This is a classic pizza dough that you can make in a food processor. Serve it with your favorite pizza sauce and toppings. You can freeze unused pizza dough by tightly wrapping it in plastic wrap and storing it in a sealable plastic bag for future use.
Ingredients
1 to 1 ½cupswarm water, about 110ºF
2teaspoonsactive dry yeast
1tablespoonsugar
3cupsflour, plus extra for rolling out
1 ½teaspoonsalt
3tablespoonsolive oil, plus extra for greasing the dough and baking pan
Instructions
Add 2 tablespoons of the warm water to the yeast in a mixing bowl. Add two pinches of sugar and mix until the yeast forms a rough paste. Leave the yeast in a warm area in the kitchen for 15 minutes. It should be frothy and continue to grow.
Put the flour, salt, and olive oil into your food processor work bowl. Pulses a few times to combine. Add a cup of the warm water and the yeast. Turn on the food processor so that the blade mixes the ingredients until a rough, shaggy dough forms.
Open the food processor and poke the dough. Note the dough’s texture and adjust with more flour or water.
Turn on the food processor to knead the dough until it forms a smooth elastic ball. It is ready to rest.
Move the dough to a big mixing bowl and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Allow the dough to rise until it is at least twice the size. It might take 60 minutes in a warm kitchen or as much as 90 to 120 minutes in a chilly kitchen.
Once your dough has risen to twice the size, divide the dough in half and shape into two balls. Lightly coat each ball of dough with olive oil to prevent the dough from drying out.
Leave the dough to rest on a plate for 15 to 30 minutes covered with plastic wrap. If freezing, wrap the extra dough in plastic wrap and put it in a sealable plastic bag to store in the freezer.
When you are ready to make the pizza, follow the directions on your pizza recipe to roll out the dough and bake.
If you’re using a stand mixer, skip steps 2 to 4 and follow Nick’s instructions for making pizza dough in this. The quick summary is you combine all the ingredients and use the dough hook attachment to mix the dough for about 8 minutes. Then let the dough rest and follow steps 5 onwards.
If you’re kneading with your hands, skip steps 2 to 4 and follow Nick’s instructions for making the dough in this. You need to mix the ingredients with a spatula until combined and then knead the dough by hand until the dough forms a ball with a smooth surface, about 10 minutes of kneading. Then let the dough rest and follow steps 5 onwards.