pizza dough

Pizza Dough

I don't know about you, but I have tried almost every pizza dough known to man-kind! When I was first learning to cook, I preferred using the frozen bread dough. I have also used every kind of dough found in those tubes in the dairy section of the grocery store. Many people have shared their recipes with me.

Last night though, I think I found the PERFECT PIZZA DOUGH! My husband bought me a pizza cookbook for Christmas and I must admit that I have not really cracked it open much..... very intimidating.....

Well, he wanted to try pizza on the grill, so we jumped in! So, so glad we did - I will never use any other type of dough.

Make this on a day when you have plenty of time to be patient while the dough is rising and resting.

In food processor mix the following:

3 1/3 C all purpose flour

1/4 C whole-wheat flour (this must be the secret ingredient....)

1 pkg. quick-rise yeast

1 T sugar

1 T salt

Slowly add 1 1/4 C lukewarm water and 2 t olive oil.

Pulse until it all comes together in a 'mass.' I found that I had to add a few more tablespoons of water, but if you do this, add them in small amounts so the dough doesn't get too wet.

Let the dough rest for 10 minutes - I actually set a timer so I didn't rush it!

Then process the dough again for 30 seconds. It should be 'tacky' but not 'sticky.'

Put the dough in an oiled bowl, turning it all around so the entire mass is covered in oil.

Cover with plastic and let it rise for 1 1/2 hours.

Turn dough onto floured board, punch down, shape into 2 balls, cover and let them rest for 10 minutes. I suppose at this point you could put one of the doughs in a zipper bag and freeze it for later - each of these balls made two lovely pizzas.

Cut each ball in half, start in the middle and use your fingers to spread and coax the dough into your desired shape. Be patient. If it wants to 'shrink' back into itself, it needs more resting time. I actually got mine rather thin, which was so exciting!

Cover it again and let it rest for another 15 minutes. Brush with oil, season with salt and pepper and proceed to top it with your favorite goodies.

We put the oiled side down on a clean grill, flipped it over and topped it with sauce, fresh mozzarella and veggies. When the grill was closed it acted like an oven and melted the cheese. The result was a thin, chewy, toasty and perfectly satisfying pizza.

Many thanks to "Pizza and Other Savory Pies" by Brigit Binns for this great recipe!