Pizza Pizza
So it turns out that I might be a sucker for the Bon Appétit cover recipes. And while taking on cover recipes is always a little daunting, it’s been a rewarding experience overall! The recipes are always delicious although my presentation tends to be a bit off! March’s pizza issue was no exception. When it first arrived in my mail box a few weeks back, I knew we’d be having pizza.
Actually, the timing was pretty good. Last winter, I had a bread starter going, inspired by this amazing book, so most weekends I’d be baking bread. And as noted in the book, pulling off a little piece of dough for a pizza is almost a requirement when you’ve taken all of that effort to make the bread. And not one to take pizza lightly, I have some fun extras – a great pizza stone, a pizza peel and cutter. Anyway, no starter is brewing this winter and there has been some general dissatisfaction noted about the lack of pizza.
This recipe looks easy and it is. Really, all you need is a little time, so make sure you’re planning ahead of your pizza craving! Oh, and this is a good recipe to read all the way through, but isn’t that always the case. If you don’t have a scale to measure the flour, make sure you measure carefully – I find that the softer the dough, the better the pizza. And, this recipe makes enough to feed a small party of friends, or yourself for several days! Either way, it’s all good.
No-Knead Pizza Dough
From the March issue of Bon Appetit
7 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (1000 grams) plus more for shaping dough
4 teaspoons fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast
3 cups of water
Measure and mix the flour, salt and yeast in a large bowl. I prefer to get my hands dirty, gradually adding the water and stirring by hand. Continue gently mixing the dough until it comes together and forms a rough ball. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and tuck it in a protected corner or warm spot in your kitchen. Let the dough rise at room temperature (about 72°) until the dough has more than doubled and small bubbles cover the surface. This will take about 18 hours, but could vary depending on temperature, etc. Once the dough is ready, transfer it to a floured work surface. At this point, you’ll want to work carefully with the dough to preserve all of those amazing little bubbles. Gently shape the dough into a rough rectangle. Divide the dough into six equal portions. One at a time, gather the four corners to the center to create four folds. Turn the seam side down and mold gently into a ball. Dust dough with flour and set aside on work surface or a floured baking sheet. Continue shaping the remaining dough.
Cover the dough with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let rest for about one hour. If you don’t plan to use all of the dough at once, wrap individual portions in plastic wrap and refrigerate. Before using, bring to room temperature for two to three hours.
To Make the Pizzas
While the dough rests, prepare the oven. Arrange a pizza stone on a rack in the upper third of the oven. Preheat oven to its hottest temperature, ideally 550°. Let oven heat for one hour.
Handling one ball of dough at a time, dust generously with flour. Use your hands to gently shape the dough. Try as I might, I never get a circular pizza, but it always seems to turn out OK. The dough should stretch out into a nice thin shape, circular or not!
When you are ready to bake, increase the oven heat to broil. Sprinkle your pizza peel or other transfer surface with flour. You could use a rimless baking sheet or even a piece of clean cardboard. Place the dough on the peel and prepare with toppings. Simple toppings are usually the best – see below for a few ideas.
Using quick motions, slide the pizza peel back and forth so the pizza slides onto the hot pizza stone. Broil the pizza until it looks done – the cheese should have melted into bubbling goodness and the crust should be crisp and blistered. This should take about 5 minutes.
When the pizza is done, use the peel to transfer to a clean work surface for slicing. If you are making multiple pizzas, allow the stone to reheat for about five minutes before baking the next one.
Topping ideas:
My favorite topping has to be one of the simplest. Top the pizza with mozzarella and once baked, finish with lightly dressed fresh basil or arugula. I like to toss the greens with a little olive oil and some spicy pepper flakes.
A little homemade tomato sauce and mozzarella can’t be wrong, either. Consider topping with a few more of those greens, or some thinly sliced prosciutto, or other meat of your choosing.
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