Make This Pizza

A couple weeks ago I was babysitting for our friends. They had some leftover homemade pizza from their dinner that night and told me to help myself. I did. And I pretty much haven’t stopped talking about this pizza since. I actually called my husband and apologized to him for the fact that even though I thought I could cook, I was obviously way behind the curve. When my friends got home I raved about the pizza {and the accompanying crazy bread} and then begged for the recipe. So here it is. If my glowing review hasn’t convinced you it might be important to note that this friend, Danielle, used to be the head baker at Magleby’s restaurant in Provo, UT–a local favorite. Her family owns the joint. Homegirl knows good food.

Crust
Makes one medium pizza (I doubled it for pizza and crazy bread)

3/4 c water
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. sugar
1 tbsp. dry milk powder
2 1/4 c flour
1 tsp active dry yeast (I always use SAF)
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)

Add ingredients to bread machine (usually wet first, yeast last) and put on dough cycle.
**If you don’t have a bread maker either dissolve the yeast in a 1/4 cup of the water (hot from the tap) or just throw the SAF yeast in with your dry ingredients. Then mix in the rest of your water, oil, and lemon juice into your dry ingredients and knead or beat in mixer until dough is smooth and elastic. Dough should be slightly sticky but not enough to stick onto your fingers. Add more or less to ensure correct consistency. Make sure your water is hot from the tap if you aren’t using a bread maker.After dough has risen to double in size roll out on a floured surface to be about 1/2 inch thick. Transfer to a greased pan with cornmeal on the bottom. Let rise for 30 more minutes for a chewier crust. Then top with your favorite traditional toppings, or try these… (Bake in a 500 degree oven, on a pizza stone if you have one, for 12-15 minutes depending on how thick your crust is.)

Garlic Crazy Bread Style
Spread olive oil over the dough, sprinkle fresh Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, and sea salt. Dip in warm marinara sauce.

Pear and Gorgonzola Style
Sounds fancy, but so delicious and easy!
Caramelize 1 small onion. (slice very thin, saute in oil over medium high heat until browned and slightly crunchy) Spread olive oil over dough, sprinkle mozzarella, and parmesan cheese, sliced pears, caramelized onions, Gorgonzola, or Blue cheese, ground pepper, sea salt, and drizzle some honey on top. Amazing.

Notes:
*I don’t have a bread machine–so I just threw everything in my kitchenaid with the dough hook and I make sure to let it kneed for a while. At least 5 minutes. Then I take it out, rub some oil over the dough, place in a bowl, cover with saran wrap and let it rise in the oven {warm the oven to 200 degrees then turn it off} with a bowl of warm water on the rack below. Dough should double in size–took about an hour. Then I rolled it out and let it rise again another 30 minutes as per the directions above.
*Also my oven and Danielle’s oven must not be on the same wavelength because 500 degrees was way too hot and I burned the bread the first time. So I baked my bread and pizza at 450 degrees for 8 minutes and it came out perfectly. My advice is to start with a lower temperature and watch it!
*I don’t have a pizza stone–a regular cookie sheet with a silpat or parchment paper worked great.