Pizza's are notoriously easy to make with a few extra equipments and a couple of know-hows.
Special equipment needed:
Cuisinart (7- or 10-cup model)You can mix by hand; it just takes longer.
Pizza stone -- You can use a pizza pan, but you won't get crunchy, thin pizzas.
Rimless cookie sheet -- The kind without the rim on 4 sides so you can slide the pizza onto the pizza stone
Large cutting board -- for the finished pizza. A large spatula or turner is also helpful to get the pizza out.
For the dough (t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup)
1 cup warm water
2 t active yeast
1/2 t sugar
2 to 2-1/4 c bread flour or 00 pizza flour
1/2 t salt
2 T olive oil
1/2 lb. cheese (mozzarella or whatever)
tomato sauce
fixings: vegetables such as peppers, mushrooms, onions, basil, etc. and meats such as salami, pepperoni, anchovies...
Corn meal
Mix the first three ingredients together and let sit until the yeast is nice and bubbly. If yeast fails to bubble, it's dead. Start with another batch.
While yeast is bubbling, measure flour and salt and put in the Cuisinart. Pulse a few times to mix.
Add olive oil to the yeast mixture and pour through the top opening of the Cuisinart with the machine running. If the mixture is too wet, add more flour; if too dry, add more water. When the dough is mixed and comes off the side of the mixing bowl, continue to run the machine for 30 seconds.
Take out the dough. It will be sticky. Make a ball and slap it for a few minutes or until the dough is smooth and no longer sticks to your hands. Put the dough in a bowl, cover and let rise.
Slapping the dough somehow makes a difference! I found it to be an important step.
Place pizza stone (if not already in) the oven and turn on oven to 500F. I've tried 400 and 450, but 500 makes for a thin, crunchy, authentic crust. While the dough is rising and oven is heating, grate the cheese (either by hand or using Cuisinart,) cut up vegetables and meats for the pizza. Also make salad or any other dish you're having with the pizza.
Spread cornmeal onto the cookie sheet to keep the pizza dough from sticking to the cookie sheet.
Take 1/2 of the dough and pat it flat, then start to stretch the dough. Be careful not to make holes in the dough. You can do this in the air or on the cookie sheet or a combination, whatever works. Sometimes if you let it sit a while, the dough relaxes and gets easier to work with. When the dough is stretched to about 12 to 13' in diameter, cover place tomato sauce and the desired fixings. Make sure dough doesn't stick to the sheet.
Carefully slide the raw pizza onto the pizza stone. Oven is hot, so pay special attention. Bake for about 10 minutes or until cheese is bubbling and edge of pizza is browned.
Remove pizza onto a cutting board. Let sit 3 to 5 minutes before cutting. Enjoy!
Serves 2 to 4
