I have decided to make this the Summer Of Pizza. (It's also the Summer of Ribs and the Summer of Pie, quite possibly the summer of ten extra pounds...but I digress.) For the longest time, I avoided pizza, because I didn't really know how to make it very well at home, despite a pizza stone and experience with yeast doughs. It just befuddled me...and everything you could get delivered was greasy, thick, uninteresting, and mass-produced. Plus, I found the marinara-and-tons of cheese combo to be boring, and fattening. Then after moving here a couple of years ago, I had the Crispini at Panera--rosemary chicken, roasted tomatoes, ricotta cheese, and just a wee bit of mozzarella on a grilled flatbread. Have mercy... I couldn't stop eating it.
Recently I have been diving back into pizza. It has so many advantages as a meal. It's cheap. It's easy--once you have a few techniques mastered. It's a good vehicle for cleaning out the fridge. You can sneak veggies in the sauce--pizza is actually quite healthy if you can control what's in it. And as a major bonus, my kids will usually eat it without complaints.
But when summer hits, there's one advantage that edges out the rest. I can grill it.
In my teeny house with only two little window-mount air conditioners, turning on the oven past about 9am heats up the entire house. Grilling is a must to survive the summer, but one can only barbecue so many farm animals. You need variety.
The Deep Dish Pizza was good--and I may try it in the future in my cast-iron skillet on the grill--but a quick grilled thin-crust pizza is faster. I keep a pizza stone on the lowest shelf of my gas grill (easier heat control) and it works perfectly. After you roll it out, you cook it for a few minutes on each side, then build up your toppings and let it cook til everything is gooey and melting and golden and crisp. Takes ten minutes.
Being so easy, and cheap, and generally forgiving, pizza is a good dough to experiment with. Having most of the loaf breads I need under my belt for now, I'm branching out into flavored pizza doughs. So be on the look out (BOLO, as my husband calls it) for some interesting and delicious new dough recipes soon--I'm in the mood for pizza.
I found the original recipe for this on one of my favorite food blogs, Culinary in the Desert. Here is the link to it.
Honey Whole Wheat Pizza Dough
Dry:
1 cup (5 oz) whole wheat flour
1 cup (5 oz) all-purpose flour
1 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp instant yeast
1 tsp dried herbs (optional)
Wet:
3/4 cup warm water
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp olive oil
Set aside 2 tbsp of the bread flour, combine remaining dry ingredients in food processor fitted with dough blade.
Combine wet ingredients in measuring cup with pour spout.
With motor running, pour wet into dry. Run motor until dough comes together and a ball forms. If dough is too dry, drizzle in a little water.
Let rest 2 minutes.
Run motor one minute more.
Turn onto floured board. Knead for a few minutes by hand, adding a bit of flour of dough seems too sticky--it should be smooth and elastic.
Place into an oiled bowl and let rise until doubled--about an hour.
Punch down dough and divide into two rounds, let rest 10 minutes before shaping.
Makes two thin-crust pizzas, 10-12 inches each.
To shape and bake, roll with a rolling pin to make a larger round. Preheat grill with pizza stone, the burners on medium-high. Pick up dough, and using the knuckles of both hands, gently turn dough, letting the weight of the dough pull itself down. You can let the dough hang from one fist and gently tug it downward--you're aiming for a thin, even crust. This dough is beautiful and will have the right amount of give to it, if it's properly rested it shouldn't shrink too much.
Place rolled dough onto a peel or the back of a cookie sheet. Slide onto stone, cover and let cook 2 minutes, then turn over and cook another 2.
Turn heat down to medium-low, and place crust back on stone, top with toppings, brush edges with olive oil, and return to stone for another 5-10 minutes, checking the underside every few minutes, until cheese is melted and crust is golden-brown around the edges and underneath. You may have to adjust the heat a bit to avoid scorching if you don't have a really thin crust.
