Pizza dough:
For a thin crust pizza on an 11 or 12 inch pizza plate
(ovenproof earthenware or metal) you need about a cup of flour (King Arthur
unbleached bread flour works well), 1 tsp instant
yeast* (Fleischmann's Quick-Rise Instant Yeast is perfect), 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp
sugar, 3 tbsps good olive oil, ½ cup warm water (so you can just hold your
finger in it).
*There are plenty of yeast brands from plenty of companies
out there. But trust me on this, the instant variety is the one to go for.
I mostly use my Kitchen Aid, but kneading with your hands
sure beats therapy and if you increase the quantities to feed the family you get a great workout too. Mix the dry ingredients. Stir in the oil. You want to end up with a
dough that is springy and elastic after five minutes of kneading, not sticky,
but not cracking from being too dry either, so go easy with the water,
otherwise you’ll be adding more flour down the line. Let the dough rise in a warm place for an hour or more until doubled in size, then knead again briefly.
Oil your pizza plate. Now the test: if you’ve treated your
dough right, if it has been worked enough, it will be ready for s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g.
The Italians do it just with their hands. But I cheat a little – I use a rolling
pin to make the dough into a big circle, like for a pie crust. Then I stretch
the edge all the way round. That way the dough doesn’t shrink back from the
edge of your plate, the crust is authentic and not too thick.
Filling:
Restraint is key. Toppings contain moisture and you want to
avoid moisture because moisture makes bad dough. Tomato paste makes
a great base to spread on your dough because the water has been removed. Pepperoni
and onion should be sliced thinly, same
for bacon and sausage (try part cooking so fat runs off before adding). I find
that slicing mushrooms ahead of time then letting them dry out in a warm place works real well.
Anchovies, black olives, capers are traditional Italian additions, but dry them on kitchen
paper before adding. A word on cheese:
your artisan pizza deserves the best mozzarella. Look out for it at specialty
retailers, and don’t buy pre shredded.
Baking:
Heat is key. Crank your oven up as high as it will go and place your pizza in the hottest part. Placing it on a pre heated metal sheet is another good tip I'll share - to encourage a crispy base. The pizza should take about 15-20 minutes to cook.
My favorite pizza would always have a tomato paste base, freshly
grated mozzarella, a few anchovy slices, a small handful of capers and black
olives, a sprinkling of oregano, black pepper, a splash of olive oil and some shaved parmesan.
It would not have more than one or two other ingredients (so pepperoni or
mushrooms, with a few slivers of onion, say). Oh and folks, it would never have…pineapple.
