Rosemary Herb Pizza Crust
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
1 1/2 cups water, heated to about 110 degrees Fahrenheit
1/4 ounce baking yeast
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/4 teaspoons sea salt
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried garlic granules, optional
2 tablespoons olive oil (or sunflower or safflower oil)
1. Place the maple syrup and water in a large bowl and stir to combine. Drop in the yeast (do not stir) and allow it to sit undisturbed for 5 minutes, until it is foamy. Stir in the remaining items. Knead on a floured surface for about 5-10 minutes. Ideally, the dough will be a little annoyingly sticky, as that will yield a better crust. If the dough is too dry, the crust may end up overly dry and dense. However, if the dough is way, way too wet, just add in a little more flour.
2. Cover the bowl with your pizza pan. Allow the dough to rise in a warm spot, covered, for about 45 minutes to an hour, until it has doubled in size. Divide the dough into two balls that are equal in size. If you will only be making one pizza now, you can place the other ball of dough in an airtight plastic bag at this point. It can be refrigerated for several days or stored in the freezer for a month or more. Simply allow it to thaw at room temperature (or overnight in the fridge) before using.
3. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly oil two pizza pans (or one if you are only making one pizza now) and set aside. To shape your pizza crust, place the dough in the center of the pan and evenly push the dough toward the outer edges of the pan. Form the outer rim by pinching up about 1/2-inch of dough around the edge of the pan. Make sure there are no gaps in the crust anywhere. If there are, simply pinch the dough together to “patch” it. Prick the crust with a fork a few times to ensure that it will not poof up too much while it is baking.
4. Pre-bake the crust for about 10-15 minutes, or until lightly browned. Top with pizza sauce, spreading it evenly over the crust using the back of a large spoon. Add your desired toppings and bake for another 10-20 minutes, or until the toppings and crust are golden brown. Allow the pizza to cool slightly (yeah, right) and cut into individual pieces. Yum!!!
Source of recipe: This is a recipe from my new vegan book, "Radiant Health, Inner Wealth."www.radianthealth-innerwealth.com
SO HOW'D IT GO?
Turned out really well! I needed to add a little bit more water to get mine 'annoyingly sticky', but other than that it needed no modifications. A crowd pleaser recipe for sure :)
This was such an easy recipe to follow and saved me from having to rely on store bought pizza-Amy's Vegan Roasted Veggie. I finally am able to eat pizza again!
I use the normal rise baking yeast, and I use the packets - the kind found in any grocery store.
Baking yeast...Is that the normal old yeast packets? If so, is it the normal or rapid rise stuff?