Pizza dough

For about a year I have been trying one pizza dough recipe after another.  I simply couldn't find one that I really liked and was also simple.  My search may be over.  I've combined two recipes that I liked 'okay' and came up with this one that I love!  This recipe is as simple as stirring everything together and letting it do a single rise.

The recipe below will make 2 large pizza crusts or 8 calzones.  I usually double the recipe, roll out the extra crusts and par-bake them for about 8 minutes.  Then you can wrap in aluminum foil, throw in the freezer and yank one out when you need to make a quick lunch.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 4 ½ tsp active dry yeast
• 2 cups warm water (110 degrees)
• 4 cups bread flour
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 4 teaspoons white sugar
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons basil
• ¼ cup olive oil

Directions

1. In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.

2. In a large bowl, combine bread flour, salt, sugar, garlic powder, and basil; stir to combine.  Add olive oil and the yeast mixture; stir well to combine. Beat well until a stiff dough has formed. Cover and rise until doubled in volume, about 30- 60 minutes.

3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

4. Turn dough out onto a well floured surface (it's very sticky!). Form dough into a round, and flour the top liberally.  Roll out into a pizza crust shape. Cover with homemade pizza sauce and your favorite toppings and bake in preheated oven until golden brown, about 20-25 minutes (slightly less if you're using a par-baked crust).