Basic Whole Wheat Pizza

My husband and I both like to try new foods, but sometimes we just want to eat pizza for dinner.  This is my standard pizza recipe…  I recommend making the dough early in the afternoon and letting it rise a few hours until dinner time. If you don’t have time during the day, make it the night before and let it rise for about an hour before refrigerating it. It may need a few extra minutes to rise on the pan when you are ready to make it, but that will give you plenty of time to whip up the sauce!

Pizza Dough Ingredients:

• 1 cup warm water
• 1 package yeast (1 tablespoon)
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

Pizza Dough Directions:

Start by combining the water and the yeast in a large mixing bowl (if you are using an electric mixer, use the mixer bowl). Add the sugar and stir to combine, dissolving both the sugar and the yeast in the water.  Add the salt, olive oil,and 1 cup of the whole wheat flour. Beat the mixture until smooth.

Add the remaining 1/2 cup of whole wheat flour and the all purpose flour. Knead by hand for about 5 minutes, until the mixture forms a dough (or use the dough hook on the mixer on low speed for approximately 2 minutes until the mixture forms a ball).

Transfer the dough to a large greased bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until the dough doubles in size.

Lightly grease a 15 inch pizza pan or a large baking sheet.  Spread the dough out on the pan and allow to rise for an additional 15 minutes.

Pizza Sauce Ingredients:

(Note – my husband likes his pizza saucey, so this recipe makes a lot of sauce.  You may want to halve the ingredients if you don’t like as much sauce on your pizza.)

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil leaves
• 15 ounce can tomato sauce
• Kosher salt, to taste

Pizza Sauce Directions:

Heat the olive oil in a small sauce pan over medium heat.  Add the garlic, red pepper, and basil.  Cook for a few minutes, until garlic is fragrant.  Be careful not to burn the garlic (burnt garlic does NOT taste good… trust me, I know).  Add the tomato sauce and salt. Bring to a bubble, and then reduce heat and simmer for 5-10 minutes, until the sauce thickens slightly.  Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Additional Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 8 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2 ounces parmesan cheese, finely shredded

Finishing the Pizza:

Preheat the oven to 450°F.  Brush the edge of the pizza dough with the extra virgin olive oil (this will help the crust get golden and crispy).

Spread the pizza sauce over the dough, just to the edge of the olive oil. Top the sauce with the cheeses. Bake the pizza for 12-15 minutes, until the crust is golden and the cheese is bubbly.

Allow the pizza to cool slightly before slicing.