dough hook.

The dough should be very sticky.  If the dough is too dry, add additional water, 1 tablespoon at a time.

Scrape the dough onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead into a smooth, firm ball.

Grease a large bowl with the remaining 2 teaspoons olive oil, add the dough, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and put it in a warm area to let it double in size, about 1 hour.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide it into 2 equal pieces. Cover each with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let them rest for 10 minutes, or freeze for later use!

Print Homemade Pizza Dough Author: Delish D'Lites Recipe type: Italian Serves: 2 pizza crusts Prep time:  1 hour Total time:  1 hour Ingredients

• 3½ cups Bread Flour or AP Flour (plus more for rolling)
• 1 teaspoon sugar, honey or agave
• 1 packet active dry yeast (2¼ teaspoons)
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1½ cup very warm water (110 degrees F)
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (plus 2 teaspoons more)

Instructions

1. Fit a stand mixer with the dough hook. Combine the bread flour & kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and combine.
2. In a measuring cup, mix the water, yeast, sugar and olive oil. While the mixer is running, add the water/yeast mixture and combine until the dough forms into a ball around the dough hook. If the dough is too dry, add additional water, 1 tablespoon at a time.
3. Scrape the dough onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead into a smooth, firm ball.
4. Grease a large bowl with the remaining 2 teaspoons olive oil, add the dough, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and put it in a warm area to let it double in size, about 1 hour.
5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide it into 2 equal pieces. Cover each with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let them rest for 10 minutes before rolling them out, or freeze for later use.

Notes This dough freezes great for later use, just wrap in plastic wrap and pop into a zip top bag. Thaw overnight in the fridge before use. 3.2.2807