Homemade Pizza

My daughter, who is a chef, taught me how to make pizza. Really good pizza. Pizza is a very personal preference. People have strong feelings about their pizza. It is one thing to try making something like pizza dough on your own but it is completely another thing when a chef teaches you and brings a great recipe that works every time. She knows how the dough should look, how it should feel, how to stretch it out, how much stuff to put on it, what the crust should look like when it's perfectly done. I listened very closely and made sure I picked up as much as possible so that I could make it again, without her, successfully. My daughter is a purist, when it comes to food, so we made margharita pizza and it is the only kind I've made since. You know the saying... if it ain't broke.






I am fortunate that I have granite counters which are wonderful for working pizza and pasta dough, and items for baking like pie crust. I mix my ingredients in a food processor, which some would say is just not right, but I don't think mixing it by hand makes it any better, and the food processor is so fast. Then I lay the dough out on the granite and kneed it. I sometimes use the Italian double zero (00) flour as it makes a wonderfully light and tender dough. You can purchase double 00 flour at Italian deli's and some specialty markets but if you can't find it locally you can get on line and have it shipped. I've ordered from King Arthur Flour and all the products are very good.


The key to a good pizza is a really hot oven. This is hard to do with the conventional home range. I preheat my oven for at least an hour prior to baking the pizza and I use a pizza stone. Get your oven as hot as you can get it.

This recipe is form Pizza, Calzone and Focaccia by Maxine Clark and the recipe makes a pizza that is soft and chewy with a crisp crust. It will make two 10 to 12 inches pizzas.

Dough:

1 package active dry yeast
1/2 teaspoons sugar
1 cup hand hot water, (hot water to the touch)
4 cups Italian "00" flour or unbleached all purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 tablespoon olive oil

Sauce recipe is below.

You will also need mozzarella cheese for the topping

In a medium bowl mix together the yeast, sugar and hot water. Allow to sit for 10 minutes to get frothy.

Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl. Put into the food processor, add the olive oil, pour in the yeast mixture. Pulse until it comes together. If it seems too stiff, add a little more water but be careful not to make it too wet. Put out on a lightly floured kneading surface and kneed briskly for 5 to 10 minutes until the dough is smooth, shiny and elastic. Try not to add to much flour as you kneed, you want the dough soft and somewhat wet. Shape the dough into a ball and put into a bowl that has been brushed with olive oil. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise until double in size about 90 minutes. Be sure you have a draft free warm area to allow the dough to rise.





Uncover the dough, punch down, and put out on a lightly floured surface. Divide into two balls. Place the balls well apart on the surface, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and allow to rise again another 60 to 90 minutes.

I use my hands and fingers to roll out the dough but you could try using a rolling pin. Use the same lightly floured surface to get it to the desired shape and thinness.

I use a pizza peel that I have sprinkled with corn meal on which to place the prepared dough. Then I add the sauce and the cheese and slide it onto the pizza stone.


For the sauce:
1/2 cup olive oil
2 garlic gloves, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 14 ounce cans chopped San Marzano tomatoes
Sea Salt
Pepper, freshly cracked

In a large shallow pan, heat the oil until very hot. Add the garlic, oregano, and tomatoes quickly and cook over high heat for 5 to 8 minutes. Be careful with this process. Stand back to avoid getting splattered. The high heat is important to get the sauce where it needs to be, thick and glossy. Season. Allow to cool slightly for the next step.

Pass though a food mill to remove any seeds or peel. If you don't have a food mill use a large mesh strainer and push it through with a rubber spatula. At this point the sauce should be thick but if you want it thicker or richer you can add it back to the pan and heat again. This process makes a uniquely rich sauce, with only a few ingredients.

Ladle the sauce over the pizza then add slices of fresh mozzarella cheese. It doesn't take much sauce because it is so rich. It surprised me when we made it because it has so few ingredients, and it cooks quickly, but it was delicious and intense.



Depending on how hot your oven is, and how thick your crust is, the pizza will take approximately 20 minutes. Use your peel to remove the pizza from the oven and place on a cutting surface. Add chopped basil while hot, slice, and enjoy.

While you're doing all this hopefully someone else has already selected the wine and opened the bottle!