Recently I have been diving back into pizza. It has so many advantages as a meal. It's cheap. It's easy--once you have a few techniques mastered. It's a good vehicle for cleaning out the fridge. You can sneak veggies in the sauce--pizza is actually quite healthy if you can control what's in it. And as a major bonus, my kids will usually eat it without complaints.
But when summer hits, there's one advantage that edges out the rest. I can grill it.
In my teeny house with only two little window-mount air conditioners, turning on the oven past about 9am heats up the entire house. Grilling is a must to survive the summer, but one can only barbecue so many farm animals. You need variety.
The Deep Dish Pizza was good--and I may try it in the future in my cast-iron skillet on the grill--but a quick grilled thin-crust pizza is faster. I keep a pizza stone on the lowest shelf of my gas grill (easier heat control) and it works perfectly. After you roll it out, you cook it for a few minutes on each side, then build up your toppings and let it cook til everything is gooey and melting and golden and crisp. Takes ten minutes.
Being so easy, and cheap, and generally forgiving, pizza is a good dough to experiment with. Having most of the loaf breads I need under my belt for now, I'm branching out into flavored pizza doughs. So be on the look out (BOLO, as my husband calls it) for some interesting and delicious new dough recipes soon--I'm in the mood for pizza.
I found the original recipe for this on one of my favorite food blogs, Culinary in the Desert. Here is the link to it.
Honey Whole Wheat Pizza Dough
Dry:
1 cup (5 oz) whole wheat flour
1 cup (5 oz) all-purpose flour
1 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp instant yeast
1 tsp dried herbs (optional)
Wet:
3/4 cup warm water
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp olive oil
Set aside 2 tbsp of the bread flour, combine remaining dry ingredients in food processor fitted with dough blade.
Combine wet ingredients in measuring cup with pour spout.
With motor running, pour wet into dry. Run motor until dough comes together and a ball forms. If dough is too dry, drizzle in a little water.
Let rest 2 minutes.
Run motor one minute more.
Turn onto floured board. Knead for a few minutes by hand, adding a bit of flour of dough seems too sticky--it should be smooth and elastic.
Place into an oiled bowl and let rise until doubled--about an hour.
Punch down dough and divide into two rounds, let rest 10 minutes before shaping.
Makes two thin-crust pizzas, 10-12 inches each.
To shape and bake, roll with a rolling pin to make a larger round. Preheat grill with pizza stone, the burners on medium-high. Pick up dough, and using the knuckles of both hands, gently turn dough, letting the weight of the dough pull itself down. You can let the dough hang from one fist and gently tug it downward--you're aiming for a thin, even crust. This dough is beautiful and will have the right amount of give to it, if it's properly rested it shouldn't shrink too much.
Place rolled dough onto a peel or the back of a cookie sheet. Slide onto stone, cover and let cook 2 minutes, then turn over and cook another 2.
Turn heat down to medium-low, and place crust back on stone, top with toppings, brush edges with olive oil, and return to stone for another 5-10 minutes, checking the underside every few minutes, until cheese is melted and crust is golden-brown around the edges and underneath. You may have to adjust the heat a bit to avoid scorching if you don't have a really thin crust.
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3 comments:
I've been meaning to try pizza on the grill. Yours looks great. Two questions:
1. Any tricks on getting the dough really flat?
2. What the heck is a PTA pagan?
Thanks, and I'm glad you asked!
About the dough--I think using all-purpose flour in the recipe is one of the keys to a thin crust. It doesn't shrink back as much as when you use bread flour. Also, make sure to give it lots of rests--this helps relax the gluten, and makes for easier rolling. When I do roll it, I start with a rolling pin, then take it up to my knuckles, and work it, hand over fist. No throwing needed! Just let gravity work for you. As for the PTA pagan, that simply means I am a pagan, but I'm not really vocal about it. I am a normal mom! I am proud of my beliefs but I don't advertise it in my everyday life. If you have any more questions --about either topic!--feel free to email me. Good luck with your pizza!
That pizza looks gorgeous! An interesting dough... Yummy!
Cheers,
Rosa
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