From Oil to Pizza
I thought that I should share my wealth…well, my wealth of knowledge. In particular, my knowledge of how to make pizza all in house. It’s easy but takes a bit of time. You can decide to do this with your family on a weekend and the experience will be priceless. So, let’s start:
Starting from OIL
· Olive Oil (You can use extra virgin or do a mixture of varieties I used “dipping” and extra virgin)
You want to put enough oil in the bottom of a large pot to coat the bottom. You want about an inch or less of oil. Don’t put too much because you’re not frying. You just want enough liquid in order to bathe the vegetables that you’ll throw in. Put the heat to a little less than medium and let the oil’s temperature increase.
Marinara
· 1 medium yellow onion [diced]
· 1 can of diced tomatoes 15 Oz
· 1 can of tomato sauce 15 Oz
· 2 large carrots [peeled and chopped]
· 1-2 dry bay leaves (if they are pretty small use two)
· 1 tbsp dry oregano
· LOTS OF GARLIC (haha actually I used about 6 cloves)
· Salt and Paper
So for your pizza sauce you can throw in your diced onion and chopped carrots into the oil at the same time. Try to get them chopped to about the same size so that there is homogeneity. Let those cook and the oil without burning...not too high not to low but kinda slow got it?
Continually stir everything so that it stays coated in the oil. After the onions have gotten really translucent and their color really gets rich, 15-20 minutes, you want to start working on your garlic paste.
Smash and peel the garlic cloves, sprinkle salt over them, and with a typewriter type motion, rock back and forth over the cloves.
Smash down on the cloves with the flat side of a big knife until they get sort of pasty (that’s the point).
Throw it in the pot. Stir all of the veggies a little and the smells will really start to kick up.
Pop open your two cans and dump it all in as well. I use diced and the sauce because it allows for a sauce that’s not too thick and not too thin. It’s well balanced.
Now, you can throw in the bay leaves and a pretty generous amount of salt, about a tablespoon, always do quality control and taste for yourself to see if there is need for more or less.
Take the tablespoon of oregano and put it in the palm of your hand. Yes, in your hand. With both hands over the pot rub the oregano between both palms allowing it to fall into the mix.
This heat from your hands helps bring out the oils in the oregano and really gets all kinds of great smells and flavors going.
You can now throw the lid on, lower the temperature to low and relax…sort of. It should definitely cook for about 40 minutes longer at least an hour total. Don’t let it burn. Go low and slow. We will return to this but let’s get the dough stated.
Pizza Dough
· 3 ½ - 4 cups all purpose, unbleached flour (bread flour would be an even crispy crust or take any risks you want and go with wheat)
· 1 package of active yeast (I think 2 and a half teaspoons out of the jar)
· 2 teaspoons of salt
· 1 tablespoon olive oil
· 1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey
· 1 teaspoon granulated white sugar
· 1 ½ cups of water at 109-110 degrees Fahrenheit
Prepare to get dirty. Get your apron ready. Measure out your flour into a large bowl. I trust that you can go with 4 cups. IMPORTANT! Add the salt into the flour along with the sugar and either whisk with a fork or whisk or use a sifter. Doing this allows the flour to mask the salt. If the environment is too salty (high salinity) it will kill your yeast or make them really unhappy. You want really, really happy yeast. This will give you the best dough. NEVER ADD SALT DIRECTLY TO YEAST.
Dealing with the yeast is the most critical and important part. You want to measure out your water and use a thermometer to check the temperature.
I usually use a candy thermometer but any thermometer works (no excuse not to have one mothers). If you have no thermometer anywhere try to approximate. Our body is 98 degrees Fahrenheit so you want it to feel only slightly hot to the touch. Add in the oil and maple syrup.
Remember, you want happy yeast. This is why I like to feed my yeast something sweet. I usually use honey but maple syrup makes them super satisfied.
Pour in the oil first and it will be easier to clean the spoon later ;).
Now, put the yeast in their bath and once you see them start to make happy bubbles then you can pour everything into the large bowl of flour.
Mix everything together by hand or spoon. If it is too dry, add water by the tablespoon and if it is too wet you can add flour by the tablespoon.
Put the dough onto a floured surface and knead it until it is soft, supple, and springs brag when you press into it.
It should be elastic. Don’t be too rough. This could be a great time for kids to help. After you have formed your dough into a nice ball, place in a large bowl and you want to cover the ball with a tiny bit of oil to coat it all around and in the bottom of the bowl so that it stays most.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a large kitchen towel and place the bowl in a place where it won’t be disturbed, where the temperature doesn’t fluctuate too much, and away from air. The counter may work but I always go for an off oven. Let the dough sit for an hour or until it has double in size no longer than 2 hours though.
Finish the Marinara
By this point, the sauce will smell like heaven and all your veggies will be tender.
IMPORTANT! Remove the bay leaves, if you don’t it will be like eating toothpick shavings or something.
Pull out an immersion blender and blitz it until everything is smooth. If you don’t have one you can use a food processor or a blender.
They would probably be easier or faster to use but I didn’t feel like cleaning everything. Done. Now you can leave it on really low and let the flavors continue to meld together.
Finish it up
After the dough has risen for an hour, punch right down in the middle, take it out, cut it into 4 pieces (like an “X”), and repeat the oil and bowl procedure so that it rises a second time for an hour. You’re practically done.
Take out your dough and place it onto a floured surface for rolling. I like to add cornmeal as well because it gives an extra nice crunchy crust.
You can also try to free form the crust. I let the kids do this. Place the dough on a baking sheet (not a cheap thin one that might burn though) to make it easier to transfer to the oven or if you plan to make a thicker crust you can put it directly on the rack of the oven.
Using a fork, poke around in the center so that it doesn’t puff up when cooking. Coat the dough in olive oil to get a really pretty color. Put the sauce in the center to the edge. Throw on whatever fixings you want. I used a green mixture of bok choy, chard, and spinach with bleu, mozzarella, parmesan, and smoked Gouda cheeses. Bake the pizza at 500 until everything starts to get golden.
Voila! Look what you just did.
You want your crust to be like this by the end. ;)