I published my favorite pizza dough from Patricia Wells years ago and it is still a fabulous recipe. However, now that I have my beloved Komo Fididbus 21 grain mill, I don't really use any all-purpose white flour. The original recipe is easy to convert, but I wanted to publish a version that takes all the guess-work out of it, particularly since Wells' recipe goes more by volume than weight (for example, she calls for flour in cups and in parentheses says that's 1lb or 500g. One pound is not 500g and in a dough recipe the difference of around 50g can make a difference). Finally, I reverse the mixing method because I use instant yeast now--there is no need to mix it with liquid first and it's far easier for me to grind my grain straight into the food processor bowl. I use my heavy-duty Breville Sous Chef food processor, which can handle the double-batch size shown here. If your machine is not as powerful you may need to do single batches at a time. The original recipe has the basic proportions for that.
I really love kamut grains. They're an ancient form of wheat that have an extremely long grain and a beautiful yellow color. Kamut reminds me of semolina in its color and slight grittiness and it's fun to use in pizza dough. I get it online from Bob's Red Mill because even our fantastic local co-op doesn't carry it, though it does have emmer farro, spelt, red and white wheat berries.
Today I'll be using my Baking Steel griddle as a pizza stone for the first time and I'm super excited. I got it as a gift for Christmas and have been absolutely delighted with it as a griddle. Far bigger than my cast iron griddle with a shockingly non-stick surface right from the get-go, it's a joy to use. I suspect it will also be revelatory for pizza.
I tend to make calzones with any leftover dough. I bake and freeze them to pop into the kids' or my school/work lunches as a Friday treat.
INGREDIENTS
450g hard red wheat berries, ground finely (or storebought whole wheat bread flour)
450g kamut grains, ground finely (or pre-ground kamut flour)
2 tsp instant yeast
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp salt (I used table salt but you could use any fine salt; if using coarser sea salt you'll need a bit more)
2 2/3 c warm water
1/4 c olive or other oil
DIRECTIONS
I really love kamut grains. They're an ancient form of wheat that have an extremely long grain and a beautiful yellow color. Kamut reminds me of semolina in its color and slight grittiness and it's fun to use in pizza dough. I get it online from Bob's Red Mill because even our fantastic local co-op doesn't carry it, though it does have emmer farro, spelt, red and white wheat berries.
Today I'll be using my Baking Steel griddle as a pizza stone for the first time and I'm super excited. I got it as a gift for Christmas and have been absolutely delighted with it as a griddle. Far bigger than my cast iron griddle with a shockingly non-stick surface right from the get-go, it's a joy to use. I suspect it will also be revelatory for pizza.
I tend to make calzones with any leftover dough. I bake and freeze them to pop into the kids' or my school/work lunches as a Friday treat.
INGREDIENTS
450g hard red wheat berries, ground finely (or storebought whole wheat bread flour)
450g kamut grains, ground finely (or pre-ground kamut flour)
2 tsp instant yeast
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp salt (I used table salt but you could use any fine salt; if using coarser sea salt you'll need a bit more)
2 2/3 c warm water
1/4 c olive or other oil
DIRECTIONS
- Grind the grains directly into the bowl of your food processor with the cutting blade (not dough blade) inserted
- Add the yeast, sugar and salt and pulse until combined
- Mix the oil and water together (just use the same measuring cup) then pour through the feeding tube while pulsing and pulse until the dough comes together
- The food processor will probably start to slow down, but the dough will also have formed a ball. If it seems too wet you can add a bit of all-purpose or other flour (I don't grind extra grain for this part, and I have a small stock of white flour on hand for times like this)
- Turn out onto a clean counter and knead a few times. It shouldn't feel sticky--if it does, knead in a bit more flour but it shouldn't be more than a few tablespoons
- Put dough in clean bowl and cover. You can do a room temperature first rise or stick it in the fridge. I usually do room temp for the first rise, punch down and then refrigerate until about an hour before I need it
- Portion out the dough into about 3oz balls and proceed with my pizza recipe or your own as desired
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