New here, not new to baking
Hi all-
Just want to introduce myself and my obsession with homemade pizza made from freshly ground wheat berries!
A few months ago my favorite pizzeria for grainy-textured whole wheat pizza closed down, so I was determined to make my own. So I woke up dreaming one day about making a pizza where I wouldn't have to struggle with rubbery dough that springs back as I try to stretch it out. It occurred to me that I could follow (loosely) one of the many recipes online for no-knead bread. The resulting dough, if done right, could be practically poured onto the pan over a bed or cornmeal and spread out with my fingertips. I made my own long-simmered sauce as well, with lots of crushed fennel, fresh garlic, pepper flakes, etc. It was so good, I started making a "pizza for one" every night after work.
Then, I can't even tell you where it came from (maybe another dream?) I got the idea of grinding my own wheat for a fresher, maybe better, result. After researching actual grain grinders, I went a different way because I don't need much for my household of (usually) one. I settled on a Cuisinart coffee grinder with grind size selection and automatic shut-off. It's fantastic! And no mess! It cost me $50.
Making these fresh pizzas takes only around 20 minutes because I have the batter/dough ready-to-go in my fridge at all times now. Plus the sauce which I make in largish batches and freeze in smallish batches.
To be honest, I don't taste the fresh-grind as much as I thought I would, but when it's baking-- man oh man!-- unbelievable aroma. So sweet!!
So, confession: I don't think you'd call my dough strictly sourdough because I do add yeast when it feels like it's getting wimpy. I hope to learn from you all about keeping actual sourdough going... I've never had much luck with that in the past. Now that I keep my dough in the fridge, it works very well.
Also, I forgot where I read it (maybe in a NYT foodie article?) that orange juice goes well in whole wheat doughs. I can confirm this! I always use some water and some OJ in my pizza dough now.
do you put on your pizza?
Does the OJ in the crust go well with stuff like sausage and pepperoni (my favorites), or are you more of a nouveau pizza person with different meats and veggies?
--Mike
PS - Welcome to The Fresh Loaf!!
Hi Mike-
You really don't taste the OJ at all. It's just to balance the wheatiness in a subtle way. You can still put all the typical toppings on. Me, I'm partial to sauteed onions and pepperoni. My sauce is pretty standard too-- a thick marinara sauce that I make. Really, try a little OJ in you next whole wheat bread and see if you like it. I did, and I do!
Trilby
I got the orange juice idea from the King Arthur's Flour website:
"And here’s one more hint, for those of you who turn up your nose at whole wheat’s “wheaty” flavor: try substituting 1/4 cup orange juice for 1/4 cup of the water in this recipe. The OJ tempers the wheat’s assertive taste, without adding any orange flavor of its own."
But I'm not using it to mask the wheat flavor but to enhance it. I just had one of my home-ground whole wheat English muffins, toasted at work, with a little butter, and it was orgasmic!
Sounds like an interesting idea; I might try this. However, I'm really amused by the thought of people turning up their nose at the 'wheaty' flavour of whole wheat!
I laugh at them too. But the OJ just tastes makes it a tiny bit better without adding its own flavor. Like magic!