Daring Bakers Challenge: Pizza Napoletana...

...(i'm late in posting this - i had the 30th in my mind as the posting date that was set, instead of the 29th!)

this month's challenge, hosted by Rosa of Rosa's Yummy Yums, was taken from Peter Reinhart's The Bread Baker's Apprentice. i was surprised (again!) that it wasn't a challenge of the sweet variety, but also excited to give authentic pizza crust making a try.

after mixing, and kneading, i divided the dough up and let it rest overnight in the refridgerator. i decided to make 4 larger dough balls, instead of the 6 smaller ones - leftover pizza is always quickly eaten around our house.










the next day, i prepped two dough balls into the thinner, round circles, and let them rest for the recommended time










then it was time to start tossing the dough. i liked the tip that was provided: "Lay the dough across your fists in a very delicate way and carefully stretch it by bouncing it in a circular motion on your hands, and by giving it a little stretch with each bounce. Once the dough has expanded outward, move to a full toss." i wasn't able to have a picture of the dough being tossed in the air captured very well, so i ended up stopping in mid-toss to capture the process










after heating up the pizza stone (i don't think i've ever cranked my oven up to 500 degrees before), it was baking time. i went with two different pizzas - a classic sauce, pepperoni, and parmesan & mozzarella cheeses, and a more ecclectic, "fancy" version with pesto sauce, mozzarella and parmesan cheeses, spinach, garlic and sun-dried tomatoes.

the "fancy" pizza tasted okay - the sun-dried tomatoes got a bit crisp (but tasted better than they looked), but overall it wasn't what i had envisioned - i think not enough sauce or cheese. the crust, however, was just right - an in-between of crunchy and chewy.










the classic cheese & pepperoni on the other hand was delicious - definately the best pizza i've made. i think the high temperature made everything blend together just right. yum!










Basic Pizza Dough from The Bread Baker’s Apprentice by Peter Reinhart

Makes 6 pizza crusts (about 9-12 inches in diameter)

4 1/2 cups unbleached high-gluten (%14) bread flour or all purpose flour, chilled -
1 3/4 Tsp Salt
1 Tsp Instant yeast
1/4 cup Olive oil or vegetable oil
1 3/4 cups water, ice cold (40° F/4.5° C)
1 Tb sugar
Semolina/durum flour or cornmeal for dusting

1. Mix together the flour, salt and instant yeast in a big bowl (or in the bowl of your stand mixer).

2. Add the oil, sugar and cold water and mix well (with the help of a large wooden spoon or with the paddle attachment, on low speed) in order to form a sticky ball of dough. On a clean surface, knead for about 5-7 minutes, until the dough is smooth and the ingredients are homogeneously distributed. If it is too wet, add a little flour (not too much, though) and if it is too dry add 1 or 2 teaspoons extra water.

3. Flour a work surface or counter. Line a jelly pan with baking paper/parchment. Lightly oil the paper.

4. With the help of a metal or plastic dough scraper, cut the dough into 6 equal pieces (or larger if you want to make larger pizzas).

5. Sprinkle some flour over the dough. Make sure your hands are dry and then flour them. Gently round each piece into a ball.

6. Transfer the dough balls to the lined jelly pan and mist them generously with spray oil. Slip the pan into plastic bag or enclose in plastic food wrap.

7. Put the pan into the refrigerator and let the dough rest overnight or for up to thee days.

8. On the day you plan to eat pizza, exactly 2 hours before you make it, remove the desired number of dough balls from the refrigerator. Dust the counter with flour and spray lightly with oil. Place the dough balls on a floured surface and sprinkle them with flour. Dust your hands with flour and delicately press the dough into disks about 1/2 inch/1.3 cm thick and 5 inches/12.7 cm in diameter. Sprinkle with flour and mist with oil. Loosely cover the dough rounds with plastic wrap and then allow to rest for 2 hours.

9. At least 45 minutes before making the pizza, place a baking stone on the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven as hot as possible (500° F/260° C).

10. Generously sprinkle the back of a jelly pan with semolina/durum flour or cornmeal. Flour your hands (palms, backs and knuckles). Take 1 piece of dough by lifting it with a pastry scraper. Lay the dough across your fists in a very delicate way and carefully stretch it by bouncing it in a circular motion on your hands, and by giving it a little stretch with each bounce. Once the dough has expanded outward, move to a full toss.

11. When the dough has the shape you want (about 9-12 inches/23-30 cm in diameter - for a 6 ounces/180g piece of dough), place it on the back of the jelly pan, making sure there is enough semolina/durum flour or cornmeal to allow it to slide and not stick to the pan.

12. Lightly top it with sweet or savory toppings of your choice.

13. Slide the garnished pizza onto the stone in the oven or bake directly on the jelly pan. Close the door and bake for abour 5-8 minutes.

NOTE: After 2 minutes baking, take a peek. For an even baking, rotate 180°.

14. Take the pizza out of the oven and transfer it to a cutting board or your plate. In order to allow the cheese to set a little, wait 3-5 minutes before slicing or serving.