Ingredients
Sourdough Pizza Dough
- 100 grams bubbly, active sourdough starter
- 375 grams warm water
- 20 grams olive oil plus more for later
- 500 grams all-purpose flour (11%+ protein) or bread flour
- 10 grams fine sea salt
- Semolina flour for dusting
Toppings (per pizza)
- 1 to 2 tbsp tablespoons olive oil for the base
- 125 grams fresh mozzarella (about half an 8 oz ball), torn into pieces
- 4 slices prosciutto torn
- 1 ripe peach thinly sliced
- Sprinkle of flaky or fine sea salt
To Finish (per pizza)
- 6 tsp mascarpone (about 2 tablespoons) dolloped
- Hot honey for drizzling
Equipment
- 1 Baking steel or pizza stone (use code SARAH10 for a discount at bakingsteel.com)
Method
- Mix. In a large bowl, stir together the starter, water, and olive oil until cloudy. Add flour and salt. Mix until there is no dry flour left. Cover and let rest for 20 to 30 minutes.
- Stretch + Fold. Do 3 rounds of stretch and folds, spaced 20 to 30 minutes apart. Each time the dough should feel a bit stronger.
- Bulk Ferment. Let the dough rise at room temperature until doubled in size, airy, and slightly jiggly, about 8 hours at 70°F.
- Shape. Divide and shape into two equal balls (around 450 to 460 grams each) for larger pizzas, or into 3 parts for smaller pizzas, and coat each dough ball with a thin layer of olive oil. Rest seam-side down on a lightly oiled surface or container.
- Second Rise / Cold Proof. Cover and let rise at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours, or cold proof in the fridge for up to 48 hours. If cold proofing, allow the dough to come back to room temperature before baking (this will help make shaping easier).
- Preheat. Preheat your oven to 500°F with a stone or steel inside for 30 minutes (you want it to be REALLY hot).
- Stretch. Dust your pizza ball generously with semolina flour, then dimple along the outside of the ball to create a crust. Slowly stretch the dough gently onto parchment or a semolina-dusted peel until it resembles a pizza round. The semolina keeps the dough from sticking and gives the bottom crust a wonderful crisp.
- Top. Drizzle the dough with olive oil, leaving a border for the crust. Scatter the torn mozzarella, then the prosciutto, then arrange the peach slices in a single, even layer. Use the whole surface of the pizza and take care not to pile the toppings up. Spreading everything out helps the crust bake evenly and keeps the middle from going soggy. Finish with a sprinkle of salt.
- Bake. Bake for around 8 minutes, or until the crust is puffed and golden, the cheese is bubbling, and the peach edges are just starting to caramelize.
- Finish. Straight out of the oven, dollop small spoonfuls of mascarpone over the hot pizza and drizzle generously with hot honey. Slice and serve immediately.
Notes
- Spread the toppings, don't pile. Distribute the toppings in an even layer across the whole surface of the pizza. Piled-up toppings weigh down the dough and steam instead of bake.
- Semolina is the secret. Regular flour works for dusting, but semolina gives a noticeably crispier, more golden bottom crust and makes the dough slide onto the steel effortlessly.
- No hot honey? Drizzle regular honey and add a small pinch of chili flakes.
- Mozzarella tip. Pat the torn mozzarella dry with paper towel before topping to avoid a watery pizza.
- Make it a pizza week. This dough holds in the fridge for up to 3 days, so double the batch and keep dough balls ready to go.
