This is a “master recipe” – which shows you the basic techniques for making pizza, including a yeast dough, suggested toppings, stretching the dough, baking, serving, and storing. You can change the toppings seasonally, and you can extend your skills by making free-form pizzas baked on stones, steels, and in pizza ovens. The techniques demonstrated in the video, the photos, and the recipe should help you explore pizza and have fun making great pizza at home.
Pizza Supreme
Because the recipe makes a large 12 x 18” pizza, I wrap and freeze leftover portions. They are ready to go when you need something easy to eat. Unwrap the frozen slices, thaw on the counter for an hour or so and then place them on a wire rack and into the oven for about 20 to 25 minutes until they are crisp and hot. Much like my lasagna, having delicious homemade food in the freezer, quick to reheat, makes you a nimble and generous host! Defrost the number of slices you need and viola - a midweek impromptu dinner party, made easy!
Ingredients
- Proofing the yeast:
- ½ cup warm water
- Pinch of sugar
- 1 pkg yeast about 2 ¼ tsp yeast
- Making the dough
- 1 cup water
- 3 - 4 cups of flour
- 2 tbs olive oil
- 2 tsp salt
- ¾ lb. of mozzarella or a mix of mozzarella and provolone
- ½ cup pecorino Romano
- Roasted peppers
- ½ quart tomato sauce
- 1 lb. cooked Italian fennel sausage meat drained of excess fat
- Basil
- Oregano
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Olive oil for a drizzle
Instructions
To proof the yeast
- Fill a liquid measure with to ½ cup with warm water (approximately 110 degrees).
- Add the yeast and sugar and stir to mix. Set aside until the mixture is foaming to about the ¾ cup mark. This step is called “proofing the yeast” to ensure it is alive.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine 2 cups of flour, 1 cup of water, salt, and oil. Mix using a spatula or spoon. Add the proofed yeast mixture and mix again. Begin adding more flour until the mixture is stiff enough to turn onto a heavily floured working surface. Begin kneading the dough, incorporating the flour with each turn, and add just enough flour, so the dough does not stick to your hands as you knead. Knead the dough with gusto for about 5 minutes until the texture of the dough has sufficient elasticity. Practice makes perfect. You can knead a bit extra - up to 10 minutes to be sure - it is a good workout for your arms!
- Set the dough into a lightly oiled bowl cover and let rise in a warm place until double in bulk. Punch the dough down. The dough is ready for making pizza. You can refrigerate the dough at this point for up to 24 hours.
Prepare the sausage
- I buy fennel sausage in the casings. To make the pizza, you can roast the sausage whole in the oven at 375 degrees for approximately 30 minutes, cool, and then slice. Or you can remove the meat from the casings and sauté on the stovetop until the meat is cooked and just starting to brown. Drain the excess fat (discard) and reserve the meat.
Forming the pizza
- preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Grease a 12 x 18” baking dish with 1-inch sides. I use Crisco for this. (Olive oil makes the pan too slippery, making it difficult to stretch the dough.) Place the dough into the pan and begin to stretch the dough to the sides of the pan, working slowly. The dough will be elastic and shrink back as you work. It helps to let the dough “relax” - for about 5 to 10 minutes, and then come back and stretch it again - bringing it to all sides and working some dough up the sides of the pan, so you have an even rim of dough around the entire pan. Remove excess dough and reserve a smaller pizza or a small free-form bread.
- Layer on your preferred pre-cooked vegetables and your tomatoes, cheeses, and sausage.
- Top with grated Pecorino Romano, drizzle with oil, and sprinkle with oregano, basil, and freshly cracked black pepper.
- Bake for 30 to 40 minutes. Take the pizza out of the oven when golden and bubbling on top. Lift one corner to make sure the crust is cooked and lightly browned.
- You must remove the pizza from the pan to keep the crust from steaming and getting soggy. Run a spatula around the entire pizza and make sure the pizza is free and unstuck.