Pizza Dough – Food Processor Method

By on 24 September 2010 in Bread with 6 Comments.

Ah, the perfect pizza. A difficult thing to make. Especially when you have distant memories of eating pizza on the streets of Rome. I’m not sure if we’ve spent two years trying to recreate the style of the pizza that we had in Italy, or the magic of dining in a foreign land. Either way, through trial and error, we have come up with our perfect pizza. And it all starts with the dough.

Although pizza is always worth the effort, we’ve worked to minimize the time involved. I love the food processor method, and have found that my favorite crusts have always come from the dough that I made ahead and kept in the freezer. Also, after acquiring a kitchen scale for Christmas, I always weigh the flour. If you just measure it in cups, be careful with the amount of water you use – it could be more or less than the recipe says.

And, I hate to say it, but the crust just may not be perfect your first time. There is nothing special about the ingredients or the technique. Sometimes you just have to practice, and know what a good dough feels like to the touch. I did find this video quite helpful for my stretching skills, though I don’t do it in exactly the same way.

When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that’s amore! Da, du da daaaa!

Pizza Dough

Makes 4 small pizzas

**UPDATE** If you have a stand mixer with a bread hook, we recommend using our recipe for pizza dough using a mixer.

What You Need
600 grams white flour (about 4 cups)
2 teaspoons active dry yeast (1 package)
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1 3/4 cups warm water
kosher salt

What To Do

1  In a food processor, combine 600 grams flour, 2 teaspoons yeast, 1/2 tablespoon olive oil, and 2 pinches of salt.

2  With the food processor on, slowly (I mean slowly, like over 30 seconds) start pouring in 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups of warm water. Stop adding water when the dough form a single ball. If you add too much water and the dough gets sticky, just add a bit more flour.

3  Leave the food processor on for about 10 more seconds to knead the dough a bit. Place the dough ball in a floured bowl, cover it with a towel, and allow it to rise for about an hour.

4 After an hour, reform the risen dough into a ball. Divide it into four equal parts and either freeze it or allow it to relax for immediate use.

5  To freeze: Place each dough ball in a zip-top bag and put in the freezer. The morning that you are going to use the dough, remove it from the freezer and place it in the fridge to thaw. About 30 minutes before making the pizza, take it out of the baggie and allow it to relax on the counter, covered with plastic wrap.

To use immediately: Cover each dough ball with plastic wrap, and let them sit on the counter for another 30 minutes to relax.

6  To stretch the dough, gently press it out on the counter into a circle shape, about half the size of the final pizza. Then drape the dough over both of your knuckles and rotate it around, allowing it to stretch itself to a larger circle, about 10 inches in diameter. If the dough starts to resist stretching, put it down and allow it to rest for about 5 minutes, at which point it will stretch more easily.

7  Sprinkle a little bit of cornmeal onto a pizza peel or rimless baking sheet. Place the stretched dough onto the peel and quickly add toppings and cook.

The dough is now ready to bake with the toppings of your choice!

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