Rustic Pizza Crust

this rustic pizza crust will make you think you have ordered from the fanciest pizza place in town only you made it yourself and it cost you only a fraction of the cost of delivery.

Making pizza at home is something we have done now for a very long time. we used to make our pizza on a cookie sheet and it was delicious. We still do it this way when we want to make larger pizzas. You can check out my recipe for that one here. Using the same sort of method I would also make delicious cheese sticks. That recipe can be found here.

since then we have purchased a pizza steel and a peel. This has been such a game changer it is absolutely amazing.

even the smell has changed when the pizza bakes. The first time I tried this method my husband came upstairs from his cave and smelled the air. He said it smelled like we were in a real pizza shop.

the best part about making your pizza at home (besides the money you will save) is you can try all the pizza toppings you want. we just tried pickles recently, and all I can say is next time I will be adding more!

Ingredients you will need

• 1 tbsp active dry pizza yeast
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 cup warm water
• 3 cup flour
• 1 tbsp olive oil

How to make Rustic Pizza Crust

1. place pizza steel/ stone in the oven and pre heat oven to 450°f
2. in the bowl of a stand mixer add sugar, yeast, and water. allow to sit for 5 min or until you see a bit of bubble and some reaction from the yeast to be sure your yeast is working.
3. add flour and begin to mix with the dough hook attachment on the stand mixer.
4. start mixing the add the oil while the mixer is on slowly allowing it to be incorporated in the dough.
5. once the dough has pulled away from the sides of the bowl. turn the mixer off and turn the dough out onto a dry counter. kneed just a few times to smooth out the dough.
6. spray the bowl with a light coating of cooking spray before putting the dough back into the bowl. cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise for 30 minutes. I put mine on the stovetop the heat from the oven preheating will help in the rising process.
7. while rising cut up all your toppings, grate your cheese, and get the sauce ready. prepare your station for speed since using a pizza peel and stone requires a bit of speed.
8. once the dough is ready divide it into 4 pizzas (I make the kids a bit smaller than ours)
9. put 3 back in the bowl and cover. sprinkle a covering of flour on your working surface and your pizza peel. Press and stretch out your dough to the size you want on the counter then place in your pizza peel.

Move quickly here

1. add your sauce and cheese then give your pizza a quick shake to make sure your dough isn’t sticking to the peel. then add your toppings. I suggest a cheese pizza or just 1 toping for your first try.
2. then give it a bit of a shake making sure it’s still not stuck, open the oven, and quickly and carefully shake the pizza onto the stone or steel. then close the oven.
3. bake for 8-12 minutes to the desired done-ness.
4. wipe any flour off the pizza peel and when your pizza is done you should be able to lift it from just 1 corner. it should appear stiff as a board. I like to pick mine up from one side and drop it to knock off some of the flour that is on the bottom.
5. Use the peel to scoop under the pizza and remove it from the oven, placing it on a cutting board. (this part is much easier) make sure to close the oven door and don’t let too much of the heat out.
6. repeat for the last 3 pizzas
7. slice and enjoy!