The Fresh Loaf

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What is your killer sourdough, whole grain pizza dough recipe?

berryblondeboys's picture
berryblondeboys

What is your killer sourdough, whole grain pizza dough recipe?

I've been googling pizza dough recipes and a few of them are intriguing, but none of them quite what I'm looking for.

I would love to use semolina flour as I bought 50lbs of durum. Sourdough would be great too, but it could be other things too.  whatcha got for me to try?

dbazuin's picture
dbazuin

I bake pizza as a special treat on a sunday so I go for tasy not for super healthy. 
I guess you can go 20% percent whole grain and still have a tasty pizza. 

berryblondeboys's picture
berryblondeboys

Of course, I want it tasty, but there is no reason to not use whole grains at at least 50% as that is how we eat everything else and like it that way. Plus, I'm borderline diabetic, so anything to slow down the breaking down of sugars is good for me. 

naturaleigh's picture
naturaleigh

I would think spelt might be a good addition, but just not sure how high a percentage you want to go with that.  Spelt will increase the extensibility and has great flavor.  So, maybe a combination of durum/semolina, spelt and AP or Tipo 00 flour?  That should up the taste and add more whole grains to the dough since you mentioned that was important for you.

idaveindy's picture
idaveindy

50% home-milled kamut. which is very close to durum.

35% home-milled hard white spring wheat, Prairie Gold.

15% store-bought AP flour.

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autolyse the home-milled flour, but not the AP flour.

commercial yeast gives a more traditional flavor and aroma for pizza crust than does sourdough.  But if you use sourdough, use fresh levain, and other procedures to minimize acidity in the dough.

I generally parbake (pre-bake) the crust, mainly the top.

Big_anemone's picture
Big_anemone

Here’s mine.  I’ve recently gotten more “serious” (e.g., weight instead of volume), but haven’t gotten around to converting this recipe to weight yet, since really I do it by feel.

The sourdough starter I use is out of Reinhart’s “Whole Grain Baking”, so hydration may need to be adjusted slightly for higher-hydration starters.

1/4 cup sourdough starter (or 1/4 tsp yeast in warm weather, up to 1/2 tsp in cold weather)

1.5+ Cups warm water

1.25 tsp salt (table, not kosher - adjust up for kosher)

1.5 cups whole wheat flour 

1.5 cups bread flour or high gluten flour

Optional 1 T olive oil (recommended for regular pies, less recommended for Sicilian)

Whisk sourdough starter into water.  When well mixed, add salt, followed by flours.  Mix into a shaggy dough.  I usually need to add a couple tablespoons of water at this point.  Rest in a bowl overnight or longer.  Based on how it looks in the morning and whether I’m baking for lunch or dinner, I might give it some time in the oven on proofing mode.  In a cold kitchen you want to use hotter water for an evening mix for dinner the next day.  Short version:  I normally mix this about 9 pm and bake it at 6 the next day, but I modify by how the dough looks and feels and according to my needs.

A couple hours before baking (or longer if doing Sicilian - this dough is ideal for Sicilian and tasty but hard to handle for regular pizza) do some stretch and folds, then divide into two (for 14 inch pizzas), or pan & dimple 3-4 times on a cookie sheet for Sicilian.  Note that I need to add a good deal of flour (always whole wheat) while doing stretch & folds.  Note also that I refrigerate my flour, which I believe makes it thirstier.  You may need to adjust hydration down and/or add some flour while doing stretch & folds, as I do.  I like keeping it really no-knead, though, which is why I do it this way.  It’s my easy, casual dough.

As you might be able to tell, this was originally a Lahey dough that I’ve modified over time.

My sauce:

1 28 oz can 6 in 1 ground tomatoes

1 small can tomato paste

2 T lemon juice

2 tsp oregano

2 tsp salt

optionally a couple cloves of crushed garlic

Mix it all and spoon on your pizza - this is plenty for 2 Sicilians or 4 14 inch pies.

If you want to take the % of whole wheat up, you’ll want more water.  Take it down, and you’ll want less water.

 

Baking:

For Sicilian, I parbake after a 2+ hour rise in the pan (3-4 T oil on the cookie sheet).  Preheat to 500, bake 10 minutes (putting the cookie sheet on the stone if you have one).  Sauce & top, bake another 10-12 more, also at 500.  Note that it will hold for several hours at least after the parbake if you want.

For regular pies, I do a 12 minute bake in a preheated 550 degree oven.  This might seem long, but it’s a wet dough, and we like a thorough bake around here.