My first recipe for high-altitude pizza dough seems to be pretty popular. Since I posted it, I have tried some adjustments, including adding honey instead of sugar to the yeast/water mixture. This one worked really well, so I thought I’d also share it.
Ingredients
- 1 1/3 cups warm water (it must be between 106 to 115 degrees F) plus additional tbsps. of water as needed
- 4 1/2 tsps. active dry yeast (2 envelopes)
- 1 tbsp. honey
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsps. kosher salt
- 3 tbsps. extra-virgin olive oil
Fill a measuring cup with 1 1/3 cups warm water. It is absolutely critical to test the temperature. It must be between about 106 and 115 degrees Farenheit. Add the active dry yeast. Add the honey. Stir it up gently and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes. You know it’s working if it starts to bubble. If you see no bubbles, then you have a problem, and it’s probably that the water is the wrong temperature. (Note: Do not substitute instant yeast.)
In your mixing bowl, add the flour, salt and olive oil. Do not scoop the flour, or you will pack down your flour and ultimately be using too much. Always gently spoon flour into your measuring cup then level it off with a butter knife. If you skip this important step, you could end up with as much as 1/2 or more cups too much flour.
Pour the yeast / water / honey mixture into your mixing bowl. Affix the dough hook and mix. After the dough is mixing for about 2 minutes, add additional water as needed, one tbsp. at a time. The amount of water will depend on how humid it is on the day you’re making the dough.
When you’ve got the right balance of wet and dry ingredients, it will all pull together into a clump of dough that is just very slightly sticky (meaning it will feel sticky but will not stick to your hands, the dough hook or the bowl). Mix the dough for a total of about 10 minutes.
Once the dough is mixed, pull it out of the mixer and, on a lightly floured pastry board or large wooden cutting board, knead the dough for about 2 more minutes or until it is very smooth and has a silky feel to it. To knead the dough, always use the heel of your hand and push away from you. (You get the most power this way.) Push the dough, then fold it in half and turn it 1/4 turn and continue. When the dough is smooth and silky, shape it into a ball and place it in a lightly oiled bowl. I actually use Pam olive oil spray and it seems to work well. Cover the dough with plastic wrap, so no air is touching the top of the dough. Otherwise, you will get a hard crust on the top of your dough, and you definitely don’t want this. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes in a warm, dry place.
Dough resting
After 30 minutes, uncover it and punch down the dough. Cut it in half, shape each half into a round disc shape and place each piece back in the bowl. Re-cover it with plastic wrap (using some of the plastic wrap to keep the two pieces separated). Let the dough rest for about another 10 minutes.
Take one piece of the dough and set it on your lightly floured pastry board. Begin rolling the dough out gently by rolling it once, fully with the rolling pin (pushing away from you, not pulling toward yourself). This is, again, because you use your strength better and have more control when you are rolling away from yourself. Turn the dough 1/4 turn and continue rolling until you have the desired thickness (or thinness!) I like my dough fairly thin. If the dough starts to stick to the board, brush a little bit of flour across it with your hand.
Place the dough on a pizza screen, which vents you pizza and allows the bottom to brown and crisp up beautifully, or whatever pizza pan you have, and bake. I bake pizzas at 500 degrees, on the convection bake setting, for about 15 minutes, but I watch it carefully as it may take a little more — or a little less — time depending on … atmospheric conditions? Here are some pizza ideas.
