It makes sense to begin this culinary journey with one of the most basic and frequently used recipes in my collection. I have no idea where this came from. I think I had a recipe for bread dough that contained pastry flour, sugar, olive oil, and some other stuff that I later learned wasn't necessary for authentic pizza dough, so I just took them out and kept the basics. Water, flour, salt, and yeast. That's it. Couldn't be easier. And the crust couldn't be crisper.
1 cup warm water
½ teaspoon salt
2 ½ cups bread flour
2 ½ teaspoons yeast
I do this in my bread machine. Follow your manufacturer’s instructions. Mine suggests the order above. Set on dough cycle. Shape. Let rise again. Bake as desired.
Suggestions for pizza and bread:
If making pizza, flatten into discs (on a cornmeal dusted pizza peel) and add desired toppings. Slide onto a pizza stone in a 500° oven. Keep a close eye on it... this is a very hot oven! I add mozzarella or goat cheese during the last couple minutes of baking so it doesn’t burn. Slide out on a pizza peel and add desired cheese, then carefully slide back into oven until cheese is melted. (Note: the cornmeal on the pizza peel will make it easier to slide unbaked dough into the oven, but there is no need to add more cornmeal when you take it out to add the cheese. Once baked, it should slide on and off the peel pretty easily.)
If making bread, shape into loaves (I use a baguette pan with tiny perforations on the base). This recipe will make two small baguettes. Bake at 425° for about 20 minutes. Baking time will vary according to loaf size and oven, but the bread will be golden on the outside when it's done.
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