Thin Crust Pizza for the win

Earlier this week it was brought to my attention that I haven't been documenting.

I guess it's nice to know that someone noticed.

There are a lot of things that I need to document. Thin Crust Pizza dough. Nutella Bread Pudding. Amazing homemade pretzels. Fried pickles. And most recently ... Chicken Tikka Marsala. All of those except the pickles were a win.

Last week, I ended up spending a few days at home in the Burbs with my siblings. It resulted in lots of cozy time on the couch, hot fires, and perhaps even more exciting was using their dishwasher. I haven't had a dishwasher since 2006. There were also pre-9 AM trips to Target, walks in the snow, and marveling at the cheese singles collection in Shaws. I know. Crazy couple of days right?

The first night that I was home, I whipped up my buffalo chicken tenders to rave reviews. I ended up using cornflake crumbs as opposed to panko flakes .... and it was a great change. Highly recommend it. The second night, I figured I'd do homemade pizza since it is my brother's favorite meal that I make. That and the pretzel nuggets I think. 

There really isn't anything fancy about making pizza dough. You can see in the pictures and the directions, it's pretty straight forward. But, the best part is that it's really rewarding if you have the time. 

This particular dough was described as "New York Style" and well, I can't really testify to that but I will say that it was perfectly thin and flavorful.

Here's how it goes.
(Step 1) Add the water, yeast, sugar, and a 1/2 cup of the flour into a mixing bowl. Stir well and let sit for 20 minutes. It will get bubbly. 

(Step 2) Add olive oil, salt, and 2 cups of the flour, and mix with a wooden spoon until it's together enough to turn out on to a lightly floured work surface to knead. 

(Step 3) Knead for about 10 minutes, while adding more flour a little at a time, to produce a soft, elastic and slightly sticky dough. Do not add too much flour, just enough to keep it from sticking to the work surface as you knead. 

(Step 4) Form the dough into a ball and place in a large oiled bowl. Drizzle a few drops of oil and coat the top of dough to prevent the surface from becoming dry. 

(Step 5) Cover with a kitchen towel and place in a warm spot for 2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size. 

(Step 6) Punch down the dough and divide into 2 balls and place in large zip lock plastic bags and refrigerate overnight. 

(Step 7) When ready to use, remove from fridge, and let the dough come up to room temperature before using. 

(Step 8) Stretch out your dough until its comfortably thin. I know that's a vague way to describe it but you'll know what I mean ... because too thin is pushing the limits.

(Step 9) Decorate your pizza and cook it for about 20 minutes in a 375-400 F oven.


Shopping List
2 1/4 teaspoon (1 package) instant dry active yeast
1 cup warm water
1/2 tablespoon sugar
3 cups bread flour, or as needed
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoon salt

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