Thin and Crispy Pizza

Step 1

Gather the ingredients so that you have everything close at hand on the counter or table. Preheat oven to 450℉.

Step 2

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the 00 Italian Pizzeria Flour, nonfat dry milk, granulated sugar, instant yeast, and kosher salt. Add the warm water and 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil.

Step 3

Mix together to make a soft dough. Knead for 5 minutes, either by hand or by dough hook.

Step 4

Divide the dough in half and place in a greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap. Allow to relax for 15-30 minutes.

Step 5

While the dough is resting, prepare your topping ingredients. Grate and/or slice the mozzarella cheese. If desired, brown sausage or hamburger. Slice vegetables.

Step 6

Lay out two 14″ squares of parchment paper on a work surface. Spray each with baking spray. On a lightly floured surface, roll each piece of dough into a 10-12″ circle, about 1/8″ thick. You may use a rolling pin, but a small pastry roller works even better.

Step 7

Transfer the dough to the parchment paper and roll the dough a few more times to achieve an even thinner crust.

Step 8

Next, roll a dough docker over the dough to punch holes in the dough. This will help create a cracker-thin crust when it bakes in the hot oven. If you don’t have a roller docker, you may use a pastry fork blender.

Step 9

Smooth tops of dough with extra-virgin olive oil.

Step 10

Using a pizza peel, place the parchment sheets and crusts directly on the hot stone in the preheated oven. Bake for 4-5 minutes until edges begin to turn brown. Remove from oven before crust begins to bubble in the center. (If necessary, flatten any bubbles that may have occurred.)

Step 11

Next, top with your favorite sauce and prepared toppings.(I always begin with the sauce and then add any browned meat. After that, I top it with the shredded cheese, followed by vegetables and pepperoni or Canadian bacon. If using fresh mozzarella, I’ll place that on the very top. Use whatever toppings you like best, whether it’s simply cheese or pepperoni, barbecued meat, or a Supreme pizza!)

Step 12

Return crusts to hot stone and bake an additional 7-8 minutes until cheese is bubbly and golden. The crust will have darkened along the edges. That’s exactly what you want to achieve the cracker thin crunch.

Step 13

Remove from oven and transfer the pizza to a serving pizza tray. Remove the parchment paper and allow the pizza to cool for a few minutes before slicing into triangles. Slice into 8-10 pieces using a pizza wheel or rocker blade. Makes 2 pizzas and serves 4-6.