Sprouted Wheat Pizza Dough Recipe

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Plan ahead and get prepped for making future pizzas by saving your excess dough. You can wrap and store your dough in the fridge for up to three days, or in the freezer for three months.

Photo by Paige Green

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In "Bread Revolution" by Peter Reinhart, he features fifty recipes and formulas that use sprouted flours, whole and ancient grains, nut and seed flours, alternate flours, as well as allergy-friendly and gluten-free approaches for favorites such as pain au levain, focaccia, ciabatta, French bread, pizza dough, bagels, flaky biscuits, muffins, challah, and even whole wheat croissants. The book goes well beyond any other to reveal what’s new and next in bread baking. This lushly illustrated primer shares the best ways to use these new ingredients and methods along with deliciously innovative recipes to inspire both home and experienced bakers alike.

Cover courtesy Ten Speed Press publishing

2-3 hrs DURATION

5 individual pizzas SERVINGS

Directions

•  In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl, stir together the flour, salt, and yeast (on low speed if using a stand mixer). Add the water and olive oil and mix or stir until the flour is hydrated and a coarse, wet dough forms, about one minute.
•  Let the dough rest, uncovered, for five minutes. Then switch to the dough hook or use a wet spoon or wet hands and mix for one minute, on medium-low speed if using a stand mixer. The dough should smooth out and thicken slightly.
•  Spread about 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil or olive oil on a work surface. Using a wet or oiled bowl scraper or rubber spatula, transfer the dough to the oiled area. Lightly oil your hands, then stretch and fold the dough, folding it over itself four times: once each from the top, bottom, and sides. The dough will firm up slightly but still be very soft and sticky. Cover the dough with the mixing bowl and then, at intervals of five minutes or up to twenty minutes, perform three additional sequences of stretching and folding. For each stretch and fold sequence, lightly oil your hands to prevent sticking. The dough will become firmer and less sticky with each stretch and fold. After the final fold it should be very tacky and supple and have a springy or bouncy quality when patted. (Note: If holding the dough overnight, put the dough in the refrigerator immediately after the final stretch and fold cycle instead of letting it rise.)
• Oil a large bowl and put the dough in the bowl. Mist the top of the dough with vegetable spray oil and cover with a lid or plastic wrap; if using plastic wrap, stretch it tightly over the bowl rather than laying it directly on the dough. Ferment the dough at room temperature for one and a half to two hours, until double in size (this time can be shortened by using a warm proof box set at about 90 degrees).
• Line a sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Mist the surface with vegetable spray oil or lightly coat it with olive oil. Oil the work surface again, and transfer the dough to the work surface with an oiled bowl scraper or rubber spatula. Divide the dough into five equal pieces, each weighing about 9 ounces, with an oiled metal pastry blade or plastic bowl scraper.
• With lightly oiled hands, form each piece into a boule. Put the dough balls on the prepared pan, spacing them evenly. Mist with vegetable spray oil, then loosely cover the pan with plastic wrap or put it in a large plastic bag. Proof for one to two hours; the dough won’t double in size, but it should show signs of swelling and expansion. If you won’t be making pizzas immediately, refrigerate the dough, then remove it from the refrigerator about one and a half hours before you plan to make the pizzas.
• Preheat the oven to the highest it will go.
• When the crust is ready to be topped, place it on a floured peel. Be sure to use flour rather than cornmeal or semolina, as it doesn’t burn as quickly in the oven. Top the pizza as desired, then slide it onto the baking stone. If you aren’t using a baking stone, just put the panned pizza in the oven. While the pizza is baking, shape your next pizza.
• Bake for about four minutes, then use the peel or a spatula to rotate the pizza. It will take anywhere from five to seven minutes for the pizza to fully bake, depending on the oven. The edge should puff up and be a deep golden brown, perhaps even slightly charred.
• Remove the pizza, garnish as desired, then let it cool for one minute before slicing and serving. Continue baking as many pizzas as you’d like (the dough will hold up to an hour out of the refrigerator).

  Variation

  Multigrain Sprouted Pizza Dough: You can replace up to 20 percent of the sprouted whole wheat flour with an equal amount, by weight, of other sprouted or non­sprouted flours, such as rye, corn, buckwheat, or millet. Depending on the grain, you’ll probably need to decrease the water by about 3 tablespoons.

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  This excerpt is reprinted with permission from Bread Revolution, © 2014 by Peter Reinhart. Photography © 2014 by Paige Green. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.