I don’t think I’ve ever met someone who doesn’t love pizza. Bread covered in sauce and delicious toppings of all kinds baked in the oven until the edges are golden and crisp? Sounds like a perfect meal to me! Though ordering pizza for delivery is arguably more convenient, you may be surprised at just how simple it can be to prepare pizza at home with common ingredients you most likely always have on hand.
Working with yeast to create a dough can feel daunting to some, and truthfully it’s something I haven’t experimented with much at all. But, I can say that this straightforward recipe will help you create a classic pizza dough that is thin, yet fluffy with a crisp crust.
The 4 ingredient pizza sauce to accompany this dough is made in only a few minutes and requires no cooking prior to spreading on the pizza before baking.
Our go-to pizza toppings include a variety of veggies such as bell peppers, red onion, sautĂ©ed mushrooms, sliced black olives, spinach, and canned artichokes. You could also definitely sprinkle on your favourite vegan cheese if you’d like. Adding some fresh basil on top after it comes out of the oven is also a must whenever we have it on hand!
Classic Pizza Dough
Makes 2 16″ round pizzas
Ingredients
4 1/2 cups flour (either AP or 00 pizza flour)
2 1/4 tsp yeast (Traditional or quick rise have both worked)
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 cups water
1/4 cup olive oil
Method
- Mix the flour, salt, and yeast in a bowl.
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the water and oil to approximately 110 degrees F, making sure that it doesn’t exceed 120 degrees F. It is best to use a candy thermometer for this step!
- Add the warmed wet ingredients to the dry and mix with fingers until just incorporated. The dough will look stringy, but shouldn’t be too sticky yet. Let mixture sit uncovered for 10 to 15 minutes at room temperature.
- On a clean and lightly floured surface, begin to knead the dough, adding small amounts of flour to your hands and dough periodically to make the dough less sticky.
- When the dough is soft and no longer sticking to your hands, knead for 15 minutes until it forms a smooth and elastic ball of dough. (If you push down on the dough, it should spring back up slowly).
- Form the dough into a ball and place it into a bowl well greased with olive oil. Turn the ball a few times in the bowl to coat the outside with oil. Cover the bowl with saran wrap or lid and put it to bed at room temperature by covering it with a table cloth. Let it sit for at least 1 1/2 hours.
- Once it has rested, split the dough ball in half and stretch/ roll it out onto a clean surface before transferring it onto your pizza pan to be baked.
- Add your sauce and toppings and bake at 500 degrees F on the lowest rack of the oven for about 15 minutes, or until the crust is golden in colour.
Pizza Sauce
Ingredients
1 680mL jar strained tomatos
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp dried oregano
Salt to taste
Method
- Mix all ingredients in a bowl. That’s it!
Recipe Credit: My wonderful mom is a seriously good cook and I’m so grateful to be able to learn her tried and true tips and tricks to create delicious food, including the pizza dough and sauce recipes shared here!
alessia eats 