Welcome to the 6th HBinFive Bread Braid

This week for HBinFive we are making 100% Whole Wheat Bread with Olive Oil which makes a good flatbread. I decided to add some sourdough starter to the dough and bake the bread on our gas grill.

Baking bread on a grill is very easy but with my first attempt I had my doubts and thought for sure the raw dough would ooze down between the grates! And I could just hear Mr. Tastebuds' frustration if I made a mess of his brand new grill! But the bread baked perfectly and the taste of fresh bread grilled directly over an open flame is unique and so delicious! Baking bread on a grill is fun and I do have the entire process, in a simple Step-by-Step if you're interested.





Due to some tummy problems, I am staying away from spicy, hot seasoning until my stomach settles down so I made a unique vegetarian pizza type flatbread by topping it with fresh Mushrooms, Arugula, fresh Tomatoes and a mix of Mozzarella, Parmesan and Provolone. I was not sure how the Arugula would taste but it was delicious and the pseudo pizza did not bother my stomach at all! WOW...a dinner that did not involve oatmeal sure tasted good! But the 100% Whole Wheat Bread with the added sourdough starter was definitely the star of this meal!





For my other two breads for this challenge, and again taking care to eliminate any spicy seasoning, I made Welsh Pasties and Aloo Partha. If you would like to read more about this breads please click on the below title to visit the post.


Welsh Pasties and Aloo Partha









If you are participating in the HBinFive Bread Braid, please be sure to add your permalink below, and not your general address.

Please leave a comment. Every once a while Mr. Linky flies the coop and we can then find your photos by clicking on the comment links.

Don't forget to copy and paste the HBinFive Badge in your Bread Braid post or somewhere on your FB Page. Or you can mention HBinFive but your blog post must be identified with HBinFive.

Please be sure to link back to the host blog, Big Black Dog, so your fellow bloggers who are participating today, will get lots of visits, as well.

Please do not add your link below until your HBinFive post or pictures are actually published.

***If any HBinFive member is concerned about linking up to the Bread Braid Gadget please send an email to me at ms dot bigblackdog at gmail dot com with your name and the URL of your pictures and I will link you up as soon as I can.


Please feel free to click on any of the links below and visit some of our HBinFive Members and see their wonderful interpretations of this recipe!







All Rights Reserved 2008-10 © BigBlackDog

Welcome to the 4th HBinFive Bread Braid

I know..I really pushed the envelope this week HBinFive's Soft Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread! But I had so much fun in the process!

And I had just enough of the laminated dough left over from the Chicago Deep Dish Pizza to make six Pocket Apple-Cranberry Pies and oh were they good! And I used my 5" Dough Press which always does such a great job and it's so easy to use. I filled the Pocket Pies with a mix of Chopped Apple, Fresh Cranberries, Cinnamon, Granular Artificial Sweetener and Chopped Pecans.







To make the Pocket Pies:



The Dough Press is actually two tools in one. On one side there is a cutting edge similar to a cookie cutter and you can cut a disk of dough. And on the other side is a crimping edge where you can crimp the dough and form a moon-shaped Pocket.

1. Roll out the dough to about 1/8" thick.

2. Press the cutting edge into the dough and cut a disk of dough. Flip the Dough Press over and position the disk of dough so that it's adequately covering the Crimping Edge.

3. Sprinkle about a 1/2 tsp cornmeal or semolina on the filling area of the dough. The cornmeal/semolina helps to soak up any juices released during baking and keeps the bottom crispy.

4. Then add 2 TBL of filling on just one side of dough disk, making sure that no filling is spilling into the edges that are going to be crimped together.



5. Brush egg wash on the edges.

6. Using the hinge, flip one side of the Dough Press over the other and with both hands press, lightly but firmly, making sure that the crimped edge is completely sealed.

7. Place the Pockets on a parchment lined baking sheet.

8. Brush the Pocket with egg wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar or topping of your choice.

9. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20-25 minutes or until the Pocket is a nice golden brown.








