Combining a tip I learned at the Good Food and Wine Show and pure laziness led to the perfect dough! The laziness part is when I looked in the cupboard and found that I didn't have enough 00 flour - so I decided to use what I had left and combine it with plain flour. A perfect combination??? Or perhaps the dough would have been even better with all 00 flour - will have to try that next time.
So the dough I made gave me enough to make 8 individual pizzas. What I did instead, was divide the dough in half - make 4 small bases, and the other half made 2 pide.
Here is the recipe for the dough.
My Perfect Pizza Dough
Makes 8 individual pizzas
7g yeast
500ml warm water
800g flour ( I used 200g "00", 600g plain flour)
2 tsp salt
Polenta
Combine the yeast, salt and flour in a large bowl. Mix well. Pour the water in slowly, and mix together until combined.
Once mixed, turn the mixture out onto a very lightly floured bench (don't add too much flour!!) Knead the mixture for 15 minutes, make sure it is nice and smooth and elastic.
Place the dough in a large lightly oiled bowl (make sure it will hold double the size of the dough at least!) Cover with plastic wrap, and leave in a warm place for 2 hours.
After 2 hours punch down the dough and cut into the sections you are using. Roll into a balls.
Scatter a small amount of polenta on the bench and roll the dough to size. Using polenta gives the base added "crunchiness" and stops the addition of more flour into the mixture.
Place the rolled dough onto baking paper. Allow to sit for 15-20 minutes before you bake.
Make the pizzas up on the baking paper. Use the baking paper as a "go between" - ie place directly onto your oven rack/terracotta tile/pizza oven. Leave it there for approximately 1 minute (or until the base has firmed up, then remove it. If you are freezing the dough, layer baking paper between the bases.
Perfect!!
Now for the Pide
Turkish Lamb Pide
Makes 2
olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove crushed garlic
500g minced lamb
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon mixed spice
pinch cayenne pepper
1 tsp hungarian paprika
1 tbs lemon juice
1/4 cup chicken stock
2 tomatoes, diced
mozzarella cheese
Heat a non stick frypan over medium high heat, cook the onion and garlic for approximately 5 minutes, or until the onion is soft. Add the mince and cook, breaking up the mince until it is browned all over. Add the spices and the lemon juice. Mix to combine. Add the chopped tomatoes and the chicken stock, cook gently for approximately 5-10 minutes, or until most of the moisture has evaporated.
To assemble the pide, roll the pizza dough out into an oval shape.
Place the dough onto baking paper. Place the filling in the centre and fold the sides to partially enclose the filling. Top with a little mozzarella cheese. Squeeze the dough together at each end.
Bake for about 20 minutes, or until crisp and golden.
I topped mine with tzatziki that I had left over from our Greek night on Friday, and with a little Labne that I had made. You could also top with a little chilli sauce, and chopped mint.
Labne
Now if you are interested in making some labne - it is incredibly easy. All you need to do is place some greek yoghurt that you have seasoned with a little salt in some muslin and suspend it over a bowl for 3 days (this is the same procedure that you use for making the tzatziki - just longer - look in the "dip" section for the recipe) After 3 days the yoghurt will become quite firm. Simply make small balls and roll them in some soft herbs such as oregano, chives or mint. Place the balls on a plate and put in the fridge for an hour or so - this helps them to harden a little before you put them into oil. After an hour place the balls in a screwtop jar and cover them with olive oil. To the oil add 4-5 whole black peppercorns and 2 cloves or garlic. There you have home made labne!!! Very impressive!!
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