Family Pizza Night
Submitted by: SIMI (Writer), CARSTEN (Photographer), and MAREN (Pizza Tosser), with Nona and Papa (Shirley and Richard DicKard)
We’ve been having Pizza Nights in our family for as long as us grandkids can remember. Each time we visit our grandparents, we set aside an evening for prepping, topping, cooking, and most importantly, eating our delicious homemade pizza creations. This tradition has become such a staple in our family that we even made t-shirts for each family member that describe your assigned role in the pizza-making process. (This has become much more flexible as time has gone on). We love cooking them in the outdoor pizza oven that Papa made, but you can do the same in a very hot kitchen oven. We look forward to Pizza Night every time we visit our grandparents, and we hope it will become a favorite way for you to share food for many years to come.
Pizza Dough - California Style
By Papa DicKard, from New Pizza by James McNair. Pages 18-22
Ingredients:
1 ½ cups warm (110*F) water
2 ¼ teaspoons Active Dry Yeast (1 packet or ¼ ounce.)
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 ¼ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Instructions:
Sprinkle the yeast over the warm water to “proof” it.
Mix dry ingredients together, then add proofed yeast with water and olive oil. You can mix and knead by hand, in a food processor, or electric mixer.
Mix everything well until the gluten is well-formed. (Strands of dough appear). If the dough is too sticky or dry, adjust by adding a small amount of flour or water.
Knead the dough by hand or in a machine until smooth and silky. Place in a bowl oiled with olive oil. Cover. Let rise 1 hour then punch down.
(At this point you can opt to let it rise for up to 24 hours in a tightly covered bowl in your refrigerator; punch it down 1 -2 times, then let the dough warm up before the next step)
Let the dough rise a second time for 45 minutes until doubled in volume.
Divide into 4 equal pieces (for 10-12” pizzas).
Shape by either stretching out the dough by hand or use a rolling pin on a floured surface to create a rough circle.
Brush the dough with olive oil, a sauce, and then your favorite toppings. Finish with grated cheese.
Bake on a pizza stone or equivalent in a 500*F oven until done as you like. Let cool a bit, section into slices, share and enjoy!