With the rest of the Soft Whole Grain Sandwich Dough I made a Chicago Deep Dish Pizza and Angelo's Coney Island Hot Dogs served on a homemade Bun. If you'd like to read more about these recipes, just click on the below titles to visit the post.



Chicago Deep Dish Pizza





Angelo's Coney Island Hot Dog





If you are participating in the HBinFive Bread Braid, please be sure to add your permalink below, and not your general address.

Please leave a comment. Every once a while Mr. Linky flies the coop and we can then find your photos by clicking on the comment links.

Don't forget to copy and paste the HBinFive Badge in your Bread Braid post or somewhere on your FB Page. Or you can mention HBinFive but your blog post must be identified with HBinFive.

Please be sure to link back to the host blog, Big Black Dog, so your fellow bloggers who are participating today, will get lots of visits, as well.

Please do not add your link below until your HBinFive post or pictures are actually published.

***If any HBinFive member is concerned about linking up to the Bread Braid Gadget please send an email to me at ms dot bigblackdog at gmail dot com with your name and the URL of your pictures and I will link you up as soon as I can.



Please feel free to click on any of the links below and visit some of our HBinFive Members and see their wonderful interpretations of this recipe!









All Rights Reserved 2008-10 © BigBlackDog

Soft Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread poof'd into Chicago Deep Dish Pizza

About a week ago we received a promotional free copy of the latest Cook's Illustrated Magazine. My husband, Mr. Tastebuds read the entire magazine and wanted me to make the Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza. I knew just reading the recipe that it was not going to taste like real Chicago Deep Dish Pizza. But the recipe was interesting because the dough was laminated. I love laminating dough, it just so much fun and makes the dough extra flaky!

Since this week for HBinFive our scheduled recipe is Soft Wholewheat Sandwich Bread, I thought I'd just go way out of the realm and adapt the recipe for Chicago Deep Dish Pizza Dough and my substitutions and additions are noted.

Mr. Tastebud's loved this pizza especially the sauce! I thought the sauce was a bit on the spicy side but the crust was good but I prefer my own Pizza Dough which I'm going to try laminating soon!







Deep Dish Pizza - Chicago Style
Recipe adapted from Cook's Illustrated

Makes 2-9" Pizzas

Dough:
3 1/4 c unbleached flour (2 c. unbleached flour, 1 1/4 c. White Whole Wheat Flour)
1/2 c. yellow cornmeal
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tsp sugar (1 TBL honey)
2 1/4 teaspoon instant or rapid rise yeast (1/2 c. Sourdough Starter)
1 1/4 c. water, room temp
3 TBL butter, melted
1 teaspoon plus 4 TBL Olive Oil
4 TBL butter, softened

Additions:
1/8 c. Vital Wheat Gluten

Sauce:
2 TBL butter
1/4 medium onion, grated (6 green onions including tops, chopped)
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
2 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1-28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
1/4 teaspoon sugar (I skipped)
2 TBL fresh basil, coarsely chopped (6 basil leaves coarsely chopped)
1 TBL Olive Oil, extra virgin
Salt and Freshly ground Black Pepper to taste (I skipped the salt)

Topping:
1 pound mozzarella, shredded about 4 c.
1/4 c. Parmesan Cheese, grated (I sprinkled some Mozzarella on top too)

For the Dough:
1. Mix flour, cornmeal, salt, sugar, and yeast in bowl of stand mixer fitted with dough hook on low and mix a few minutes.
2. Add water and melted butter and mix on low until fully incorporated about 1-2 minutes. Continue mixing until dough becomes glossy and firm about 4-5 minutes.
3. Coat a large bowl with 1 teaspoon Olive Oil. Transfer dough to bowl and then flip the dough over so that all sides are covered with oil. Cover tightly with plastic wrap.
4. Let rise to room temperature until doubled about 45-60 minutes.


Sauce:
5. While the dough is rising melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat.
6. Add onion and oregano. Cook until liquid has evaporated and onion is golden brown, about 5 minutes.
7. Add garlic and saute for a few minutes.
8. Stir in tomatoes and sugar, increase heat to high and bring to a simmer. Lower heat to medium and simmer until reduced to about 2 cups 25-30 minutes. 8. Off heat stir in basil and oil, then season with salt and pepper.

