Thin Crust Pizza on Steel

Maybe you've tried the other great pizza crust recipe we've featured here before. Okay, well while that is good, this new recipe is great!

And it's easier! I recently received a Baking Steel, which is like a pizza stone but better because it gets hotter and holds its temperature better. That means a quicker cooking time and a charred crust underneath - perfect for those Neapolitan-style pizzas you've always wanted to make at home. They are done in a little under 5 minutes!

If you don't have a piece of steel, this new dough recipe will work great on a pizza stone or upside down cookie sheet. It'll just need to bake a little longer.

Give it a whirl, and remember not to overload the pizza with too many toppings. Some of our favorites are sauteed mushrooms with spinach and feta, with a little mozzarella baked on the pizza, and one with mozzarella, sauce, caramelized onions, roasted red peppers, and ricotta. Enjoy!

Thin Crust Pizza on Steel

Yield: 3 pizzas
Ingredients

• 1 1/3 cups (310 g) lukewarm water
• 3/4 tablespoon yeast
• 3/4 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1/8 cup olive oil
• 3 1/4 cups (423 g) all-purpose flour

Cooking Directions

1. Mix the yeast, salt, and olive oil with the water in a non-airtight lidded container.
2. Mix in the flour without kneading, using a spoon.
3. Cover and allow to rest at room temperature until dough rises and flattens, about 2 hours.
4. At this point, you can store it in the fridge for up to a week or dust the top with flour and cut into three pieces. The other pieces may be wrapped tightly with plastic wrap and stored in the freezer for several months.
5. Preheat oven to its highest temperature and place baking steel or stone on the lowest rack. Let preheat for 20-40 minutes.
6. Shape dough into a ball by stretching the surface around to the bottom on all four sides. Do this minimally.
7. Flatten with your hands on a well-floured surface. Get the dough to 1/8 inch thick. Use a floured rolling pin if needed. The dough will spring back some, so you may need to stretch it further than you think of stretch it again. Once stretched and relaxed, place onto a cornmeal-covered pizza peel.
8. Place your toppings on the dough. Be minimalistic.
9. Slide the pizza directly onto the steel or stone. Pizza may be done in as little as 4 minutes, so check to make sure it's not overcooking.
10. Allow to cool for a minute on a rack to allow the cheese to set.