Pizza is something that I take seriously.  Really seriously.  Like having mini-frozen-pizzas-from-New-Jersey-shipped-to-me-on-dry-ice-serious.  Not kidding.

I’m now 3000 miles from away from said favorite spot, living in the Pacific Northwest for over a year and a half. And can you believe I have yet to find pizza even remotely comparable (any recommendations?)?

When I saw that this week’s Food Matters Project challenge was “No-Work Mostly Whole Wheat Pizza Dough (page 533)”, selected by our host, Niki from Salt & Pepper, to say I was excited would be an understatement! No work pizza dough that is mostly whole wheat? Really? So intriguing and exciting!

This is coming from someone whose house-building dreams include something like this -

PHOTO CREDIT: Authentic Italian Style Brick Pizza Ovens

Surprisingly, I guess, I had yet to dive into making yeast dough.  Throw me in the kitchen with no recipe and a handful of ingredients and I’ll cook something marvelous, but flour, yeast and water? Scary!

My hope going into this challenge was to create a mostly whole wheat pizza dough that was simple to make, freeze and baked up into a thin, crispy and delicious crust.

I am happy to report that this is a great everyday mostly whole wheat dough.  It is not however a thin, crispy dough, but it’s still really delicious and super easy!

The big news is that I am no longer scared of yeast dough, and if you are, you don’t need to be either!

I think it is safe to say that you will see some simple, everyday bread recipes happening over here in the near future, so stay tuned. Especially if my husband (hint) buys me this book for part of (notice the “part of…”) my Mother’s Day present next month. ;)

Ok, now let’s talk toppings.  I attempted to top this pizza dough as close to a Trenton Style Tomato Pie as I could.  What the hell is a “Trenton Style Tomato Pie”? Right?  Read this to find out. I couldn’t say it any better. If you are wondering which pizza place is worth flying their Pies across the country, it’s Delorenzo’s Tomato Pies in Trenton, New Jersey.

Scroll down on this page and read about why-this-pizza-is-so-frickin-unbelievable-I-want-to-buy-a-plane-ticket-right-now-amazing-good.  Or click here for their website. Better yet, if you live in NY, PA or NJ or maybe even Delaware, head there now – but don’t you dare post of picture of yourself eating it on my Facebook Wall or I might have to ban you out of sheer jealousy!

Still want more Pizza? Click here to see what all of the other Food Matters Project members did with their dough! I have a feeling this week will be pretty interesting.

NOTES:

  • I used King Arthur Flour.
  • Whenever I am making a dish where tomatoes are the star of the show, I try to get fresh, ripe, local, organic tomatoes.  If that isn’t possible (like now), my go to is San Marzano Tomatoes. If you aren’t familiar with them, read this.
  • When it comes to pizza, don’t use part-skim cheese! Just use less.  The taste difference is huge!! I started with a block of mozzarella (not buffalo or fresh mozzarella-just regular) and used a grater to quickly shred it by hand.  It took less than a minute and is totally worth it.  I divided up the remaining cheese into 2 and 3 ounce cubes and froze them for future pizzas.
  • You may need more than 1.5 cups of water. If so, add additional water by the tablespoon as just a tiny bit makes a huge difference with the dough.
5.0 from 4 reviews

No Knead Pizza (Mostly Whole Wheat)
 
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8 Points Plus Per Serving — Makes 2 Pizzas — 8 Servings (4 Per Pizza)
By,:
Serves:: 8

Ingredients
DOUGH:
  • 2 cups unbleached white whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • ½ teaspoon instant yeast
  • 1½ cups water (see notes)
TOPPINGS:
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 6 ounces whole milk mozzarella, grated, divided
  • 8 San Marzano whole peeled plum tomatoes, divided
  • ½ teaspoon salt, divided
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper, divided
  • pinch garlic powder
  • pinch crushed red pepper (optional)

Instructions
DOUGH:
  1. In a large glass bowl mix flours, salt and yeast. Slowly add in water, staring with 1.5 cups until dough is relatively sticky and wet. If the dough is on the dry side, add more water (I used 1.75 cups which was a bit too much. I think the sweet spot is probably 1.5 cups + 1 to 2 tablespoons).
  2. Scrape down sides of bowl, cover with saran wrap, and place bowl in a warm spot. Let dough sit for 8 hours or up to 12 hours. The longer fermentation, the more complex the flavor is (I let mine sit for 8 hours).
  3. When rise is done, dust your hands with a little bit of all purpose flour and fold the dough over in the bowl a couple of times. Don’t use too much flour and use a gentle touch with the dough.
  4. Divide the dough into two.
COOKING INSTRUCTIONS FOR A SINGLE PIZZA:
  1. Preheat oven to 500F. Grab a baking sheet and measure ½ tablespoon of olive oil. Spread evenly with a pastry brush.
  2. Grab one half of the dough and gently stretch using your fingers. Be careful not to tear holes in the dough. Place onto baking sheet and continue stretching until desired thickness achieved. This is what size mine looks like.
  3. Pour an additional ½ tablespoon olive oil on top of dough and spread with pastry brush.
  4. Using 3 ounces of grated cheese, sprinkle about 2 ounces and set aside 1 ounce.
  5. Grab 4 of the whole, peeled tomatoes and use your hands to crush over the pizza (or use a knife on a cutting board). Squeeze them so the juice is evenly distributed. Finally, sprinkle ¼ teaspoon salt, ⅛ teaspoon black pepper, pinch garlic powder, pinch crushed red pepper flakes and remaining 1 ounce grated mozzarella.
  6. Place into oven and cook 12 to 14 minutes or until crust and cheese are golden. Allow to cool 2 to 3 minutes and cut into 4 slices. Serve immediately and Enjoy!

 

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