Laminating Dough:
9. Turn dough out onto dry work surface and roll into a 15" by 12" rectangle.
10. With a spatula spread softened butter over surface of dough, leaving 1/2" border.
11. Starting with the short end, roll the dough into a tight cylinder.
12. Seam side down, flatten the cylinder with your hands into a 4" by 18" rectangle.
13. Then fold it up into thirds, letter style; Pinch seams together to form a ball



14. Repeat with remaining half of dough.
15. Spray a plate with cooking spray and place balls of dough on plate. Spray plastic wrap with cooking spray and cover dough balls. Place in refrigerator until doubled in volume, 40-50 minutes.

Shaping the Pizza:
16. Coat two 9" cake pans with 2 TBL of Olive Oil.
17. Transfer 1 dough ball to dry rolling surface and roll out into a 13" disk about 1/4" thick.
18. Lightly press dough into pan, working into edges and at least 1" up the sides. If dough resists stretching let it rest for a minute or 2 and then try again. Repeat with remaining dough ball for second pizza.

Assembly:
19. For each pizza, sprinkle 2 c of Mozzarella evenly over surface of dough.
20. Spread 1 1/4 c of tomato sauce over cheese and sprinkle 2 TBL of Parmesan over sauce.
21. Bake until crust is golden brown, 20-30 minutes.
22. Remove pizza from oven and let rest 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Happy Birthday Jamie!

Bread Baking Day #26 is hosted by Jamie of Life's a Feast.







All Rights Reserved 2008-10 © BigBlackDog

Once you try it there's no going back -- Grilling Pizza!

I know that summer is the time for grilling but we grill year round and use our grill at least 3-4 times a week. So it was only natural that I would venture into the world of pizza on a grill. I first tried grilling pizza about a year ago and my pizza has not seen an oven since. The difference in taste is so distinctive, absolutely delicious and it's fun!

Of course I was concerned that the pizza dough would ooze through the grate, but it didn't. I was also concerned about sliding the dough onto the grill. Well this is a bit tricky, I do suggest making small pizzas at first and gradually increase the size until you feel comfortable handling a larger amount of dough.


What you need to Grill a Pizza:

1. Grill with a well seasoned grate. If you're using a new grill, as the grill is pre-heating generously brush the grill with Olive Oil several times before baking the pizza.
2. Pizza Dough Recipe (below is the one I use)
3. Pizza Peel or Baking Sheet (I use a baking sheet)
4. Cornmeal or Semolina
5. Pizza Toppings (I have all my toppings prepped and ready)
6. Large spatula, the bigger the better. To help guide pizza dough when sliding it onto the hot grill.






Pizza Dough and Grilling Instructions

For 1-1/2 lb. (makes two 12-inch pizzas or one 15-x-10-inch pizza)
1/4 c. plus 2 TBL water, warm
2 tsp yeast
3/4 c. milk
1-1/2 TBL EVOO
1 tsp salt
3 c. all-purpose flour
Semolina or cornmeal for sprinkling
Option: 1/2 c. sourdough starter

For 1 lb. (makes one 12-inch pizza)
1/4 c. water, warm
1-1/2 tsp yeast
1/2 c. milk
1 TBL. EVOO
3/4 tsp salt
2 cups all-purpose flour
Semolina or cornmeal for sprinkling
Option: 1/2 c. sourdough starter

1. Select recipe size desired.

2. Mix yeast in warm water and let sit for about 5 minutes until you see some yeast action. Add sourdough starter, salt, milk and EVOO. Then gradually mix in flour. Rub EVOO on the inside of a bowl. Place dough in bowl and rub some EVOO on the top of the dough ball. Cover with a towel and put in a warm place for 4-5 hours. The dough will not rise much but just letting it ferment adds wonderful flavor.

Grilling Instructions:

3. About 20 minutes before you are ready to bake the pizza either start the charcoal or fire up the gas grill to about 450 degrees.

