Pizza dough 

Soft with a swollen crust or crust (as they call it in Naples). Low and crispy, high and soft: pizza has many faces, today I show you the most classic, common and perfect one to make at home in a few hours. The pizza dough that I propose, in fact, rises for about 6 hours: you can then organize yourself to prepare it on the day and enjoy it in the evening with the toppings you prefer. A simple basic recipe for a homemade pizza that is prepared with a few ingredients and then garnished as you see fit, perhaps even giving it an unusual shape, such as our soft pizza donut. Are you ready to get your hands in the dough? Today we discover all the secrets to prepare pizza dough, which is also perfect for preparing a delicious rustic pizza!

INGREDIENTS

Flour 200 g

Flour 00 300 g

Water at room temperature 300 ml

Salt up to 10 g

Fresh brewer's yeast 4 g

PREPARATION

To prepare the pizza dough we have chosen to knead everything by hand, but if you prefer to use the mixer you can follow the same procedure, using the hook at medium-low speed. First, pour the two flours into a bowl, crumble the yeast inside and pour in a little of the amount of water. The ideal water temperature is 25°C. Stir with a wooden spoon and slowly add the water. Always keep stirring and when you have added about half of the water you can also add the salt.

Then add the remaining water, always slowly, until you get a homogeneous mixture; Help yourself with your hands to work it better. Finally, transfer the dough to the work surface and knead it with your hands until it is smooth and homogeneous. Once you have a nice smooth dough, let it rest on the work surface for about ten minutes, covering it with the bowl. Once rested, give it a small fold: imagine that the sphere is divided into 4 parts, take the end of each, pull it gently and fold it towards the center. Then fold the dough. Turn it over, give it the shape of a sphere. Transfer the dough into a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let it rise. For convenience, you can put the bowl in the oven with the light on, so the inside will reach a temperature of 26-28°C, ideal for leavening; Alternatively, you can also keep the basin in a warm place. The times are approximate because each dough, temperature and weather conditions affect the leavening: on average, the dough should take 6 hours to double in volume. After the leavening time, the dough will be nice and puffy, then transfer it to the work surface and divide it with a tarot into 3 pieces of 265 g. If you need it, you can lightly flour the work surface. Now take each portion and as before lift a flap of dough and bring it inwards. Then do the same thing for the other 3 flaps of dough. Then stretch the dough by folding it on itself and proceed with the your hands means turning it with your hands on the work surface, bringing it towards you and then moving it away repeatedly until you get a smooth and regular ball. Gradually transfer the loaves to a previously greased pizza box, cover with the lid and let them sit for another 30 minutes, before you can roll out the pizza dough and season it to your liking! 

PRESERVATION

Once the dough has risen, it must be cooked. If you prefer to store it, you can reduce the amount of yeast, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it mature in the refrigerator for 8-12 hours. After the time has elapsed, simply let the dough acclimatize and then continue as per the recipe. Once the pizza dough has risen, it can also be frozen, better if already divided into portions, and stored in a freezer bag. Then simply let your portion thaw at room temperature and continue as per the recipe. If you prefer, you can also freeze the semi-cooked pizza: just make it half cooked, let it cool and finally freeze it by wrapping it in plastic wrap; Then just cook it, still frozen, at a slightly lower temperature.

Naples is a thousand colors, yes but a thousand colors of pizza! Although asking around they will tell you that the original is only one, the pizza Margherita with stringy mozzarella, and there are no other types of toppings. Every self-respecting pizza maker has his own recipe and jealously guards it, but I have created my own and I have chosen to share it with you.

INGREDIENTS

Tomato puree 300 g

Mozzarella 200 g

Basil to taste

Extra virgin olive oil to taste

PREPARATION

With your fingertips, squeeze the dough in the center. Continue in this way, making a rotating movement in order to spread the dough. Never squeeze the edges, and continue until you get a disc with a diameter of 28 cm. Transfer the dough to the peel, taking care not to spoil it. Now, with the help of a spoon, spread the tomato puree on the pizza, leaving the edge free. Bake, gently sliding the pizza over the baking stone and let it cook for about 6 minutes. In the meantime, cut the mozzarella into sticks or fray it with your hands. You can squeeze it gently so that it doesn't release too much water during cooking. After 6 minutes, still using the peel, take the pizza out of the oven. Place the mozzarella sticks on top and bake for another 6 minutes or so. When the pizza is golden brown, take it out of the oven, add the basil leaves and if you like, a drizzle of oil and serve. Cook the other two pizzas in the same way and enjoy your simple pizza Margherita piping hot!