Homemade Pizza Dough

Mushroom & Onion Pizza w/ Cilantro Pesto

It has been awhile since I've posted. Work has been busy and my computer just had a week-long battle with some virus. It was frustrating not being able to do my usual computer stuff, but I took advantage of this and took a mini-vacation from the online world. I wasn't as productive as I should've been, but I got to spend more time in the kitchen, took cat naps with Odin, and read some books...

I've been fascinated by bread-making lately. I can't say that I have too much success, but there were a couple of things that I was pretty proud about. With every bread-making project I embark on, the less and less I am afraid of using yeast. Now, I can't even remember why I hesitated to use yeast in the first place. If you remember a few posts before this, I made some yummy homemade English muffins. Strangely enough, that was one of my first attempts using yeast! Not even just regular bread, but English muffins! Sometimes I'm more ambitious than am practical.

Anyway, I've been making homemade pizza dough lately, even though it takes a little bit of time, but it's totally worth it! I love that I can have any topping I want and that I can make the crust as thin as I like! Now that I have had some experience with making dough with yeast, I find that it's very easy to do.

Read on if you'd like to see how I made my dinner last night...




Homemade Pizza Dough

makes 2 8-in thin crust pizza

1 pkg. dry yeast
1 cup of warm water (@ 95-105 deg F)
1 tsp of sugar

2 1/2 cup of flour
2 tsp of salt

1.  Preheat oven to 450 degree F. Since the yeast thrive better in a warm environment, I keep the oven on for the duration of the process. (I have a small kitchen.)

2.  Combine the warm water, yeast and sugar, mix well. Let stand until bubbly, about 5-10 mins, so you know the yeast is alive and feeding.

3.  In the meantime, combine and mix well the flour and salt in a large oven-safe bowl, and put it in the oven for about 1-2 mins, just to slightly warm up the flour for the yeast.

4.  Make a well in the flour and pour in the yeast water mixture. I begin mixing with a wooden spoon, then my hands until the ingredients are combined and form a slight stiff and flaky ball.

5.  Turn dough out on a lightly floured surface, knead for around 1 min until the ball is relatively smooth. Then put it in a large well-oiled bowl, cover and let rise for about 1 hour, or until it's double in volume.

6.  Punch down the dough, divide it in two. Lightly knead each one on a lightly floured surface into a ball, cover and let proof for another 15 mins.

7.  Using a rolling pin, roll each ball into your desired shape and size. Cover with your favorite sauces and toppings. Bake in the oven until golden brown, about 12-15 mins.

Here's a picture of my dinner. It's an Asparagus, Mushroom & Turkey Pizza with Jack & Red Peppers: