Homemade Pizza Dough -

I love pizza. I mean…duh. Love eating it and love making it. It’s actually therapeutic in a sense. I’ve been making pizza at home for many years. I thought the dough I was using before was great. That is…until I came across this recipe and method. Since then, my standards have remained high and they will not come down for any other recipe. When I make my pizza at home, everything has to be legit. I’m talking basil from my garden, San Marzano tomatoes, butter and oil mixture for the crust. I take it quite seriously. You will too once you try this for yourself. Trust me, you’ll get addicted. If you’ve never made pizza dough at home, 1st, what’s wrong with you? and 2nd, this is hands down the only one you have to try. It produces the perfect dough.

This recipe actually comes from pizza master, Tony Gemignani, who authored the book, “The Pizza Bible.” It has not failed me yet. It produces a nice crispy, foldable slice of pizza with intense flavor. It’s a lot of waiting and a lot of work, but trust me….it’s VERY worth it!

Day 1:

It’s poolish day! What the heck is poolish? It’s just some flour, water and yeast mixed together. This is what’s called a starter. It puts a little oomph in your dough and really intensifies the flavor. Once mixed, let the poolish sit out at room temperature overnight, covered with plastic wrap.

Day 2:

Put your poolish in the fridge for about 30 minutes before starting your dough. Combine your warm water and yeast and stir vigorously. Let it sit while you work on everything else. In the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the flour and malt powder. Mix for about ten seconds. Add the ice water and mix for about 15 seconds.

Now, add the yeast-water mixture and mix for ten seconds. Add in the poolish and mix for about 30 seconds.

Add the salt and mix and the oil and mix. Mix on medium speed for about a minute or two or until the dough wraps around the hook.

Move the dough from the bowl onto an unfloured clean surface.

Begin kneading the dough until a smooth ball is formed. Move the ball to a lightly oiled bowl.

Cover the bowl with a damp towel and leave it at room temperature for about an hour.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Day 3:

Remove the bowl from the fridge. Degass the dough by punching it down. Pour out the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Cut the dough with a dough cutter in half or quarters. Fold the dough onto itself into a ball. Move the ball onto an oiled baking sheet. Keep about 2-3″ between the dough balls. Cover with plastic wrap that is also oiled. Place in the fridge overnight.