{"id":309,"date":"2008-10-29T18:27:18","date_gmt":"2008-10-30T00:27:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/?p=309"},"modified":"2008-10-29T18:27:18","modified_gmt":"2008-10-30T00:27:18","slug":"daring-bakers-pizza-challenge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/2008\/10\/29\/daring-bakers-pizza-challenge\/","title":{"rendered":"Daring Bakers: Pizza Challenge"},"content":{"rendered":"

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This challange, like the last, allowed quite a bit of creativity and freedom on the part of the bakers. \u00a0I was excited to try this recipe for a few reasons. \u00a0<\/p>\n

1. I love pizza and any excuse to make my own. \u00a0<\/p>\n

2. \u00a0I have never tried an overnight rise in the refridgerator before.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The dough is easy to make and using the stand mixer makes it even easier. \u00a0The next day when it came time to toss I knew I was in for trouble! \u00a0The dough doesn’t seem like it NEEDS to be tossed. \u00a0I picked up one of the dough balls and turned it a few times and it practically prepared itself. \u00a0It was thin and circular in no time. \u00a0I knew that I had to at least try to toss at least one dough ball for the sake of the Daring Bakers, so I did.
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\nI not only dropped it on the floor but poked a big hole in the dough and argued with my husband while he was trying to take pictures of the whole ordeal. \u00a0I may not be tossing dough again. \u00a0I like my method of stretching the dough with my hands. \u00a0Much safer. \u00a0No pizza dough casualties! \u00a0The dough that survived the tossing turned into great pizzas. \u00a0I like my pizza crust thin and crunchy with just that right amount of chew in the crust so this was perfect. \u00a0I’ve had trouble getting a good thin crust with other dough, so I will be using this recipe from now on. \u00a0Scroll to the bottom for the recipe!<\/p>\n

I usually make margherita pizzas because I completely satisfied with the simplicity of the mozzarella, tomato and fresh basil. \u00a0Last summer I ate at Asti<\/a> with my family to celebrate my sisters graduation from college. \u00a0I had their white pizza and thought that I would try to recreate it. \u00a0The Asti pizza had mozzarella, fontina and provolone cheeses with fried sage leaves. \u00a0I also chose to add slices of proscuitto di Parma which was a great decision. \u00a0The crust was thin and crispy. \u00a0I didn’t totally recreate this pizza, but this combination of mozzarella, ricotta, goat cheese and parmesean was simple and very tasty. \u00a0I fried sage leaves to go with this pizza and it really made the pizza special.<\/p>\n

Here are the toppings!<\/p>\n

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The second pizza was based on a recipe I found in an NPR article<\/a> called Tapas Pizza. \u00a0I used manchego cheese, proscuitto, green olives, roatsed red and yellow peppers, red onion and parsley. \u00a0It was also a very delicious pizza and I was pleased with the way it turned out.<\/p>\n

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~ BASIC PIZZA DOUGH ~
\nOriginal recipe taken from \u201cThe Bread Baker\u2019s Apprentice\u201d by Peter Reinhart.<\/p>\n

Makes 6 pizza crusts (about 9-12 inches\/23-30 cm in diameter).<\/p>\n

Ingredients:\u00a0
\n4 1\/2 Cups (20 1\/4 ounces\/607.5 g) Unbleached high-gluten (%14) bread flour or all purpose flour, chilled\u00a0
\n1 Tsp Instant yeast\u00a0
\n1\/4 Cup (2 ounces\/60g) Olive oil or vegetable oil (both optional, but it\u2019s better with)
\n1 3\/4 Cups (14 ounces\/420g or 420ml) Water, ice cold (40\u00b0 F\/4.5\u00b0 C)
\n1 Tb sugar\u00a0
\nSemolina\/durum flour or cornmeal for dusting<\/p>\n

DAY ONE<\/span><\/p>\n

Method:\u00a0
\n1. Mix together the flour, salt and instant yeast in a big bowl (or in the bowl of your stand mixer).<\/p>\n

2. Add the oil, sugar and cold water and mix well (with the help of a large wooden spoon or with the paddle attachment, on low speed) in order to form a sticky ball of dough. On a clean surface, knead for about 5-7 minutes, until the dough is smooth and the ingredients are homogeneously distributed. If it is too wet, add a little flour (not too much, though) and if it is too dry add 1 or 2 teaspoons extra water.<\/p>\n

