Basic Pizza Dough

I'll post a few pizza dough recipes over the next week or so. I thought it would be pretty basic to start with...well, with a basic dough.

The following recipe came from The Pizza Book by Evelyne Slomon. I found this book in the library years ago when I was first learning to make pizza. I liked the many options she had for pizza dough. Apparently the book is now out of print, but there are used copies available on Amazon.

There are three doughs that I use from this book. Here is the first:

Basic Pizza Dough

1 cup warm water (110-115 degrees)
1 package active dry yeast
3-3 1/2 cups all purpose flour (I use Hi-Gluten flour. Gives it a bit more oomph)
1/2 teaspoon salt.

1. Pour the water into a medium-sized mixing bowl and sprinkle in the yeast. Stir gently with a fork until the yeast has dissolved and he liquid turns light beige in color. MY NOTE: I place all of the ingredients in my breadmaker according to the breadmaker directions and set it for "dough." I also use my KitchenAid mixer with a dough hook, putting the hot water in first, then the salt, then the flour, then the yeast on top. Then I continue with the rest of the direstions.

2. Add 1 cup of the flour and the sale. Mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon. Add a second cup of flour and mix well. After the second cup of flour has been mixed in, the dough should start coming away from the sides of the bowl and should begin to for a soft, sticky mass. It is now ready to be kneaded.

3. Measure out the third cup of flour. Sprinkle some over the work surface and flour your hands generously. Remove all of the dough from the bowl and begin to work the mass by kneading the additional flour in a bit at a time.

From here, I assume you know how to knead dough and when to know it's ready for a rise. If you don't, let me know and I'll point you to some directions.

I put my dough in a tupperware-type bowl and either put it in the fridge for a 24-hour rise, or let it rise until doubled. If you put it in the fridge for a slow rise, this is supposed to improve gluten and flavor. Take it out about four hours before you need it and put it in a room-temp location, not too warm.

After that, divide it in half for two small pizzas, or leave it for one large. There's a great instruction video for shaping pizza crust here and a good basic pizza dough recipe with instructions here (thanks, MamaGeph!). It's kind of a by-feel thing. Sometimes I use the rolling pin (a big no-no, huh Michael S. Class? ) and sometimes I use my hands. I just keep messing with it, letting it rest occasionally, until I get the size and shape I want.

Then I put it in or on a pan that's been oiled and dusted with semolina flour. Let it rise for about ten to fifteen minutes before putting the toppings on if you want a nice, thick crust.

Top with stuff, but not too much. This is a more delicate crust than the semolina crust I'll post later. If you want a deep dish pizza, wait for the semolina recipe; it holds up better and doesn't get soggy with lots of toppings.

I bake mine on the bottom rack at around 450 (depends on your oven's temp) for around 18-20 minutes, sometimes putting on the broiler for a few minutes to brown the top very slightly (gotta watch that broiler, though!). I hope to get a pizza stone (which I understand can be as simple as terra cotta tiles from the hardware which you can leave in your oven all the time, even when you're not using them. This tip comes from Alton Brown).

Thanks for all the pizza tips! I can't wait to try them. I wonder how long it will be before my family tires of pizza?