4. It's best to have the grill ready to go before you start forming the pizza. If the pizza sits too long on the peel or baking sheet it will stick and it's more difficult to slide onto the grill.

5. GENEROUSLY sprinkle pizza peel or baking sheet with semolina or cornmeal and I mean GENEROUSLY.



6. Now you're ready to form the pizza. I just do this with my hands and pull and stretch the dough until it is the right size. Don't worry about making a perfect circle. Your pizza will be delicious no matter what shape it is.



7. Place shaped dough on peel or baking sheet and immediately slide pizza onto grill. Cover or close the lid and bake for about 8-10 minutes until the underside has nice grill marks.

8. Remove pizza from grill. Take the pizza inside and flip the pizza over so that the grilled side is facing you.



9. Now you're ready to start adding the toppings. As for topping, anything goes at my house. I make up small prep bowls of anything I-have-on-hand-at-the-time: Onions, Olives, Variety of Cheeses, Mushrooms, Sweet Pepper, Spaghetti Sauce, Fresh Basil, Pesto Sauce, Pepperoni, Italian Sausage, Ham, Zucchini, Yellow Squash, Ricotta Cheese. Heck, we've even put Green Beans on our pizza and it was pretty good.

10. Spread the topping on the pizza. Everyone makes their own pizzas at my house. It's fun and this way everyone is happy.





11. Now, put the pizza back on the grill to melt the cheeses and finish baking the "other side". When the cheese is completely melted and bubbly, it's done. Enjoy!







All Rights Reserved 2008-9 © Big Black Dog

Anadama, Artos, Bagels, Meatballs and Mini Pizzas **Whew

I joined a new weekly bread baking group, Bread Baker's Apprentice(BBA). And we will be baking from the book. "The Bread Baker's Apprentice: Mastering the Art of Extraordinary Bread" by Peter Reinhart. It is a beautiful book with wonderful diagrams and step-by-step photos.

Google Books has the entire book scanned and you can find the recipes by clicking here.




Our first bread was Anadama Bread, an old New England yeast bread recipe, made with molasses and cornmeal. I made one single loaf and 12 hamburger buns. It was a very tender and delicious bread and although it did have molasses in it, I would not classify this as a sweet bread at all. Recipe is located on Pgs 108-110.





This is a Meatball Sandwich made with one of my Anadama Bread Buns.





Our next bread was Artos: Greek Celebration Bread which is a large, gorgeous bread. Although my family is not fond of breads with dried fruit and nuts, the bread was so beautiful I was looking forward to making it. Unfortunately, dealing with bread proofing and my own personal schedule sometimes does not work out. I had to let the bread dough ferment just a little too long and the crust has yeasty bubbles on the surface. But it still is a good looking loaf of bread and I had fun making and decorating it. Again the recipe can be found at Google Books Pgs 111-113.





Our third bread is Bagels. I've made bagels before and in fact used this same recipe and they turned out perfect. Please click here to see my first batch of bagels and the recipe including my changes. Making bagels is a two-day process, including making the sponge the night before and then finishing the bagels the following day.

But the next day the outside temperature was, unexpectedly, in the 90's, and my bagels rise was much to fast and they were very large. I mean gigantic, enormous suckers. Like 6" across and almost impossible-to-handle huge. They did not turn out pretty but tasted great. Next time if it is hot outside I will either put the bread in the basement for the final rise or stash them in the refrigerator.

But all was not lost, for dinner that night I made mini pizzas with over-sized bagels. Just cut a bagel in half, layer sliced fresh tomatoes, grated mozzarella cheese, minced garlic, 3-4 fresh whole basil leaves and top with pepperoni. I popped them under the broiler for a minute or so and viola...DINNER is served. Most definitely a meal for my Call-it-Dinner category. The mini pizzas were so good. Next time I make bagels I think I might purposely make some extra large bagels for mini pizzas! The Bagel Recipe can be found on Pgs 115-122

Here's the layered mini pizzas before broiling.





Hot out of the broiler and looking delicious. Gosh they were so good!!!






All Rights Reserved 2008-9 © Big Black Dog

Wordless Wednesday

All Rights Reserved 2008-9 © Big Black Dog

Daring Bakers: We're Mess'n with Pizza!

