caterina cacciatore

this is from Joanne Weir's book


2 teaspoons dry yeast
3/4 cup plus 2 TB warm water (100')
2 cups unbleached bread flour
2 TB olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt

in a bowl combine the yeast and 1/4 cup of the flour and 1/4 cup of the warm water

let it stand until it bubbles up, a minimum of 30 minutes or up to an hour

add the remaining flour, the salt, and the remaining 1/2 cup water plus 2 more TB of water and the olive oil

mix thorougly / then turn out onto a floured surface and knead until smooth, elastic and a bit tacky to the touch (7 to 8 minutes)

place the dough in an oiled bowl and turn it so it is oiled all over

cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until double in volume (1 to 1 and 1/2 hours)

alternatively let this dough rise in the refrigerator overnight / the next day bring to room temperature and proceed

makes two 9 inch pizze

preheat oven to 450' / bake preferably on a pizza stone / until done / 12 to 15 minutes

what works for me is putting the 1 and 3 /4 cups of flour with the salt in the food processor / pulse to mix and then when the yeast has proofed pour it into the flour and whir it up until it forms a ball

also : adding a TB or 2 of gluten flour really helps with the rise / if you do add this subtract an equal amount of the unbleached flour / sometimes a handful of wheat germ adds a nice nutty tasty fleck as well

some folks prefer whole wheat crust but not us ! ugh / skaterina would rather eat shoe box cardboard