Pizza in Quarantine

I’ve tried a few different pizza dough recipes over the years, but I don’t have patience- if I want pizza it has to be today. I also can’t get the cook times right. But this recipe for deep dish might be perfect!

Adapted from food52.com

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 teaspoon fine salt (like table salt or fine sea salt)
  • 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast or active dry yeast
  • 3/4 cup lukewarm water
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil plus 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil for the pan
  • 6 ounces low-moisture mozzarella, grated (but I think James wanted more!)
  • 1/3 to 1/2 cups tomato sauce or pizza sauce.
  • Place the flour, salt, yeast, water, and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in the bowl of a stand mixer or other medium-large mixing bowl.
  • Stir everything together to make a shaggy, sticky mass of dough with no dry patches of flour.Then gather the dough into a rough ball, then cover the bowl.
  • After 5 minutes, uncover the bowl and reach a bowl scraper or your wet hand down between the side of the bowl and the dough, as though you were going to lift the dough out. Instead of lifting, stretch the bottom of the dough up and over its top. Repeat three more times, turning the bowl 90 degrees each time. This process of four stretches, which takes the place of kneading, is called a fold.Re-cover the bowl. Repeat for 4 total times. 
  • Cover the bowl and let the dough rest, undisturbed, for 40 minutes. 
  • Then refrigerate it, covered, for a minimum of 12 hours, or up to 72 hours. (transfer the dough to a gallon-sized ziplock bag with a little extra olive oil to coat the inside of the bag.) 
  • About 2 hours before you want to serve your pizza, prepare your pan. Pour 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil into a well-seasoned cast-iron skillet coating it.
  • Transfer the dough to the pan and press the dough to the edges of the pan, dimpling it using the tips of your fingers - if it begins to shrink back—that’s okay, just cover it and let it rest for about 15 minutes.
  • Cover the crust and let it rise for 1.5 hours at room temperature.
  • With rack on bottom- Heat the oven to 450°F.
  • sprinkle about three-quarters of the mozzarella evenly over the crust. Cover the entire crust, no bare dough showing—this will yield caramelized edges. Dollop small spoonfuls of the sauce over the cheese (don't spread it!)—laying the cheese down first like this will prevent the sauce from seeping into the crust and making it soggy. Sprinkle on the remaining mozzarella.
  • Bake the pizza on the bottom rack of the oven for 22 minutes, until the cheese is bubbling and the bottom and edges of the crust are a rich golden brown. ( If the bottom is brown but the top still seems pale, transfer the pizza to the top rack and bake for 2 to 4 minutes longer.)
  • Remove the pizza from the oven and place the pan on a heatproof surface. Carefully run a table knife or spatula between the edge of the pizza and side of the pan to prevent the cheese from sticking as it cools. Let the pizza cool very briefly, then as soon as you feel comfortable doing so, carefully transfer it from the pan to a cooling rack or cutting surface. This will prevent the crust from becoming soggy.



Comments

Popular Posts