Pay attention to the temperatures: yeasts work well at temperatures between 25° and 28°C. Therefore, do not use hot water, but the warmer the room temperature, the cooler the water must be. Do not allow your dough to leaven in an environment where the temperature is above 28°C. Cold also inhibits leavening: if you have no alternative, turn on the oven and then turn it off to obtain a temperature between 25° and 28°C, then place your dough to leaven, closing the door to prevent heat loss.
Difficulty: easy
Difficulty: easy
Method
-
01 /
Crumble the yeast into the flour and add the water.
Start mixing.
Add the extra virgin olive oil.
Add the sugar and mix.
When the dough starts to form, add the salt.
Knead the dough well first in the bowl and then spread it out on the table, knead it vigorously but quickly until obtaining a smooth ball that is then put to rise covered with cling film.
In the meanwhile, season the tomato with extra virgin olive oil, basil, salt and pepper.
Then cut the mozzarella and let it drain from its water.
Once the dough has risen, wash your hands with flour and start kneading it on the table rolling it out in all directions and forming the edge with our fingers.
Spread the disc on a lightly greased baking tray.
Season it with tomato sauce and leaven for another 30 minutes.
Bake at 170°C for 15 minutes.
Take it out.
Top with the mozzarella cheese that will have lost all the excess water in the meantime.
Then put the pizza back in the oven to finish cooking for around 10 minutes.
I know it is cooked if I lift it up with a spatula and it detaches from the baking tray.
Now it is time to add my favourite ingredients: the anchovies in oil and the Taggiasca olives.
Topping with the basil leaves.
Choose a “mediumstrong” flour, rich in protein: check the label of the product you are buying, the amount of protein should be 12-13 g per kg.
I season the tomato pulp first, so that it is more flavourful and tastier.
The total cooking time is about 30 minutes, but it depends a lot on the pizza’s thickness.
The quality of the mozzarella is paramount! Remember also to drain it: the waterier it is, the more you will need to let it drain to avoid having a wet pizza.
Adding the mozzarella halfway through the cooking time is necessary so that it does not lose its precious characteristics.
If using buffalo mozzarella, add it only 5 minutes before the end of cooking, or even when it is cooked.
Ingredients like anchovies and olives should also be added at the end, so they do not dry out and lose their flavour.
Ingredients for three 28 cm baking trays
For the dough
1 kg of 00 flour
20 g fresh brewer’s yeast
550 g water
50 g of extra virgin olive oil
10 g sugar
20 g fine salt
For the sauce
800 g of tomato pulp
800 g drained cow’s mozzarella cheese
Anchovy fillets in oil to taste
100 g of pitted Taggiasca olives, or other
1 bunch of fresh basil
