OK, first thing’s first, we all know that the reason you (AND I) don’t make pizza from scratch, is because the thought of it is daunting. Making dough!? Who can be bothered to do that!!????? Well I can tell you this from the bottom of my heart – it is SUPER easy to do it. I am the laziest of the lazy, and find this so simple. Just try it once and you’ll never look back.
TIP: When I make these, I’m making them for lunch. So after splitting the dough into 4 parts, I put each part in a snap lock bag and put it in the fridge. I have kept them for at least 5 days and still used them no problem. Just pull one out when you want to use it!
Watching THIS VIDEO will make the whole process very easy.
PIZZA DOUGH
1 package dry active yeast
1 teaspoon honey
1 cup warm water
3 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
INSTRUCTIONS (watch video instead)
Heat your oven to 220 degrees. If you have a pizza stone, putting it in the oven and heating it up about an hour before you cook, is ideal. That way the stone is well and truly hot. This will ensure you crisp up the bottom of the pizza when cooking it.
Put the yeast, honey and 1/4 cup of the warm water into a bowl. Stir and then leave to disolve for 10 mins.
Next add the salt, olive oil, 3/4 cup of warm water, and a cup of flour. Stir that up and it will become a batter. Add another cup of flour, stir that in. And finally add the last cup of flour. It will eventually become too thick to stir, so transfer to the board.
Sprinkle flour onto the board/ dough. Using the palm of your hands, kneed the dough for about 5 minutes – until the dough is nice and smooth (slightly sticky).
Get another bowl, coat it with olive oil, and then put the dough into the bowl. Cover for 30-40 minutes (place in a warm spot) and this will rise. Hopefully this will double in size.
Once dough has risen, turn out onto a board. Pat it down with your hand, to release the air. Split the dough into 4 even pieces and using your hands, take one of the quarters, and fold the edges of the dough under itself (this is where watching the video I linked above, really helps). Once you have done this to all pieces, put them on a tray and cover. Let them sit in a warm place for 20-30 mins.
After this time. Take 1 piece and place on a lightly floured board. Use your fingers to press out the dough into the size you want (you can use a rolling pin, using your fingers just helps to make that crust shape around the edge).
Once you are happy with the size of the pizza, dab olive oil onto the pizza dough.
Next add your pizza sauce, and toppings. We actually make our own pizza sauce too, and will share the recipe with you soon.
THIS PIZZA IS SO GOOD …
The pizza dough recipe was found by my husband and is by Chef John. Chef John has amazing “how-to” videos when it comes to recipes, so would recommend clicking the link and watching some of his other videos if you are interested.
