Pizza Crust
One of the keys to making a good pizza crust is to make sure that it is not too wet after it has had some time to rise. This crust dough is very moist after it finishes rising, but not so much so that it's hard to handle. It also has a very nice texture. Originally served as part of: Pizza.
Ingredients
- 1 package active dry yeast
- 1 cup water (warmed in microwave (approximately 110 degrees F))
- 1/2 teaspoon table salt
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 1/2 - 3 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (divided)
- 1 tablespoon cornmeal
Instructions
We pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees to get our pizza stone nice and hot.
We combine the water and the yeast in the mixing bowl of our Kitchen Aid. After about 5 minutes, when the mixture is bubbling, we add the salt (next time we should double this), the olive oil and 2 1/2 cups of the flour and using the bread hook we mix on low for a few minutes.
We knead the dough with our machine, on speed 2, adding additional flour as necessary. The dough should be slightly sticky, but should be able to pull off of your hands. We add a little over 3 cups of flour and this takes about 5 minutes. We want the dough to be smooth and elastic.
We then place the dough into a well greased bowl and turn the dough in the oil. We cover with plastic wrap and let rise for about 1 hour in our microwave to be draft-free. We want the dough to be doubled in size.
After removing the dough from the bowl, we punch it down. We separate the dough into two balls. Each ball is spread into a flat circle on a pizza peel that was covered with the cornmeal. Prior to putting the toppings on the dough, we give the peel a good shake to make sure that the dough will slide off when we put it into the oven.
The pizzas are cooked on the pizza stone for about 10 minutes (until the cheese was bubbling and the crust was brown). We serve the pizza sprinkled with hot pepper flakes and dried oregano.
Ingredients
- 1 package active dry yeast
- 1 cup water (warmed to about 110°F)
- ½ tsp table salt (double it next time)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour (as needed)
- 1 tbsp cornmeal
Instructions
What's a kid job?
A Kid job is a step kids can help with, with a grown-up nearby, not one they do on their own. Every kid is different, so go by what your child can do rather than by age. Roughly:
- Little ones (about 2 to 4) can stir, pour in ingredients a grown-up has measured, tear lettuce, wash vegetables and sprinkle toppings.
- Older kids (about 5 to 8) can also measure and level, crack eggs, whisk, roll and cut out dough, and put things together.
- Bigger kids can read the recipe aloud, keep track of the timer, and take on more of the cooking as they're ready.
Steps with a knife, microplane, skewers, stove, oven, grill or hot oil, or with raw meat, poultry or seafood, are marked Grown-up. Kids can still watch those, from a safe distance.
Grown-up
Heat the oven to 450°F with the pizza stone in it.
Combine the water and yeast in a stand mixer bowl. After about 5 minutes, when it bubbles, add the salt, oil and flour and mix with the dough hook on low a few minutes.
Knead on speed 2 about 5 minutes, adding flour as needed (we used a little over 3 cups in all), until smooth and elastic, a little sticky but pulling off your hands.
Kid job
Turn the dough in a well-oiled bowl, cover, and let rise about 1 hour in the (turned-off) microwave, until doubled.
Kid job
Punch the dough down and divide it in two. Spread each into a flat circle on a cornmeal-dusted peel and shake the peel to be sure it slides. Add your toppings.
Grown-up
Slide onto the stone and bake about 10 minutes, until the cheese bubbles and the crust browns. Serve with hot pepper flakes and dried oregano.