Home Made Pizza Dough

A few weeks ago, I wrote about my love for making pizza at home, and in that posting, I shamefully admitted to being a lazy-cheating-good-for-nothing pizza dough buyer. Just writing that down made me feel kind of dirty. It's that low down feeling that prompted me to buy some yeast and make my own damn dough. I can now say that I am no longer a pizza dough buyer, but rather, a pizza-dough-maker. A notable distinction - mind you! Being the type of cook who likes simple recipes with big pay-off, I must say, this is exactly what making pizza dough is: simple yet totally rewarding. All you need to do is plan a few hours in advance to allow the dough to rise and then just a little more time to let it rest. From this moment on, you will never see me with store-bought dough again! After all, to admit you have a problem is always half of the battle!

Easy Pizza Dough

from smittenkitchen

1 1/2 cup flour (you can replace up to half of this with whole wheat flour)
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 cup lukewarm water (you may need 1 to 2 TBLS more)
1 TBLS olive oil

Stir dry ingredients together, including yeast, in a large bowl. Add water and olive oil. Stir mixture into as close as a ball as you can. Dump everything onto a floured surface and knead until you have a homogeneous ball. If this is difficult, take the now empty bowl and place over ball and step away for a few minutes.

Knead for a minute or two and place it into a lightly oiled bowl, turn the dough over so that all sides are lightly coated with oil and cover with plastic wrap for and hour or two. It should double in size.

Dump it back onto a floured surface and gently press air out of the dough with the palm of your hand. Fold it back into a ball and place it under plastic wrap for 20 minutes.

Sprinkle pizza stone or baking sheet, with corm meal and set oven to its highest temp.
Roll out dough and place toppings on, erring on the side of skimpy, so not to weigh down pizza.

Bake for about 10 minutes, or until just blistered.