I’m kind of picky when it comes to pizza dough.  I love the thought of homemade pizza, but I am really not a fan of the stuff from a box, and the pre-made crusts are “acceptable”.  This whole wheat pizza turned out to be one of my favorite pizzas I have eaten.  The process is very simple, but requires quite a bit of inactive time while the dough rises.

Whole Wheat Pizza Dough

Adapted from a recipe at AllRecipes.com.

• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 1 Tbsp honey
• 1 Tbsp active dry yeast
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 3 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp salt

1. Stir the honey and water together in a bowl, and sprinkle with the yeast. Let it stand for about 10 minutes or until it becomes frothy.

2. Empty the contents of the bowl into a stand up mixer, adding the olive oil and salt.

3. Slowly add in the flour, about 3/4 cup at a time and mixing between each addition.

4. After all the flour is incorporated, continue mixing on med-high for at least 10 minutes. As a general rule, you are very unlikely to over mix the dough at this point. So, if in doubt, keep going. One way to test the dough, is to grab a small chunk and roll it between your hands into a ball.

Then, slowly stretch it out, as if to make a thin sheet with the dough. If it easily tears, then it needs to continue mixing. Ideally, you want to be able to hold the thinned dough up to a light and see the light shinning through, without holes tearing as it stretches.

The dough in this picture is not quite ready. Notice the section on the left side, where it stretches thin, but holds together for the most part. That is what we are looking for. On the right side of the picture, the dough tore easily, which is a good indication that it needs to knead for a couple more minutes.

5. Leave the dough in the mixing bowl, cover, and let it sit in a warm place for an hour. The dough should double in size.

6. If you like thin crust, split the dough in half. At this point, you could also remove smaller pieces of the dough to create bread sticks. Or, if you like a very thick crust, leave the dough as it is. Regardless of the option you choose, knead the dough a couple of times, forming a tight ball, and return it to its warm place and allow it to rise for another hour.

7. Lightly flour your counter-top and roll the dough, alternating directions, until it will not stretch any more. Pick up the dough, and stretch it by draping it over your fists and continually pulling the edges outward and rotating the dough, until the stretching is consistent.

8. Bake for 5 minutes at 500°. Remove from oven, add desired sauces and toppings and bake for another 15 minutes at 425°.

What are your favorite pizza toppings?

My wife and I love bbq chicken pizza, so our pie included:

• barbecue sauce
• red onions
• garlic
• shredded chicken
• spinach leaves
• diced tomatoes
• shredded mozzarella
• shredded pizza cheese mixture