by Shaz Slaughter

Created on: January 14, 2009   Last Updated: June 09, 2009

Making pizza dough is not as complicated as it sounds. If you have about an hour to spare you too can make homemade hand tossed delicious pizza dough.

Before you get started making the dough make sure you have a clean flat surface and a large mixing bowl. Combine 5 1/3 cups of white flour or if you want to make wheat pizza dough 3 1/2 cups of white flour and 2 cups of wheat flour into the mixing bowl along with 1 2/3 cups of water, 2 1/2 tablespoons of olive oil, 2 1/2 teaspoons of salt and 2 1/2 teaspoons of yeast.

Once you have all the ingredients in the bowl mix them together with your hands. Mixing the flour and the other ingredients with your hands allows you to feel the texture and consistency of the dough. When the mixture starts to stick together take it out of the bowl and place it on the flat clean surface and begin kneading it or fold the mixture and press down on it. Folding the dough over and over is the hardest part of making pizza dough and it will take anywhere from 20 to 25 minutes of kneading to get the mixture to the correct consistency.

Knead the dough until it starts to feel smooth and then place the mixture in a large clean bowl and cover with a moist towel for an hour to allow the dough to rise.

Once an hour passes the pizza dough is ready to be used.

Take the dough and place it on a well floured flat surface and flatten the dough as much as possible with your hands. Take your rolling pin and continue to flatten the dough on the floured surface by moving the rolling pin back and forth over the dough.

Now that the dough is flat place it on a pizza pan and poke holes into it with a fork and pour pizza sauce in the center of the dough and then spread the sauce with the back of a spoon about one to one and one half inch away from the edge of the dough. Cover the sauce with shredded mozzarella and cheddar cheese and place in the over at 400 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes.

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