NOTE:\u00a0If you are using an electric mixer, switch to the dough hook and mix on medium speed for the same amount of time.The dough should clear the sides of the bowl but stick to the bottom of the bowl. If the dough is too wet, sprinkle in a little more flour, so that it clears the sides. If, on the contrary, it clears the bottom of the bowl, dribble in a teaspoon or two of cold water.
\nThe finished dough should be springy, elastic, and sticky, not just tacky, and register 50\u00b0-55\u00b0 F\/10\u00b0-13\u00b0 C.<\/p>\n

3. Flour a work surface or counter.\u00a0 Line a jelly pan with baking paper\/parchment. Lightly oil the paper.<\/p>\n

4. With the help of a metal or plastic dough scraper, cut the dough into 6 equal pieces (or larger if you want to make larger pizzas).<\/p>\n

NOTE:\u00a0To avoid the dough from sticking to the scraper, dip the scraper into water between cuts.<\/p>\n

5. Sprinkle some flour over the dough. Make sure your hands are dry and then flour them.\u00a0 Gently round each piece into a ball.<\/p>\n

NOTE:\u00a0If the dough sticks to your hands, then dip your hands into the flour again.<\/p>\n

6. Transfer the dough balls to the lined jelly pan and mist them generously with spray oil. Slip the pan into plastic bag or enclose in plastic food wrap.<\/p>\n

7. Put the pan into the refrigerator and let the dough rest overnight or for up to thee days.<\/p>\n

NOTE:\u00a0You can store the dough balls in a zippered freezer bag if you want to save some of the dough for any future baking. In that case, pour some oil(a few tablespooons only) in a medium bowl and dip each dough ball into the oil, so that it is completely covered in oil. Then put each ball into a separate bag. Store the bags in the freezer for no longer than 3 months. The day before you plan to make pizza, remember to transfer the dough balls from the freezer to the refrigerator.<\/p>\n

DAY TWO<\/span><\/p>\n

8. On the day you plan to eat pizza, exactly 2 hours before you make it, remove the desired number of dough balls from the refrigerator. Dust the counter with flour and spray lightly with oil. Place the dough balls on a floured surface and sprinkle them with flour. Dust your hands with flour and delicately press the dough into disks about 1\/2 inch\/1.3 cm thick and 5 inches\/12.7 cm in diameter. Sprinkle with flour and mist with oil. Loosely cover the dough rounds with plastic wrap and then allow to rest for 2 hours.<\/p>\n

9. At least 45 minutes before making the pizza, place a baking stone on the lower third of the oven.\u00a0 Preheat the oven as hot as possible (500\u00b0 F\/260\u00b0 C).\u00a0<\/p>\n

NOTE:\u00a0If you do not have a baking stone, then use the back of a jelly pan. Do not preheat the pan.<\/p>\n

10. Generously sprinkle the back of a jelly pan with semolina\/durum flour or cornmeal. Flour your hands (palms, backs and knuckles). Take 1 piece of dough by lifting it with a pastry scraper. Lay the dough across your fists in a very delicate way and carefully stretch it by bouncing it in a circular motion on your hands, and by giving it a little stretch with each bounce. Once the dough has expanded outward, move to a full toss.<\/p>\n

NOTE:\u00a0Make only one pizza at a time.
\nDuring the tossing process, if the dough tends to stick to your hands, lay it down on the floured counter and reflour your hands, then continue the tossing and shaping.\u00a0
\nIn case you would be having trouble tossing the dough or if the dough never wants to expand and always springs back, let it rest for approximately 5-20 minutes in order for the gluten to relax fully,then try again.
\nYou can also resort to using a rolling pin, although it isn\u2019t as effective as the toss method.<\/p>\n

11. When the dough has the shape you want (about 9-12 inches\/23-30 cm in diameter – for a 6 ounces\/180g piece of dough), place it on the back of the jelly pan, making sure there is enough semolina\/durum flour or cornmeal to allow it to slide and not stick to the pan.<\/p>\n

12. Lightly top it with sweet or savory toppings of your choice.<\/p>\n

NOTE:\u00a0Remember that the best pizzas are topped not too generously. No more than 3 or 4 toppings (including sauce and cheese) are sufficient.<\/p>\n

13. Slide the garnished pizza onto the stone in the oven or bake directly on the jelly pan. Close the door and bake for abour 5-8 minutes.<\/p>\n

NOTE:\u00a0After 2 minutes baking, take a peek. For an even baking, rotate 180\u00b0.<\/p>\n

If the top gets done before the bottom, you will need to move the stone or jelly pane to a lower shelf before the next round. On the contrary, if the bottom crisps before the cheese caramelizes, then you will need to raise the stone or jelly.<\/p>\n

14. Take the pizza out of the oven and transfer it to a cutting board or your plate. In order to allow the cheese to set a little, wait 3-5 minutes before slicing or serving.<\/p>\n