Perfect Customizable Pizza Dough

Photo: Morel & Ramps Foraged Pizza

Photos, video, & print card coming soon!

Who doesn't love pizza night? For us we like to make pizza night a time to come together in the kitchen, allowing the making of dinner to be part of the experience and a way to connect with one another. Making our pizza from scratch also gives us the perk of skipping that take out bloated and tired feeling too!

For us I have found that if I double this recipe it gives me four personal pan pizzas. At the time of writing this I am typically cooking for three adults so the fourth crust gets pre-cooked and popped into the freezer. This works perfectly allowing for me to accumulate already made pizza crusts for when we have a busy day and want a quick meal.

To make it fun ask each person what their favorite toppings are and create a build it yourself type of pizza bar. It makes dinner more exciting, simple, and the majority of it can be done ahead of time making clean up a breeze which gives you plenty of time to enjoy game night or whatever you have planned for after dinner.

This is also a fantastic idea for when guests come. Simply make as many batches of the recipe as needed to provide you with enough personal pan pizza crust giving everyone a blank canvas to put together their favorite combination. You can do the traditional pizza toppings and then add in some unique things like fancy mushrooms, elevated olives, or craft specialty cheeses. Think out of the take out box, have fun, and try new things. This is also the most perfect way to get kids involved in the kitchen and open to trying new foods. They could put something they typically wouldn't eat on one slice of their pizza to try and explore expanding their taste for other things.

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Recipe

If this is your first time making the recipe it may take a little longer. I have made it so many times now that I can pull it all together in under an hour and that includes shredding block cheese and prepping the toppings plus clean up!

If this becomes part of your weekly or monthly rotation I'm sure you'll get quick at it too.

Ingredients

2 packs of active dry yeast

1 tsp organic sugar

2 cups warm water (Bath water temp so you don't kill the yeast)

2 tsp sea salt

2 TBS olive oil

(I have made this oil free and I have also used melted butter instead- all 3 options work well)

5 cups Organic / unbleached all purpose flour

(I have also used spelt flour or half spelt and half all purpose these options work well)

You'll also want additional flour for flouring your surface and rolling out the dough

Of course you'll want your desired pizza sauce and toppings if you are making the complete pizza now

Optional Ingredients

You can add in any combination of dried/fresh herbs, minced garlic, or whatever seasonings you'd like to infuse into your pizza crust.

What I do is: Most of the time I add in 2 TBS of dried thyme, oregano, and Italian seasoning. Then I add in 3 cloves of minced garlic. I whisk this well into the dry flour before adding the wet ingredients. You can get creative and come up with whatever flavor combination you'd like. I recommend taking notes of what you do that way if you love it or hate it you'll be able to remember.

I also take 1 stick of organic grass fed butter and melt it in a ramekin in the oven then I'll add the seasonings mentioned above and brush it onto the pizza crust before the first bake. This isn't 100% necessary, but it gives the crust a bit more flavor and crispness.

Directions

Preheat your oven to 425°F

1. Pour the 2 cups of water into a large bowl then sprinkle on the yeast and sugar. Gently give the bowl a swirl to lightly combine. Set aside and let rest for 10 minutes. This is going to get your yeast active.

2. In a mixing bowl add your flour and salt plus any seasonings you are incorporating. Use a whisk and combine well.

3. Once the yeast has rested for 10 minutes and looks foamy give it a gentle stir then add in the 2 TBS of olive oil or melted butter if you choose to use it. Add in the flour and gently fold until somewhat combined.

4. This is where it gets a little messy, but fun. Make sure your hands are super clean (you can wear cooking gloves if you choose) then use your hands to combine the dough well. Once a ball is formed cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and let rest for about 5 minutes. This is when I prep the toppings for the pizza, shred the cheese if needed, and do a quick clean up. This can take more than 10 minutes but it is okay- the dough will be there ready!

5. Sprinkle flour on your clean counter or work surface. Take your dough and split into 4 equal size balls. You can weigh and get precise but I eye ball it and it works out fine. I like to use a large cast iron pan lined with unbleached parchment paper to get the round pizza shape and equal size crust. I have also use cake pans in the past. Pick something that is the shape of what you want your crust to be then roll out one of the balls similar to how you would do a pie crust. Then lay the rolled out dough over the unbleached parchment and roll down the excess hanging dough to make the crust. (See images above for reference)

   -You can also elevate the crust by folding cheese into the crust and making a stuffed crust.

   Once I have the crust formed I take the dough on the parchment paper and place it on a baking sheet. Let it set until you finish the remaining crusts.

6. Repeat step 5 with the remaining 3 balls of dough.

7. Once you have all of your crust formed you can brush on melted butter with herbs if desired (mentioned in the optional ingredients above) then bake your crusts without the toppings or sauce for 12 minutes in the 425°F oven. Make sure to keep an eye on it because everyone's ovens cook differently.

8. When everyone is ready have your family or guests put their sauce on and their toppings of choice then bake the pizza for 7 minutes at 425°F If you want it a bit more crispy turn the oven to broil for 2-3 minutes. Be sure to keep an eye on them while baking until you get the perfect time down for your specific oven. We are able to bake 4 personal pan pizzas at a time. If you are having more than 4 guests then do this process in batches. The nice thing about using the parchment paper is that you can label each pizza with the persons name so no one is getting their pizza mixed up.

9. I like to let the pizza cool down for about 2 minutes before cutting but sometimes we cut it immediately depending on our level of patience! Use a pizza cutter and cut then serve!

   I really hope you enjoy this recipe! I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to see your creations you can email, text, or tag us on social media to show us what you create. Also don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions. I will do my best to respond as quickly as I can. CONTACT NAT