Basic Pizza Dough

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cup warm water
• 1 (1/4-ounce) package active dry yeast (recommended: RapidRise)
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 4 1/2 to 5 cups bread flour
• 3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for bowl
• Cornmeal, for pan

Directions

Preheat oven at 450 degrees F.

1. Measure out 1 3/4 cups warm water (it should be pleasantly warm on your wrist). Sprinkle the yeast on top of the water and allow it to activate, about 10 minutes.

2. Put the salt and 2 cups of the flour into a food processor. Pulse 5 times to blend. Pour in the yeast and water and pulse 5 times. Add the olive oil. Add the remaining flour 1 cup at a time, pulsing and scraping the sides of the bowl until well blended. As soon as the mixture is combined, dump it out onto a well-floured board and knead for 15 turns, until the dough is smooth and elastic.

3. Place the dough in a greased bowl and turn to coat all sides. Cover with plastic wrap or a tea towel. Allow the dough to rise in a warm place for about 45 minutes, until doubled in size, then punch it down.

4. Divide it in half; each half will make 1 (12-inch) pizza.

5. Place on a cornmeal-dusted pizza stone, pizza pan, or cookie sheet. Roll up edge slightly to create a ridge around the pizza. Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, or until crust is light brown.

(side note: I tried the food processor and it didn't work well. I recommend mixing the ingredients in the same order in a bowl with a wooden spoon)

(side side note: I used all of the dough for a 24 inch pizza pan, it worked great!)

The type of cheese, sauce, and toppings are completely up to you. The dough tasted great and cooked very well.

Enjoy!