In my family, pizza has always been homemade. My mom always made it every Sunday night, while I usually do it on Saturday. But to say that every pizza has turned out great, I’d be lying!
My mother’s admirable attempts at using different doughs – with boiled potatoes or with eggs, dough left to rise longer, quick-rising dough… I even remember a dough that was so elastic that you'd need to nail it to the table to keep it stretched out. And sometimes it was so crunchy that as a child, I feared losing a tooth. It was still great, though. Every time.
For my pizzas these days, I still try different methods with varying results – bread flour, sourdough, steamed in the oven – but all my dough at the end? Not so great. Homemade pizza is not as easy as you think.
Then, one day I tried a recipe for pizza… made without the usual kind of dough. I discovered that you could make pizza without having to also make the dough – thanks to my previous life as a blogger (because at least ten years ago, making pizza this way had already become an online trend started by Paoletta, a famous Italian food blogger). From then on, my life as a homemade pizza maker has changed drastically.
Here is her recipe, which I used just last weekend for pizza – with cherry tomatoes, onion and bacon (pictured above).
Recipe for Pizza Without Making the Dough
Ingredients:
1 lb of regular flour
1 ½ cups water
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon instant mashed potatoes
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon malt or honey
2 tsp brewer's yeast
Method:
The great thing about pizza without the dough is that you really don't really need to even knead it. The only thing you need is a little patience, because it's a slow-leavening process, so you'll need about 24 hours to make it.
Day 1: Making the (Non)-Dough
Mix dry ingredients first (flour, instant mashed potatoes, salt).
In the water (at room temperature), dissolve the brewer's yeast with the malt (or honey). Let the yeast activate over the next few minutes. Pour the water and oil over the flour and immediately mix the ingredients. To do this, you have to knead very quickly for just a minute.
The mixture will be very soft (so don’t imagine the usual ball of pizza dough). It’s also very moist. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest in the fridge for around 20 hours.
Day 2: Folding the (Non)-Dough
After 20 hours, take the dough out of the fridge and let rest at room temperature for about two more hours.
Pour a little semolina flour on a work surface and divide the mixture into two parts.
With well-floured hands, take one piece at a time and proceed to fold it. Similar to puff pastry sheets, you’ll roll it out and slightly fold it over itself about three times.
I included a drawing to show you want I mean [it's a folding procedure: with the first patch, cover the second, then with the third cover the first two, then turn it around and keep on covering on patch on the other.]
Day 2: In the Oven!
After folding the doughless dough, let it rest covered with a damp cloth for at least 20 minutes.
In the meantime, heat the oven to 485°F (250°C). It must be very hot, so I suggest waiting until it reaches the proper temperature to cook the pizza. While you're doing this, grease two 33 cm round baking trays and roll out the pizza. Season to taste and bake for 20 minutes.
Buon appetito!