Thin Crust Pizza

This Thin Crust Pizza is a delicious homemade yeast crust with a simple homemade tomato sauce and topped with mozzarella cheese.

Does anyone still read my blog?! I am SO behind on posts it’s ridiculous! We are forging full speed ahead in the house hunting process, and it is time-consuming! We had our first “house heart-break” this week – a house we were seriously considering was sold right from under us. We found out the night before we were going to see it and possibly make an offer 🙁 Very sad, but we’ve decided not to let time go by wallowing in our sorrow, so we’re on to the next. I don’t want to rush a purchase by any means, but the thought of being in a home by fall and hosting Thanksgiving is so exciting. I’ll keep you posted!

Another reason for my lack of posts is my job. I decided to be brave and take on an area of research VERY foreign to me for my postdoc . . . either I’m brave or stupid because it is SO hard. I feel like I know nothing and I’m starting from scratch. I know that beginning any new job is difficult and there will always be an adjustment period, but I hate that part! I guess I thought that with all my experience I’d be able to pick things up faster – nope!

While I have not been cooking nearly as much as I should, I have managed to make a few things these past few weeks. One of my favorites is this Thin-Crust Pizza. The dough is so simple to put together, and it rises overnight in the fridge so the actual time preparing the pizza the day of is very minimal. The dough rolls out nicely, and the toppings couldn’t be easier. We really liked this pizza, and I think it would be great with any of YFT (your favorite toppings).

LOOKING FOR MORE PIZZA RECIPES?

Check out these other pizza crust recipes:
Traditional Pizza Crust
Cauliflower Pizza Crust
Quick Homemade No Yeast Pizza Crust

And pizza topping ideas:
BBQ Chicken Pizza
Turkey Bacon, Sausage, and Pepperoni Deluxe Pizza
Chicken Pizza with Nut Free Pesto
Chicken Pesto Pizza

Thin Crust Pizza

Meghan

This Thin Crust Pizza is a delicious homemade yeast crust with a simple homemade tomato sauce and topped with mozzarella cheese.

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Rise Time 16 hours hrs

Total Time 17 hours hrs

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Servings 2 large pizzas (14-inch)

Ingredients

  

For the Dough:

• 1 3/4 – 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus extra for the work surface (8 3/4 to 10 ounces)
• 1/2 teaspoon instant or rapid-rise yeast
• 1/2 teaspoon honey
• 1/2 teaspoon table salt
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 3/4 cup warm water (110°)

For the Quick Tomato Sauce:

• 14.5 ounces canned crushed tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium garlic clove (minced or pressed through a garlic press, about 1 teaspoon)
• table salt and ground black pepper

For the Toppings:

• 1 cup Quick Tomato Sauce (or more to taste)
• 8 ounces whole milk mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 2 cups; fresh buffalo mozzarella is NOT recommended because of the high moisture content)

Instructions

 

Make the Dough:

• Pulse 1 3/4 cups flour, the yeast, honey, and salt in a food processor fitted with a dough blade, if possible. Process until combined, about 5 seconds.
• With the machine running, pour the oil and then the water through the feed tube and process until the dough forms a ball, about 30 seconds. If after 30 seconds the dough is sticky and clings to the blade, add the remaining 1/4 cup flour 1 tablespoon at a time. Turn the dough out onto a work surface.
• Divide the dough in half and place each piece in a gallon-sized, heavy-duty zipper-lock bag and seal. Refrigerate overnight or up to 48 hours.

Make the Quick Tomato Sauce:

• Process the tomatoes in a food processor until smooth, about 5 pulses.
• Heat the oil and garlic in a medium saucepan over medium heat until the garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the tomatoes; bring to a simmer and cook, uncovered, until the sauce thickens, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Assemble and Bake the Pizza:

• One hour before baking the pizza, adjust an oven rack to the lowest position, set a pizza stone on the rack, and heat the oven to 500 degrees.
• Remove the dough from the plastic bags. Set each piece in the center of a lightly floured large sheet of parchment paper. Cover each with two 18-inch lengths of plastic wrap, overlapping them in the center; let the dough rest for 10 minutes.
• Setting one piece of dough aside, roll the other into a 14-inch round with an even thickness, using the tackiness of the dough against the parchment to help roll it. If the parchment wrinkles, flip the dough sandwich over and smooth the wrinkles with a metal bench scraper.
• Peel the plastic wrap off the top of the rolled dough. Spread 1/2 cup of the tomato sauce to the edges of the dough. Sprinkle with 1 cup of the cheese.
• Slip the dough with the parchment onto a pizza peel or rimless baking sheet. Slide the pizza, parchment and all, on to the hot pizza stone. Bake until a deep golden brown, about 10 minutes. Remove the pizza from the oven with a pizza peel or pull the parchment with the pizza onto a baking sheet. Transfer the pizza to a cutting board, slide the parchment out from under the pizza, and slide it onto a wire rack. Cook 2 minutes until crisp; slide to a cutting board, cut into wedges, and serve.
• While the first pizza is baking, repeat steps 6 and 7 to roll and top the second pizza; allow the baking stone ot reheat for 15 minutes after baking the first pizza, then repeat step 8 to bake the second pizza.

Notes

Source: The Complete America’s Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook

You’re Gonna Bake It After All

bakeitafterall.com

Keyword Italian, main dish, pizza, vegetarian