Pizza! Pizza! Dough!

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Last Christmas, I was given what every amateur baker wants, more baking equipment–in other words, a pizza stone. Since receiving this wonderful gift, I’ve tried perfecting pizza dough. I’ve tackled Tucci, I’ve gone full Giada, I’ve even relished Roberta’s, but so far, the best pizza dough I’ve ever made is Nancy Silverton’s of Pizzeria Mozz fame.

I admire this woman a great deal. Not just because of her pizza dough skills, but because she loves experimenting with dough, which is also one of my favorite things to do. If you haven’t seen her episode of Chef’s Table on Netflix, you should really check it out. And now…to the dough! 

I have to admit, this isn’t Nancy Silverton’s exact recipe. This is the way I made the dough and although I didn’t do her version justice, it still turned out better than all the others I’ve tried. 

Here’s What You’ll Need:

For the sponge:

1 ¾ Cup Lukewarm Water

1 Teaspoon Active Yeast

3 Cups of Bread Flour

1 Tablespoon of Rye Flour

1 ½ Teaspoons of Wheat Germ (I didn’t add this, because I didn’t have any)

For the full dough:

⅞ Cup Water

3 Cups Bread Flour

1 ½ Teaspoons Barley Malt (if you don’t have the malt, you can add honey)

1 Tablespoon of Salt

For later:

Olive Oil

Here’s How to Make It:

Step 1:

First things first, you have to make a sponge. What’s a sponge? It’s a way to create serious flavor in a short-ish period of time by pre-fermenting your dough a little bit before mixing it all together. They call it a sponge, because it looks really bubbly. To make your pizza sponge, pour the water into the bowl of your mixer or a regular mixing bowl and add the yeast. Let it sit for a bit until the yeast dissolves. Then add three cups of bread flour, the rye flour, and the wheat germ, if you have it. Wheat germ just helps build up the gluten in the dough. Mix this all together with a wooden spoon, then cover it with plastic wrap (twice, yup…twice) and let it get spongey for an hour and a half.

Step 2:

Once your sponge is spongy, remove the plastic and add the additional water, flower, and barley malt or honey to the bowl. Then, fit your mixer with the dough hook and mix for about two minutes, then add the salt, and mix again for about six minutes. The dough will start to pull away from the sides of the bowl when it’s ready and it will be a little sticky. If it’s too sticky, add a bit more flour and mix for two more minutes. 

While your dough is mixing, grab another bowl and coat it with olive oil. Turn your dough out into the mixing bowl coated with olive oil, then cover it with plastic wrap (twice, yup…twice) and let it rise for 45 minutes.

Step 3: 

After 45 minutes, it’s time to fold your dough. Remove the plastic wrap, take one side of your dough, stretch it up, and fold it over the other side. Then rotate your bowl a quarter of a turn and repeat this again. Then do it again. Then do it again until you’ve done it four times, making sure the folded side of your dough is face down. Cover your dough up with plastic and let it sit for another 45 minutes.

Step 4: After folding your dough, put your pizza stone in the oven and preheat it to 450 degrees.

Step 5: Now it’s time for the last rise before you shape your dough. In other words, you’re getting seriously close to having a hot, delicious pizza in your mouth. Take your dough and divide it into six equal pieces. I’m only making two pizzas, so I froze the rest of my dough for future deliciousness. 

If you were being super fastidious, you’d weigh your dough and make sure each blob was the same weight. I’m not that fastidious, I must admit. I just do it by eye. Once you have your pieces, spread each out into a flat, round shape, de-gassing it and popping the bubbles. Then, fold it in on itself until you have a ball. Flip your ball over and drag it through some flour, pushing it gently along the bottom of the ball to create some tightness or tension. Do that again until all your balls are tense (yeah, I just typed that sentence in real life). Let your balls relax for an hour under a clean dish towel (yup, I just typed that sentence in real life, too).

Step 6: Now it’s time to make PIZZA! After your dough has risen again for an hour, it should look bigger. Flatten it out, carefully stretching with your hands into a round shape. Place your flat pizza onto some parchment paper and top it with whatever you like. I used homemade pizza sauce, buffalo mozzarella, and a little bit of parmesan. Place your parchment and pizza on the pizza stone and cook for about 14 to 15 minutes.

Step 7: I tossed a few freshly torn basil leaves onto my pizza, but you can do whatever you’d like to yours. Just make sure you enjoy eating it.