A Little Extra: Pizza Crust

First I just want to say: Welcome to my new series!

Now I know what you're thinking...Another series. Seriously how many does this woman need? But hey, what can I say - I like grouping things up. I'm in an organizational kick. Deal with it.

That all being [unnecessarily] said, this series is about all those other things that are made. This isn't about cooking or desserts. This is about breads and snacks and all those things that don't really fit into what my other series are all about. So this is all about those extras that go with meals or don't fit into the meals at all but are basically bonus foods.

For my first 'A Little Extra' I decided to share the amazing homemade pizza crust recipe I found in my new cookbook Dinner: A Love Story. (Also check out her blog here!)

Here's What You Need:
3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons instant or other active dry yeast
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon sugar
1 1/3 cups water, room temperature
Olive oil, for greasing

Here's What You Do:
In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, yeast, salt and sugar. Add the water, and using a wooden spoon or your hand, mix until blended, at least 30 seconds.

The dough will be stiff, not wet and sticky. Cover the bowl and let it sit at room temperature until the dough has more than doubled in volume, about 2 hours.

Divide the dough in two and shape each section into flattened balls. If only making one pizza, freeze the other ball in a freezer storage bag.

Tip: If you rub a little olive oil on your fingers and on the ball of dough before bagging, it will be less sticky to negotiate.

Makes: Two 16-ounce balls of dough; each ball of dough makes 1 cookie-sheet-size pizza (17x12-inch sheet).

Total time: 2 hours 5 minutes (includes 2-hour hands-off rise time)

I highly recommend trying this pizza crust. It is really simple and really good. And you probably even have everything you need already in you pantry - well, maybe not the yeast but that's easy enough. We have started a new tradition of pizza every Friday. But mostly all homemade pizzas. Don't worry I'll share a few of our favorite recipes with you. But every good pizza starts with a good crust, and this one is definitely a good one. Try it. You'll see.