We eat a lot of pizza in our house. Probably too much. If my husband had his way we’d probably eat it every night! He’s not the only one to blame though, I do always have a pack of mozzarella on hand. There’s just something about the variety and ease that we really love. I’m always a huge fan of a recipe that you can whip together in minutes and just let time to the rest of the work. And when we make pizza at home we can pick our own sauce and toppings- a major plus! Recently we’ve been making this honey whole wheat dough. It’s fantastic!!! I like to load mine up with cheese, ripe tomatoes and fresh basil, much like the classic Neapolitan.First things first, we’ve got to make the dough for the crust. It’s so simple and I’ve never been disappointed with how it turns out… pretty much foolproof. You start by combining a portion of the water with the yeast and honey. This activates the yeast. You’ll want to give it at least 5 minutes or until the mixture becomes bubbly. Combine that with the rest of the ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large mixing bowl) and mix until the dough comes together. You’ll want to knead with the hook attachment or by hand until it becomes nice and smooth. Then toss it in a bowl with a little olive oil, cover it and let it do it’s thing. After it rises all you need to do is divide it into two balls, roll them out and lay them on a pizza pan or stone. I love a nice crust so I always fold the excess dough over and brush it lightly with olive oil, that way it stays nice and crisp. For the sauce all you need to do is sauté the garlic a bit and then let things meld together for a few minutes. Brush it over the prepared dough and start adding the toppings.
Like I mentioned earlier, I’ve been digging the tomato and basil combo. We’ve been hooked on pesto lately so that probably has something to do with it. I know a lot of people who will place both the tomato and basil on after it comes out of the oven, but I prefer the tomatoes when they are cooked. Pop the pizza in the oven and bake it for 12-15 minutes or until the crust is firm and the cheese is slightly browned. Remove and enjoy! Use this dough for any kind of pizza you want- it tastes great with everything! You can also divide the dough into 6-8 balls for individual size pizzas, that way everyone in the family gets to create their own. The options are endless!
Neapolitan Pizza and Honey Whole Wheat Dough Recipe
Ingredients
Honey Whole Wheat Dough
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups whole wheat flour
- 1/2 cup warm water
- 1 1/4 cup room temperature water
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 1/2 tsp active yeast
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
Sauce
- 1 (8) oz can tomato sauce
- 1 clove garlic - minced
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 2 tsp sugar
- 1/4 tsp basil
- 1/4 tsp oregano
- 1/2 tsp salt
Toppings
- mozzarella cheese - sliced
- tomatoes - sliced
- fresh basil leaves
- olive oil
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- To make the dough, in a 2-cup liquid measuring cup, add warm water, yeast, and honey. Allow to sit for 5-7 minutes or until the mixture begins to puff. Add the oil and room-temperature water. Whisk gently to combine.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine salt, flour, and water mixture. When the dough begins to form a ball, remove the paddle attachment and replace it with the dough hook. With mixing speed on low, knead dough for 2-3 minutes or until a ball begins to form and the dough becomes smooth and elastic.
- Remove dough from the bowl and place it in a large well-greased bowl (olive oil is preferred, but Pam can be used). Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and allow it to rise for 2 hours.
- To deflate the dough, punch it with your fist. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and divide into two balls (depending on desired pizza size and quantity, e.g., 2). Form into pizza shells to fit the pan size. Place on a lightly greased pan (or one dusted with flour or cornmeal).
- To make the sauce, heat olive oil in a small saucepan until it is shiny. Add minced garlic, stir, and cook for 1 minute. Add tomato sauce, sugar, basil, oregano, and salt. Heat for 5 minutes or until the sauce becomes fragrant.
- To assemble pizzas, spread sauce evenly over the pizza peel, leaving about 1½ inches around the edge for the crust. Lightly brush the crust with olive oil (to help it get crisp). Lay slices of cheese over the sauce, then place sliced tomatoes on top, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with a little salt.
- Bake for 12-14 minutes at 450 degrees Fahrenheit (232 degrees Celsius). Remove, let cool for 5-6 minutes. Place basil leaves on top, slice, and serve. Repeat with the second dough ball.
NOTES
- This recipe yields two large pizzas, enough to serve eight people.
- I like to refrigerate the leftover dough (half the recipe) for use the next day. Simply place it in a large Ziploc bag, remove all the air, and seal it tightly. Be aware that the dough will rise slightly in the refrigerator.
- Whole wheat flour can be substituted with all-purpose flour if desired.
Amazing pizza dough recipe I accidentally used Neapolitan style pizza flour and had to add more flour and knead by hand but still turned out fantastic!
So I made this recipe with spelt flour and OO instead. Followed the recipe exactly. But found I had to add almost a cup of extra flour as the dough was too wet. I’ve made it again reducing the amount of water to 1/2 with the yeast and 1 cup. Still too wet. Any explanation?
Hi Tina,
Spelt flour has less gluten than wheat flour, which makes it a bit more delicate and absorbent. It might not absorb the liquid in the same way or as quickly as whole wheat flour does. Hence, it might give the impression of a wetter dough, and you may need to adjust the liquid content.
“00” flour, on the other hand, is a finely ground Italian flour that’s excellent for pizza and pasta. It absorbs water quite efficiently due to its fine grind, but it can also make the dough feel wetter if too much water is added.
In your case, a solution could be to gradually add the water instead of adding it all at once. This way, you can stop when you’ve achieved the right dough consistency. Keep in mind that spelt and “00” flour might require less water than what’s suggested in the original recipe.
Thank you for the clarification Andrea. I will try that in the future. This combination of flours is actually delicious. Spelt is a little healthier than whole wheat.
Hi Natalie
Came across your site when I was looking for a cheesecake recipe…made the blueberry crumble one and it was fab!
Love the look of the whole site, and as a pro photographer and home cook it’s always so nice to see someone who enjoys cooking and photography as much as I do.
Will be trying the honey pizza dough next.
Many thanks for all the great recipes.
Sandy
I’m so happy to hear that the blueberry crumble cheesecake bars were a hit! Thank you so much for looking around! You’re going to love the pizza dough!