My Favorite Italian Pizza

Total Time: 2 hrs 30 mins Preparation Time: 2 hrs Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients

• olive oil, for drizzling
• semolina or cornmeal, for dusting
• 1 3/4 cups warm water
• 2 tablespoons instant yeast
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 -2 cup bread flour
• 1 (28 ounce) can plum tomatoes, drained
• 2/3 cup your favorite pizza sauce
• fresh ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt, to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh basil (or a combination i also like to use a bit of crushed anise seed) or 2 tablespoons oregano (or a combination i also like to use a bit of crushed anise seed) or 2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley (or a combination i also like to use a bit of crushed anise seed) or 1 tablespoon dried herbs (or a combination i also like to use a bit of crushed anise seed)
• 4 -5 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• thinly sliced pepperoni, to taste

Recipe

• 1 drizzle a baking sheet with olive oil and then dust lightly with semolina or cornmeal.
• 2 set aside.
• 3 for the dough, hand whisk the water and yeast together in the bowl of an electric mixer.
• 4 let stand for 3 minutes for the yeast to dissolve.
• 5 stir in the oil, salt, sugar, all purpose flour and 1 cup of the bread flour.
• 6 mix to make a soft dough.
• 7 knead on the lowest speed of the mixer with a dough hook for 8 minutes, adding more flour gradually until a soft elastic dough is formed.
• 8 turn out onto a lightly floured surface.
• 9 loosely cover in a plastic bag and let rise for 30 to 45 minutes until almost doubled.
• 10 for the topping, put the tomatoes in a large bowl, crushing with a fork to break them up.
• 11 add the sauce, pepper, salt, sugar, oil, garlic and herbs, mixing well.
• 12 turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface.
• 13 let rest for a few minutes.
• 14 press or roll the dough out to fit the prepared baking sheet.
• 15 drizzle a bit of olive oil on top of the dough.
• 16 spread on the tomato topping and top with the cheese and pepperoni. (i like to add black olives, hot peppers and sliced mushrooms).
• 17 let dough rise until quite puffy, about 30-45 minutes.
• 18 preheat oven to 425*f.
• 19 bake the pizza for 15 minutes.
• 20 lower the heat to 375*f and bake for a further 15 to 20 minutes until cheese is melted and lightly browned.