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My Pizza Recipe

First prepare your biga for refrigeration.

These are the ingredients for 2 x 230g, 10in pizzas:-
52g 00 Flour
31g Water
0.1g Fresh Yeast

Whisk the yeast in cool water.
Add the flour & mix until smooth and form into a ball.
Lightly coat in olive oil and put in an airtight, pre-oiled tupperware in the bottom of the fridge.

The next day (or the day after that), remove from the fridge about 3 hours before starting your pizza dough and leave to warm up in a cool place (17C).

These are the ingredients for the main dough:
205g 00 Flour
145g Warm Water (30C)
5g Sea salt
3.3g Fresh Yeast
13g Extra Virgin Olive Oil
83g Biga as above
450g TOTAL

Cut up the biga with scissors into chunks.
Prepare your warm water in a jug and whisk in the yeast. Grind and measure your salt.
In a pre-oiled mixer bowl, sift the flour & add the water. Now sprinkle over the freshly ground salt.

Combine by hand to a form a coherent dough of all ingredients except the biga and oil.

Add water little-by-little as necessary to correct hydration.

Leave to rest covered for 10-20m.

Using a KitchenAid, mix on 1st speed for 3m to incorporate.

As dough comes together, add the oil-coated biga chunks.

Add any more water as necessary to achieve the right dough consistency.

Mix on 2nd speed for a further 5m drizzling the oil in and around the bowl.

Check the dough passes the 'window pane test'.

When happy, transfer to a 5 litre airtight, plastic container and leave to rise and develop flavour in a cool place (17C) for 3 hours.

After 1.5 hours, fold 4x envelope-wise with oiled hands and divide and shape into 230g pieces and lightly coat with oil. Fold and drag across an unfloured surface into neat dough balls. Place carefully back into the plastic container, evenly spaced out. Leave for a further 1.5h.

At the end of the 3 hour period, carefully remove the dough balls and with oiled or floured hands / scraper, tip out onto a well-floured marble slab. Work the balls around in the flour on both sides and gently form into flat discs, being careful to use only gentle fingertip pressure, working from the centre, pushing the dough outwards.
Avoid creating thin areas or holes by working on the thickest areas only and pressing these out gently. Keep a thicker margin all round for the rim. When you have the required diameter, leave to rest while you prepare your sauce and toppings.

Put your pizza stones in the oven and pre-heat on maximum with fan.

Check your pizza bases still move freely by occasional rotating/sliding on the marble. No proving is required and the pizzas can be baked straight away once shaped.

When happy with the bases, transfer to wooden peels well-dusted with semolina or rice flour, spread the sauce thinly and add the preferred toppings. Toppings must be as dry and light as possible avoiding the rim.

When your oven stones have heated up properly (after approx. 30m), smartly slide your loaded bases from the peel onto the stones in the oven for baking.

Bake for approximately 7m or until the mozzarella has melted and browned with the pizza rim slightly charred. If necessary rotate the pizza to get an even bake. The bottom of the pizza should be crisp and lightly browned.

Remove from the oven with the peel and remove any excess semolina from the underside. Cut up the pizza, season with oregano and garnish with small leaves of fresh basil.