Basic Pizza Dough Recipe

See Also: Pizza

Basic Pizza Dough

1 cup warm water (110-115 degrees)
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
2 cups bread flour
1 1/4 cups semolina flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

In a measuring cup, combine water, sugar, and yeast. Set aside. In processor with steel chopping blade in place, combine 2 cups of bread flour and 1 cup of semolina flour with the salt, reserving the other flour to use only if needed. Add the yeast mixture and oil and process continuously until dough forms a single ball or several masses on top of the blade. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead by hand for about 2 minutes. Shape into a ball and put the dough in an oiled bowl, turning to coat with the oil on all sides. Cover. Let rise about 45 minutes in a warm, draft-free place. (80 degrees).



In meantime, place a pizza stone, if you have one, in your oven on a rack at the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. When dough has doubled in size, roll it out to desired size and shape, about 1/4 inch thick. Sprinkle a pizza peel with cornmeal or semolina and place the crust on the peel. Fill and bake as quickly as possible.

Recipe created 1994-09-21.