Well here we are for another round from Daring Bakers! I was so happy to hear that our monthly challenge was pizza! Our Daring Baker hostess this month is Rosa of Rosa's Yummy Yum. Thank you so much Rosa!!



For my topping I chose the last of our fresh tomatoes from our garden and the last of my basil too. I also added thin slices of red onion, garlic, lots of mozzarella cheese, a sprinkling of tarragon, fresh mushrooms and thin slices of my last sweet purple pepper. This is the first time I ever sprinkled tarragon but it was so good with the garlic, basil and tomatoes, I'm sure I will use tarragon again!



Basic Pizza Dough
Recipe adapted from The Bread Baker's Apprentice: Mastering the Art of Extraordinary Bread by Peter Reinhart

Makes 6 pizza crusts (about 9-12 inches).

4 1/2 c. flour
1 3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp instant yeast
1/4 c. olive oil
1 3/4 c. water, ice cold (40°F/4.5°C)
1 Tbsp sugar
semolina/durum flour or cornmeal for dusting

DAY ONE

Mix together the flour, salt and instant yeast in a big bowl. 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. The finished dough should be springy, elastic, and sticky, not just tacky, and register 50°-55°F/10°-13°C.

Flour a work surface or counter. Line a jelly pan with baking paper/parchment. Lightly oil the paper. 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). Sprinkle some flour over the dough. Make sure your hands are dry and then flour them. Gently round each piece into a ball. 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. Put the pan into the refrigerator and let the dough rest overnight or for up to thee days.

DAY TWO

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.

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). If you do not have a baking stone, then use the back of a jelly pan. Do not preheat the pan. 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. Make only one pizza at a time! During the tossing process, if the dough tends to stick to your hands, lay it down on the floured counter and reflour your hands, then continue the tossing and shaping. In case you would be having trouble tossing the dough or if the dough never wants to expand and always springs back, let it rest for approximately 5-20 minutes in order for the gluten to relax fully,then try again. You can also resort to using a rolling pin, although it isn’t as effective as the toss method.

When the dough has the shape you want (about 9-12 inches in diameter - for a 6 ounces), 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.

Lightly top it with sweet or savory toppings of your choice. Remember that the best pizzas are topped not too generously. No more than 3 or 4 toppings (including sauce and cheese) are sufficient. Slide the garnished pizza onto the stone in the oven or bake directly on the jelly pan. Close the door and bake for about 5-8 minutes. After 2 minutes baking, take a peek. For an even baking, rotate 180°.

If the top gets done before the bottom, you will need to move the stone or jelly pan to a lower shelf before the next round. On the contrary, if the bottom crisps before the cheese caramelizes, then you will need to raise the stone or jellyroll pan. 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.



I wanted to get 1 picture which included my pizza cutter. I LOVE....LOVE....LOVE my pizza cutter and use it almost every day. It's great for cutting sandwiches, bread sticks and even pie crust! If you don't have one, get one soon!


All Rights Reserved 2008 © Big Black Dog

Lotta Ricotta....so it's Pizza Rustica

This is another recipe that I printed out and it has been hanging around in my kitchen for ages now or at least a few months but most probably ages! But I have the remainder of a 5 lb container of Ricotta that needs to be used and this recipe was perfect.

The recipe is adapted from "Baking with Julia" by Dorie Greenspan. And you can find it listed many times on the internet and I will repost it here for your convenience. It is a very easy recipe although I baked mine about 15 minutes longer then the recommended time. And of course I made changes which are in ()'s or in my notes.

I just took the Pizza Rustica out of the oven and it looks amazing! And tastes delicious...rich but so good and just hits the spot on this chilly, rainy night in Northern IL!!



Pizza Rustica

Dough-
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar (I skipped the sugar)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 stick butter, cut into pieces
2 large eggs, slightly beaten


Filling-
1 lb ricotta
3 large eggs
1/4 cup grated pecorino romano cheese
1/4 lb mozzarella cheese, grated
1/4 lb thinly sliced prosciutto, shredded (I subbed diced salami)
2 tb chopped fresh parsley
1/4 tsp pepper

Notes: I also added 3-4 minced cloves of garlic, 1 tsp tarragon, about 1/2 c. freshly grated Parmesan cheese and 2 minced green onions including the tops.

