Step 1

In the bowl of your stand mixer, add 2 cups of warm water. Stir in 1 teaspoon granulated sugar and 1 tablespoon pizza or active dry yeast. Let stand 5-10 minutes or until the mixture is foamy on top and smells like beer.

Step 2

Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 5 cups of all purpose or bread flour, and 2 teapoons of coarse kosher salt into the mixing bowl and mix at low speed with the dough hook until the dough comes together in a ball.

Step 3

Continue mixing in the mixer for 5-6 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic. The dough is ready when it bounces back after being poked.

Step 4

Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl, and toss it to coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set it aside to rise until doubled in size, this usually takes between 30-60 minutes, depending on the temperature in your kitchen.

Step 5

if you've got a baking stone or baking steel, place it into the oven and preheat to 475f while the dough rises. This allows the oven to fully come to temperature before baking and will result in better pizza.

Step 6

Once fully risen, punch down the dough, and turn onto a lightly floured surface and divide it into 4 even portions if baking thin crust pizza, or 2 portions for thicker pizza crust.

Step 7

Working with one portion at a time, gently flatten with your fingers or roll out the dough with a rolling pin until it reaches your desired size and shape. If the dough is sticking to the work surface, add more flour underneath. We really don't want sticky dough!

Step 8

if using a baking stone or steel, lightly dust a pizza peel with cornmeal, and slide the dough onto the peel. Once the dough is on the pizza peel, you've got a short period of time before it begins sticking, so it's imperative to work quickly. It helps to jiggle the pizza dough every so often while it's on the peel. If you're baking on a baking sheet, lightly dust the baking sheet with cornmeal, and slide the pizza onto the baking sheet.

Step 9

Add the sauce and toppings to the dough and transfer to the oven.

Step 10

Bake the pizza in the preheated oven for 10-13 minutes for thin crust and up to 20 minutes for thicker crust pizza.

Step 11

Remove your pizza from the oven and allow it to cool slightly before slicing and serving.