Bring me back to Italy with homemade pizza!

Like a lot of people out there we really enjoy pizza.  If we have the time we make our homemade pizza dough.  The recipe we use is from our go to book “Local Breads” by Daniel Leader.  It comes from Antico Forno in the Campo de’ Fiori in Rome.  Let me tell you, this is the real deal, over the top amazing.  If we ever get back to Rome we are heading to that place.  This is a bubbly light dough that just makes you want to eat all of it yourself.

The level of difficulty is low but it is time consuming.  Completely worth the effort.

In a mixing bowl pour 1 3/4 cups of tepid water (70-78F/21-25C), 1 tsp yeast, 3 1/4 cups flour (unbleached and high gluten if possible), and 1 1/2 tsp sea salt.

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Using the dough hook blend the ingredients until it comes together.  This is a wet dough and will be clumpy and sticky at first.

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At this point grab your tablet or a book, you’ll be standing here for awhile.  Turn your mixer up to at least medium-high speed which is 8 on the Kitchen Aid.  You will need to hold the mixer with one hand as it might “walk” while you surf the web or read.  This needs to be done for about 15-17 minutes, sometimes longer.  It will start to smooth out.

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The test is to make an opaque window with the dough without it tearing.

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Once you are done kneading then it needs to rise for 3 1/2-4 hours (told you it is time consuming!).  Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with cling film that has been sprayed for this.  It will triple in volume.

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At this point preheat the oven to 500F/260C with a large pizza stone in the oven.  Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide the dough into about 8 sections.  Cover with the cling film.  Let this rest for at least 10 minutes.  This is about the time we go walk the dogs.  🙂

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Get all your toppings in order.  We usually like to have fresh mozzarella, veg, garlic, prosciutto, etc.  Dust a baker’s peel with flour then hand stretch the dough out.

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Stretch it out onto the baker’s peel and lightly coat with olive oil and some sea salt.

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We usually bake a couple just with olive oil and sea salt so we can snack on this while we do the pizza with our toppings.  Bake until golden and bubbly.

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It is so good right out of the oven!  I like to make white pizzas but as these are individual pizzas go wild and have fun with your toppings.

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So much better than takeaway!  🙂

19 thoughts on “Bring me back to Italy with homemade pizza!

  1. Marvelous – and a method I haven’t tried yet!
    I’ve been making par-baked crusts for years and freezing them to pull out when time is tight or I need an easy lunch…which reminds me, I think we used the last one last week…
    Off to the kitchen! 😀

  2. That’s a fantastic dough recipe and those pizzas are perfect. It’s been a while since I’ve made pizza and you’ve just given me the inspiration I needed, Thanks.

  3. This is a great dough. Almost the same hydration to bake a ciabatta bread. I am craving to get a kitchen aid but read some reviews that it is not all suitable for kneading bread dough. is it true?

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