Taking the time to make dough yourself is worth it! I also suggest serving this mouth watering homemade organic pizza with a zesty Bocconcini & Arugula Salad.For a delicious salad dressing I use a mix of the following:
**white wine vinegar or rice wine vinegar (1 tbsp),
**organic sunflower oil (1 tsp), good
**organic olive oil (1 tsp) and 1 tsp of dijon (Maille*) mustard plus salt and pepper.
( I use organic Arugula from Jean Talon or Atwater market as the base of the salad and organic or canadian greenhouse tomatoes as well).
All together this incredible, savoury pizza takes just over an hour and a half to prepare and bake before its ready! Once you make this pizza (with a PESTO glazed first layer, 3 cheeses; shredded mozzarella, a fine cheddar and pieces of Bocconcini, sun dried tomatos in olive oil and topped with sliced tomatoes and fresh basil) you'll never want to order in pizza again! I used to cheat and buy the pizza dough frozen to save time, but the extra 45 minutes (TOTAL) it takes to prepare and knead the dough are worth it!! Use organic flour to make the dough and you will flip out at how healthy and tasty this pizza turns out!
Here's the ingredients for the Dough:
1 teaspoon (1/4 ounce) dried yeast *** 1 cup hand-hot water
1 teaspoon organic raw sugar *** 3 cups of organic all purpose flour
4 tablespoons warm water *** 1 tablespoon organic sunflower or olive
Step 1: Place the yeast and the organic sugar in a glass mixing cup. Add the 4 tablespoons of water and mix together. Leave in a warm place for 15 minutes or until frothy. Cover with a towel if you like to keep he warmth in.
Step 2: Mix the organic flour with the dash of salt in a good mixing bowl. Make a well in the center. Add the yeast mixture and the tbsp of oil, then the 1 cup of hand-hot water, using a WOODEN SPOON to form a SMOOTH DOUGH. If necessary use your hands right away if you find it difficult to continue mixing with the spoon. Knead it on a floured surface for 3-5 minutes until smooth.
Step 3: Return the kneaded dough to the bowl, and cover with an oiled piece of plastic wrap or a ziplock bag (the enviro ones are great) and leave to RISE for 30 minutes, or until doubled in size.
(I got mine to triple in size the 1st time I made it because I used a tablespoon of yeast AND I left it by accident to rise over an hour - so you really have to be the judge but when you make the dough yourself, it is so fresh that no matter what it will always turn out!!
Step 4: After waiting at least 30 minutes for dough to double in size, knead it for 2-3 minutes. Surface can be slightly floured to make the kneading easier. If your dough dries out, put a little oil on your hands and pat dough to re-moisten it. Even a little water can help too if it is not pliable enough. Then place on a oiled cookie sheet; either square or a stick- free pizza pan that is round, pushing out edges until even. You can use a rolling pin as well,to roll it out and use your hands too... that is what I do to make sure the pizza gets rolled out easily.The dough should be about 1/4 inch thick.
Step 5: Here is what I do next: I take a pre-made PESTO (you can make your own with some garlic, fresh pesto leaves and organic olive oil in a food processor or buy a pre-made organic one that is not too thick) and using a PASTRY BRUSH I spread the pesto oil evenly, all over the pizza dough. THAT IS THE FIRST LAYER. I do this instead of the TRADITIONAL TOMATO SAUCE.
Next I spread out about 1/2a cup or or more of shredded mozzarella (Atwater Fromagerie has a good one and they can shred it for you) , then the same amount of shredded cheddar cheese (I like the 14 -month old cheddar from Atwater Fromagerie personally) and I take small slivers of sun dried tomatoes in oil that I spread out as well. I cut them with scissors, which i find is the best method since they are slippery. Then I take slices of fresh Canadian GREENHOUSE tomatoes (Savoura is good option), place them around and top those with small pieces of bocconcini and fresh basil (little islands of yumminess!).
Step 6: Bake on the middle rack of your preheated oven at 400 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until the crust is golden and the cheese is bubbling.
All together this incredible, savoury pizza takes just over an hour and a half to prepare and bake before its ready! Once you make this pizza (with a PESTO glazed first layer, 3 cheeses; shredded mozzarella, a fine cheddar and pieces of Bocconcini, sun dried tomatos in olive oil and topped with sliced tomatoes and fresh basil) you'll never want to order in pizza again! I used to cheat and buy the pizza dough frozen to save time, but the extra 45 minutes (TOTAL) it takes to prepare and knead the dough are worth it!! Use organic flour to make the dough and you will flip out at how healthy and tasty this pizza turns out!
Here's the ingredients for the Dough:
1 teaspoon (1/4 ounce) dried yeast *** 1 cup hand-hot water
1 teaspoon organic raw sugar *** 3 cups of organic all purpose flour
4 tablespoons warm water *** 1 tablespoon organic sunflower or olive
Step 1: Place the yeast and the organic sugar in a glass mixing cup. Add the 4 tablespoons of water and mix together. Leave in a warm place for 15 minutes or until frothy. Cover with a towel if you like to keep he warmth in.
Step 2: Mix the organic flour with the dash of salt in a good mixing bowl. Make a well in the center. Add the yeast mixture and the tbsp of oil, then the 1 cup of hand-hot water, using a WOODEN SPOON to form a SMOOTH DOUGH. If necessary use your hands right away if you find it difficult to continue mixing with the spoon. Knead it on a floured surface for 3-5 minutes until smooth.
Step 3: Return the kneaded dough to the bowl, and cover with an oiled piece of plastic wrap or a ziplock bag (the enviro ones are great) and leave to RISE for 30 minutes, or until doubled in size.
(I got mine to triple in size the 1st time I made it because I used a tablespoon of yeast AND I left it by accident to rise over an hour - so you really have to be the judge but when you make the dough yourself, it is so fresh that no matter what it will always turn out!!
Step 4: After waiting at least 30 minutes for dough to double in size, knead it for 2-3 minutes. Surface can be slightly floured to make the kneading easier. If your dough dries out, put a little oil on your hands and pat dough to re-moisten it. Even a little water can help too if it is not pliable enough. Then place on a oiled cookie sheet; either square or a stick- free pizza pan that is round, pushing out edges until even. You can use a rolling pin as well,to roll it out and use your hands too... that is what I do to make sure the pizza gets rolled out easily.The dough should be about 1/4 inch thick.
Step 5: Here is what I do next: I take a pre-made PESTO (you can make your own with some garlic, fresh pesto leaves and organic olive oil in a food processor or buy a pre-made organic one that is not too thick) and using a PASTRY BRUSH I spread the pesto oil evenly, all over the pizza dough. THAT IS THE FIRST LAYER. I do this instead of the TRADITIONAL TOMATO SAUCE.
Next I spread out about 1/2a cup or or more of shredded mozzarella (Atwater Fromagerie has a good one and they can shred it for you) , then the same amount of shredded cheddar cheese (I like the 14 -month old cheddar from Atwater Fromagerie personally) and I take small slivers of sun dried tomatoes in oil that I spread out as well. I cut them with scissors, which i find is the best method since they are slippery. Then I take slices of fresh Canadian GREENHOUSE tomatoes (Savoura is good option), place them around and top those with small pieces of bocconcini and fresh basil (little islands of yumminess!).
Step 6: Bake on the middle rack of your preheated oven at 400 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until the crust is golden and the cheese is bubbling.
After making this recipe, please feel free to add your thoughts in the comments box below to give me your feedback or any experiences with any substitutions you may have tried, bon appetite!
Love the idea of a pesto glaze. When can I come to your house for dinner?!
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