Obsessed with Pizza

Last week, I found a simple no-knead pizza dough recipe that I fell in love with from Smitten Kitchen. Since I know that we are going to indulge in our pizza obsession at least once a week, I decided to give it another go, this time experimenting with a longer rise, substituting half whole-wheat flour, and adding Italian dried herbs to the mix.

(A slightly embarrassing side note: We tried this pizza crust, and using the whole-wheat flour made it taste like cardboard, despite my best efforts. If that's your nag, then this is your recipe! Otherwise, sticking to regular flour will yield fantastic results.)

The recipe I used is as follows (this is for 2 12-inch round pizzas, although last week I just made one ginormous rectangle pizza):

~1 1/2 cups white flour
~1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
~1/2 tsp active dry yeast
~1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
~1 1/4 cup water
~1 Tbs dried Italian seasoning
~1/4 tsp sugar

The biggest "bowl" I had on hand was a large metal pot, so I mixed everything together using a large wooden spoon, and then covered with ClingWrap. I was planning on a half-day rise, but ended up allowing my dough to sit for about 18 hours. When I woke up this morning and took a peek into my pot, I was pleased to be greeted with a delicious yeasty smell, and saw that my dough had nearly tripled in size:


I floured a large Ziploc bag, and scooped the moist, pliable dough from my pot. To ensure it wouldn't stick too much to the bag, I tossed it around a bit for even flour coverage, and then squeezed the air out and placed lovingly in my refrigerator for use later today (hopefully). When we do decide to bake, the oven will be preheated at 500 degrees, and the pizza tray will be prepped with a splattering of corn meal. Carefully stretch the dough over your preferred cooking tray (we use one with holes in the bottom, which makes a mess, but ensures an unsoggy crust), and pre-cook for about 10 minutes. Then add your sauce, toppings, and cheese, and bake at 425 degrees until the cheese is bubbly and the crust is golden brown (15-20 more minutes, although ovens always tend to vary).

I can't say that my mouth isn't watering right now...Enjoy!