INGREDIENTS

INSTRUCTIONS

DOUGH
TOPPING
You will need a large bread bowl, a baking sheet 12 by 18 inches or two
smaller sheets.  Place water in a large bowl. Water should be warm but not
hot to the touch. Stir in the yeast and allow to dissolve. Stir in 1 cup
flour, stirring constantly in the same direction. Stir in another cup
flour, then stir 100 times in the same direction (one minute). This helps
develop the gluten. You now have a sponge. Cover, and let stand for half an
hour or up to three hours. When you are ready to continue, sprinkle on salt
and oil, then add more flour, stirring it in a half cup at a time. The
dough will be getting heavier and harder to stir. When you can stir no
longer, flour a kneading surface well and have more flour handy beside your
work surface. Turn dough out and knead, adding extra flour to your work
surface as necessary to prevent the dough from sticking.
The dough will gradually become smooth and easy to work. Knead for 10
minutes, clean bread bowl, oil it lightly, and place the ball of dough into
the bowl to rise, covered with plastic wrap. Let rise until more than
doubled, almost three hours. When the volume of the dough has approximately
doubled, you can proceed to the next step. Dough can be made ahead to this
point and then stored. If you wish postpone baking, gently push dough down,
and leave covered in the bowl to rise again. If delay will be more than
several hours, instead store dough in a plastic bag in the refrigerator
(for not more than five days). Bring out of the cold and take out of the
plastic bag at least an hour before you want to work with it.Lightly flour
your work surface and lightly oil a 12 by 18-inch baking sheet. Preheat
oven to 450 degrees. Turn dough out onto work surface and flatten with the
lightly floured palm of your hand. Pull and stretch the dough gently out
into the rectangular shape you need to fit your baking sheet. Take your
time and give the dough time to rest if it is resisting stretching. It will
need to get quite thin. When you have stretched the dough to approximately
the shape and size you need, transfer it to baking sheet and continue to
gently press and stretch it to fit. Don't worry if it tears, just patch the
hole with another piece of dough and press firmly to join the edges. If you
have extra dough hanging over the edge, trim it off and use it to make
another small pizza.  Dough should be of an even thinness across the flat
part of the baking sheet and should form a slight rounded rim as it meets
the edge (which is for many people the best part of the pizza).
Brush top of pizza with oil, then dimple the surface all over with your
fingers. Sprinkle on sea salt and then optional rosemary leaves. Place
baking sheet on the bottom rack of the preheated oven and bake until the
crust around the edge is slightly golden, 5 to 8 minutes, depending on how
thin the pizza is. Remove from oven, brush crusts lightly with olive oil
and also the center if you wish. Cut into large squares and serve warm or
hot. We have often made pizza bianca several hours ahead, then wrapped it
in a clean kitchen towel to keep it moist until we are ready to reheat it
for serving. To reheat, place in a dampened paper bag in a 300'F oven for
about 10 minutes.  Yield: one large 12 by 18-inch pizza or two medium, or 3
or 4 small
Recipe By     : BAKER'S DOZEN SHOW #BD1A29
Posted to EAT-L Digest  5 November 96
Date:    Wed, 6 Nov 1996 20:33:48 -0600
From:    Jackie Bordelon <jbord@PREMIER.NET>

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