Andrea’s Recipes

Pizza is a staple around our house, something that we really enjoy making and eating. I have wanted to add a whole-wheat dough to our repertoire, and I’ve tried it a number of different ways but not always with good results. I also wanted to experiment with a quick dough, something that I could whip out on a busy day without a lot of rising time. I wish I could say that I had loads of time to make bread and pizza dough every day, but that’s just not the case! Maybe when I’m retired and the boys have all grown up and gone off into the world.

I saw this recipe on Eating Well advertised as a dough you could prepare and have in the oven in just 30 minutes. That’s not really time to rise, just enough time for gluten to start developing, but I thought it was worth trying. The whole wheat flour adds a lot of depth to the crust and can make it too heavy if you accidentally use too much, especially since it loves to soak up the liquid. I think the recipe works better with one tablespoon of flour subtracted from the full cup. The dough does not rise, so don’t expect that, it just has time to rest before shaping. If you can make it the night before and let it rest in the refrigerator it’s even better because the dough is a little slack and easier to roll out, plus the flavors have time to develop even more. It will even perform well after sitting for up to two days. If you like the refrigerated Trader Joe’s pizza dough in the bags, then you will probably like this as it’s pretty similar.

The dough is simple to make and tastes pretty good. We all enjoyed it and my pizza loving five-year-old kept asking for more. We made two thin crust pizzas out of it and ate them for dinner, but this would also make a great appetizer. You can also use all of the dough and make one thick crust pizza.

We topped one pizza with caramelized shallots, garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, and goat cheese, and the other with my favorite pizza sauce, pepperoni, and mozzarella.

I wrote the instructions based on my KitchenAid stand mixer, and old 300-watt model which doesn’t like heavy doughs. If you have a newer model with more power, then you might be able to increase the speed slightly for kneading.

Equipment

stand mixer with dough hook attachment
pizza peel or rimless cookie sheet
baking stone (or you can bake on the cookie sheet)

Ingredients

1 scant cup whole-wheat flour
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2-1/4 teaspoons instant yeast or 1 package quick-rising yeast
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon sugar
¾ cup hot water (approximately 115°F)
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
coarse cornmeal, for sprinkling on the peel

Preparation

1. In the bowl of the stand mixer, combine whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, yeast, salt, and sugar and whisk together. Combine hot water and oil in a measuring cup. With the mixer running on low speed, gradually pour in enough of the hot liquid until the mixture forms a sticky ball. The dough should be quite soft. If it seems dry, add 1 to 2 tablespoons warm water; if too sticky, add 1 to 2 tablespoons flour. Mix on low until the dough forms a ball, then increased speed to 2 for just 1 minute to knead.

2. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface. Coat a sheet of plastic wrap with cooking spray and place it, sprayed-side down, over the dough. Let the dough rest for 10 to 20 minutes before rolling.

3. Place a pizza stone or inverted baking sheet on the lowest oven rack; preheat oven to 500°F or highest setting. Sprinkle the coarse cornmeal on the pizza peel or baking sheet.

4. Lightly flour your hands. Flatten the dough with your palms, then pick it up and hold it by the edge, rotating the dough in a circle. This helps stretch the dough.

5. Lay the stretched dough on the floured surface. Roll the pizza, rotating a quarter turn after a couple rolls. Continue until you have a 12 to 13-inch circle.

6. Bake the pizza until the bottom is crisp and golden, 10 to 14 minutes. Serve immediately.

Tips

Store in a plastic bag coated with cooking spray in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Bring to room temperature before using.

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Source: adapted from Eating Well magazine

Tags: comfort foods, yeast