Italian Pizza Dough Recipe
Pizza is a weekly tradition for all of us at To Taste! This Italian pizza dough recipe is made with 00 flour, which gives the crust a wonderfully chewy texture and an incredible taste!
Servings: 2 12" crusts
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast (or 1 package)
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- 1 cup warm water (~90ºF)
- 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil + a little extra for greasing the bowl
- 1 Tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 ½ – 3 cups bread flour (00 recommended)
Instructions
- Add yeast and sugar to a large (~5 quart) mixing bowl or the bowl of a mixer. Pour 1 cup of warm water into the bowl and allow yeast to proof for 10 minutes.
- Add oil, honey, and salt to the bowl. Then add 2 ½ cups flour. If using a mixer, use the dough hook attachment and mix on low speed for 10 minutes. If kneading by hand, knead until a smooth dough is formed. Dough should be slightly sticky, but not so sticky as to adhere to your hands or stick to the bottom of the bowl. Add more flour as needed.
- After 10 minutes, use the window test to see if the dough is ready – pinch a ping-pong ball-sized piece of dough and see if you can stretch it thin enough to see through it, without the dough tearing. When it’s at this point, it’s done! Remove dough from the bowl and grease the inside of the bowl using a little oil. Add the dough back to the bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel. Place in a warm area of the kitchen until doubled in size (~1 hour), or place in the refrigerator overnight.
- Once dough has completed rising, remove it from the bowl and use a dough cutter to divide into two equal pieces. If dough was refrigerated overnight, let it come to room temperature first (~2 hours) before completing this step. Form the 2 pieces into balls, place on parchment paper, cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel, and allow to proof (second rise) for 30 more minutes. While dough is rising, preheat oven to 500° F. For an extra crispy crust, place a pizza stone in the preheating oven.
- After 30 minutes, roll or stretch the dough into rounds, approximately 12” in diameter. Place on parchment paper if using a pizza peel to easily slide into the oven or place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper if you do not have a pizza stone. Top with your favorite ingredients and cook for 8-10 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and the crust starts to brown. Enjoy!