Dough:

1. Put flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt into food processor; pulse a few times to mix. add butter and pulse 15-20 times, or until mixture resembles cornmeal.

2. With machine running, add the eggs and process until dough forms ball on blade.

3. Remove dough and knead it until smooth, about 1-2 minutes. Divide the dough in two pieces, one twice as large as the other. wrap in plastic and set aside until needed (you can refrigerate in advance for up to 3 days).


Filling and assembly:

1. In medium bowl, stir ricotta with spatula until smooth. Add rest of the ingredients one at a time, stirring until each addition is incorporated and well blended.

2. Preheat oven to 350F. butter 9-inch pie pan.

3. Knead the large dough piece into disk and roll out on lightly floured surface to fit pie pan (about 12" circle). Transfer dough to pan and press on bottom and up sides; trim excess. Fill pan with ricotta filling.


4. Knead and shape the remaining piece of dough into 9-inch square. using pizza cutter or small sharp knife, cut dough into 12 even strips. lay strips across the pie, in criss cross and trim edges of lattice and pinch to seal.

5. Bake for 35-40 minutes until crust is golden and filling is firm and slightly puffed. transfer pie to rack and cool completely before serving.


All Rights Reserved 2008 © Big Black Dog

It's Pizza Time!

Last night I made Pizza and it was dee-licious.

I've tried several pizza doughs but I keep going back to the recipe I've used for several years now. The dough does not rise much if at all and makes a very short crust similar to the Chicago Deep Dish Pizza...the real Chicago Pizza, not the stuff that is advertised as "Chicago Pizza".

But this time I decided to experiment a bit and added some sourdough starter. OH MY... sourdough starter made the pizza dough so good and I'm pretty sure I will add it again the next time I'm in the mood for pizza!





Pizza Dough
Recipe adapted from I-have-no-idea

For 1-1/2 lb. (makes two 12-inch pizzas or one 15-x-10-inch pizza)
1/4 c. plus 2 TBL water, warm
2 tsp yeast
3/4 c. milk
1-1/2 TBL EVOO
1 tsp salt
3 c. all-purpose flour
3/4 c. sourdough starter
Semolina

For 1 lb. (makes one 12-inch pizza)
1/4 c. water, warm
1-1/2 tsp yeast
1/2 c. milk
1 TBL. EVOO
3/4 tsp salt
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 c. sourdough starter
Semolina

Select recipe size desired. Pre-heat the oven at 400 degrees and place your baking stone in the oven to warm.

Mix yeast in warm water and let sit for about 5 minutes until you see some yeast action. Add sourdough starter, salt, milk and EVOO. Then gradually mix in flour. Dough will be very stiff. Rub EVOO on the inside of a bowl. Place dough in bowl and rub some EVOO on the top of the dough ball. Cover with a towel and put in a warm place for 4-5 hours. The dough will not rise much but just letting it ferment adds wonderful flavor.

Sprinkle some Semolina on your Peel. Now you're ready to form the pizza. I just do this with my hands and pull and stretch the dough until it is the right size.

As for topping, anything goes at my house. I make up small prep bowls of anything I-have-on-hand-at-the-time: Onions, Olives, Variety of Cheeses, Mushrooms, Sweet Pepper, Spaghetti Sauce, Pesto Sauce, Pepperoni, Italian Sausage, Ham, Zucchini, Yellow Squash, Ricotta Cheese. Heck, we've even put Green Beans on our pizza and it was pretty good.


When the oven is hot, gently slide the pizza from the peel onto the baking stone. I used my new Pizza Peel that my friend Lucy gave me and it worked beautifully!! I love it!!!

I turn down my oven to 350 degrees once I put the pizza in. Bake until the cheese is bubbly hot and the crust is a nice golden brown.

All Rights Reserved 2008 © Big Black Dog