Place warm water (not hot or cold, as it will kill the yeast) into a large mixing bowl. Add sugar,olive oil and instant yeast to the water. Let stand for 5 minutes. 3/4 cup warm water, 1 tsp sugar, 2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil, 1 tbsp instant yeast
Add ½ Cup Early Bird All Purpose Flour and Himalayan Salt. Mix well using a fork, whisk orspoon. After 1 minute, add another ½ cup Early Bird All Purpose Flour. 2 1/2 cups Early Bird All-Purpose Flour, 1/2 tsp Himalayan salt
At this point, the pizza dough should be a little sticky, and too hard to mix with your fork. Begin mixing the dough with your hands. Add about ½ cup more of Early Bird All Purpose Flour.
2 1/2 cups Early Bird All-Purpose Flour
As you mix the flour by hand, and add another ½ cup of flour, the dough should be somewhatsticky. If it is still sticking to your hands or to the bowl, add a bit more flour. 2 1/2 cups Early Bird All-Purpose Flour
Place the dough on a well-floured cutting board or counter top. Begin kneading the dough. The more time you spend kneading the dough, the stronger and stretchier it becomes. However, with10 minutes of kneading, you will have Italian pizza.
As you knead, I recommend adding 1/4-1/2 cup Early Bird Hard Red Spring Wheat Flour (added flavor and sweetness), however our All Purpose will work beautifully too. As the dough is kneaded, the job will get harder, but keep at it and you will be rewarded in the end!
1/2 cup Early Bird Hard Red Spring Wheat Flour
Pull the dough apart into two separate equal size portions. Roll each into a smooth ball, andlightly coat with olive oil. Place into two separate bowls. Cover the bowls. FOR SAME DAY: Leave the dough at room temperature for 2-4 hours depending upon theclimate in your home. The cooler it is, the longer the wait.FOR FOLLOWING DAY (BEST): Place bowls in refrigerator overnight. Remove dough from fridge and allow to warm gradually to room temperature. Dough should be double or triple in size.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Shape into pizza pie, brush with olive oil, and top with your desired toppings; ours is homemade tomato sauce, both shredded dry and fresh Mozzarella, black olives, artichoke hearts, tomato and basil. But brushed with olive oil or topped with anchovies, this pizza crust will always give you a foundation of gold to stand on in an Italian kitchen.
1/4 cup Parmesan Reggiano Cheese, 2 tbsp Italian Seasoning (Basil, Oregano, Rosemary, Marjoram, Thyme)
Place pizzas in oven for 10 minutes or so, keep an eye out! Enjoy!!