Semolina Pizza Dough

This is a good recipe if you want to make a thick, chewy pizza crust. Makes enough dough for two medium-sized pizza crusts. I used it to make my first ever deep-dish pizza using a 10-inch deep-dish pizza stone. A half recipe sufficed.

ingredients.

1 ¾ c. warm water
2 tsp. active dry yeast
1 T. sugar (or honey)
2 ½ to 3 ½ c. bread flour
1 c. semolina flour
1 tsp. salt
2 T. extra virgin olive oil
additional flour
cornmeal

directions.

Combine the yeast, salt, sugar and warm water in the bowl of a large stand mixer fitted with the kneading hook and let it be for about 5 minutes. When you see the mixture foam up, the yeast is ready.
Mix in 1 tablespoon of olive oil into the above mixture and stir to mix. Then add in the bread and semolina flour and knead to combine. Add the remaining flour as required, to make a firm, but slightly sticky dough.
Increase the speed to medium and continue kneading. If the dough seems too dry at any point, add water. If the dough looks too wet, add flour. Knead for 8 to 10 minutes. (If you are kneading by hand, knead for 12 to 15 minutes.)
Conduct a ‘windowpane test’ to check if the dough is ready by pulling out a small golf-ball sized ball of the dough. Stretch by hand, as you would stretch a pizza disc, as thin as possible without tearing. Look at a source of light through the thin layer. If the layer is translucent and you can almost see through it, your dough is ready.
Once the dough is ready, make a smooth, round ball of the dough and coat it with the remaining olive oil. Place this in a large bowl and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. I like to use a large glass pampered chef measuring bowl. Let the dough rest for about an hour or until doubled in volume.
Punch down the dough to remove the excess air and cut the dough into two equal portions. Roll each portion into a smooth ball, by pulling and tucking it at the bottom.
If you want to freeze the dough, take a 1 quart Ziploc bag and spray it with non stick spray. Spray the dough ball also and drop it inside the Ziploc. Take out all the air and seal the bag. The dough can be frozen for up to 3 months or refrigerated for up to 5 days. Use separate bags for each dough ball. Thaw for a couple of days in the fridge or 4-6 hours on the counter before using. The dough needs to be room temperature before using.
If you are using the dough immediately, lightly dust your board with flour. Place the dough ball, and roll it out into a 12-inch circle. Transfer the circle to a pizza peel or stone or baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal. Brush the top of your pizza generously with extra virgin olive oil. If you want a thicker crust for your pizza, cover loosely with plastic wrap and set aside to rise for half an hour.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 450. Place the pizza stone (if using) on the lowest rack of the oven and then preheat. If not using a pizza stone, place your rack in the lowest groove and preheat.
Add pizza ingredients to the crust and bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the crust is golden and cheese is bubbly. If you pick up your baking sheet and shake it, the pizza should slide off easily. If you are unable to shake the pan and release the pizza, bake for a couple of minutes more.

I kneaded the dough in my Kitchen-Aid stand mixer and, quite truthfully, can’t imagine having to knead it by hand. As was, I had to place both hands firmly on my mixer while the dough was kneading or the mixer would have eventually jumped off my counter. I’m not sure if this is normal or not. I’ve never made any sort of dough you need to knead before.

Recipe rating: 