Recipe': Home-made Pizza Dough

Recently I produced an episode of my cooking show on YouTube where I made a Lebanese Lamb Pizza, and it got me to thinking about how much I love pizza. When I was a younger man I ate a LOT of pizza. And I still love the concept and variety of pizza today. Whether it’s a Chicago-style deep dish, or a hand-tossed New Yorker, pizza is a great thing. I especially enjoy making my own pizza at home, especially when I am feeding my posse’. The great thing about pizza is that you can put anything on it: pepperoni, hamburger, ham, veggies, etc. Personally, my favorite is barbecue and sausage with black olives, or pepperoni and onions. The thing that is consistent, no matter how you top it off, is the dough. So, I thought I would share with all of you, the recipe’ that I use to make a brilliant home-made pizza from scratch.

Ingredients:

Canola Spray for baking pan

1 package active dry yeast

1 cup warm water

1 Tsp. Sugar

1 Tsp. Salt

1 ½ Tbs. Olive Oil

2 ½ Cup All Purpose Flour

Instructions:

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Thoroughly dissolve the yeast in the cup of water in a large bowl. Add salt, sugar and olive oil, and mix thoroughly. With the exception of ¼ cup of the flour, add flour incrementally, stirring in. Beat with baker’s spatula, turning and rolling until dough is evenly consistent. Once dough is firm, use last ¼ cup of flour to knead the dough, folding with each knead. Mold dough into an even ball, then let sit for 5 to 10 minutes so that it rises. On a large pizza or baking pan that has been sprayed with canola, set the dough and flatten with hands, pushing out. Once flattened use rolling pin to extend the dough to the desired thickness. This dough will make up to a 16” thin and crispy, although, I usually opt for a little thicker 14”. Crimp edges to make a small “wall” around the outside of the dough. Add sauce first, then toppings. Bake in oven for 20-30 minutes depending on size and thickness and desired crispiness. Enjoy!