Doughboy

I am always too anxious to get started on making dinner when it's going to be home-made pizza. I tend to overestimate by at least a half hour, and frequently more, how long it'll take to roll out the dough and apply the toppings. I even overestimate how long it'll take the grill to get up to baking temperature. Not just the grill, either -- I'm using a baking stone tonight, and I've had it heating for about twenty minutes. And we're not eating for at least forty five more!

At least I know that the dough will be good, as its not only a recipe I've made before, but this particular batch of dough was made last week, with half of it being frozen until two days ago. Yes, I know I could have taken it out to thaw yesterday. Overestimation strikes again. But its a good dough -- easy to make, rolls out well, and has a nice honey taste. Here's the recipe.

Honey Wheat Pizza Dough -- makes 2 8 inch pizzas

* 1 1/2 cups water, warmed to 110°F
* 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast (1 packet)
* 1 teaspoon sugar
* 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
* 1/4 cup cornmeal
* 2 teaspoons salt
* 1/4 cup honey
* 2 tablespoons whole milk


Lightly coat a large bowl with olive oil and set aside.
Combine the water, yeast, and sugar in a small bowl and set aside.
Sift flours, cornmeal, and salt together into a large bowl.
Add the yeast mixture, honey, and milk and stir until dough begins to form — it will be slightly sticky.
Transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead until dough is smooth but still tacky — about 10 minutes.
Form the dough into a ball and transfer it to the prepared bowl, turning to coat all sides.
Cover with a clean, damp kitchen towel and let rise in a warm, draft-free place until the dough doubles in volume — about 90 minutes.
Punch the dough down, remove from the bowl, and let dough rest for 5 minutes.
Divide the dough in half and turn one piece out onto a lightly floured surface and roll into desired shape(s) and size.
Lightly brush the dough's surface with olive oil, top, and bake at 500°F for about 10 minutes.