Homemade Pizza Crust

It is finally here…my first recipe post of 2014! My first recipe post since September! Oh my, it has been too long. Hopefully this recipe makes up for lost time.

Pizza is one of my favorite foods. There are so many tasty Italian restaurants around here, and I enjoy going to them. Good red wine, good pizza, and entertaining wait staffs. What’s not to love? I also love to make pizza at home, and since we managed to check the Kitchen Aid mixer we had gotten as a gift as an extra piece of luggage after our wedding I was obsessed with making my own crust. Unfortunately this is something we can only do on weekends because of the time needed to let the crust rise. This recipe is out of the book that came with the mixer, with a little bit of a kick added.

What you need :

Olive Oil, Italian Seasoning, Active Dry Yeast, Flour, Parmesan Cheese, Salt, Cornmeal and Warm Water (not pictured)

For starters, I rinse the bowl for the mixer under hot water to warm it up and encourage the rising process. Attach the dough hook attachment to the mixer.

Combine 2 1/2 cups (350 grams) of flour with the salt, Italian seasoning and parmesan cheese and set aside.

Add the yeast and warm water to the mixer bowl and stir it up a bit. Add the olive oil & mixed dry ingredients, and turn the mixer on to speed 2 and mix for a minute.

Add the remaining cup (140 grams) of flour in 2 halves and mix until the dough clings to the hook and cleans the sides of the bowl, which will take about 2 minutes. Continue kneading on speed 2 for about 2 more minutes. It is important that you not over mix or the dough will not rise, and that would be sad. Take this from the inexpert baker. I am so bad at baking that I literally use a timer to ensure I don’t overdo it!

Grease a bowl, and place the dough ball in the bowl. Turn it over once to grease the top.

Cover the bowl with a towel and place it in a warm, draft free place. I often will use our oven for this, with it turned on just barely so it is a little warmer than our house.

Let it rise for around an hour, when it is approximately twice the size you started with.

We use a pizza stone in our oven to make the crust crispy on the bottom, so when you get the dough out to start making your crust, turn on your oven to preheat at 425 degrees Fahrenheit (220 Celsius) on the convection (heißluft) setting. If you don’t have a convection setting, raise the temp by 25 degrees Fahrenheit.

Punch the dough ball to deflate it.

Spread some cornmeal on a piece of parchment paper (backpapier), and put the dough ball in the middle. Roll the dough outwards until between a half and 1 centimeter thick. We have this super great pizza dough roller that I just love, but you can do this with your hands too.

Create an edge around the dough to keep in the sauce (especially if you are me and LOVE sauce, and use a lot of it). Top your pizza as desired – we usually go with a combination of mushrooms, peppers and onions topped with mozzarella and parmesan with an Arrabiatta seasoning on the top.

Bake in the oven for 15 – 20 minutes or until your seasonings are baked to your definition of perfection. Slightly browned is how we roll.

Enjoy!

Ingredients :
1 Package Active Dry Yeast
1 Cup Warm Water
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
2 Teaspoon Olive Oil, with additional to coat rising bowl
3 1/2 Cups Flour, divided
1 Teaspoon Italian Seasoning
1 Tablespoon Parmesan Cheese, grated
Cornmeal for spreading the dough

Instructions :
Warm the mixer bowl and attach the dough hook attachment to your mixer. Add yeast and warm water, and stir to combine. Mix the salt, 2 1/2 cups (350 grams) of flour, Italian seasoning and parmesan in a separate bowl. Add the olive oil and dry combined ingredients to the yeast mixture. Turn the mixer to speed 2 and mix for about a minute. Continue mixing on speed 2, and add the remaining flour 1/2 cup (70 grams) at a time until the dough clings to the hook and the sides of the bowl are clean. Continue on speed 2 for around 2 more minutes.

Coat a bowl to let the dough rise in with olive oil. Add the dough, turning over once to coat with the oil. Cover with a towel, and place in a warm and draft free place to rise (like your oven) for an hour or until doubled in size.

Preheat the oven (with a pizza stone if you have it) to 425 degrees Fahrenheit (220 degrees Celsius) on a convection setting, or 450 Fahrenheit (230-235 Celsius) on a regular baking setting. Put a bit of cornmeal on a piece of parchment paper, and spread the dough out until 1/2 to 1 cm thick. Make a ridge around the edge and top as desired.

Bake your pizza for 15-20 minutes until your desired level of doneness is reached. Devour!

Serves 2 – 6, depending on your appetite!