Monday, November 1, 2010

Pepperoni Pizza on a Cornmeal Crust

Cornmeal Crust!! I have this 5 lb bag of cornmeal that I have used twice to make polenta. However, cornmeal seems to grow when cooked, so although I have so far only used 2 cups of cornmeal, Ive served 8 entres with it. I have decided to make it my mission to keep coming up with cornmeal ideas. The pizza is a no brainer, but it did cause me some stress because my absolute favorite Pizza Place where I live called Barnabys is famous for its signature cornmeal crust. I have never worked with cornmeal before , so I wasnt too confident, but Im happy with the results. I had to add a decent amount of flour to my hands when kneading because the dough was sticky, but it all worked out.
When I make this crust again(I still have cornmeal left) I am going to make some unique pizzas with proscuitto, funky cheeses like fontina, veggies like peas......just kicking around some ideas, cant wait to try!!

ingredients

2 tsp active dry yeast
pinch of sugar
2/3 cup warm water
1 2/3 cup flour (and a handful of extra for kneading the dough)
1/4 cup cornmeal
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tablespoon olive oil

In small bowl sprinkle yeast and sugar over warm water
let stand til yeast is foamy, about 10 minutes

in separate bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, salt and create a well
pour in yeast combo and start to need dough, flour hands because dough will be sticky
when dough is all worked together, separate it into 2 separate balls and let sit for another hour until dough grows atleast to double size
in bowl, pour olive oil and roll the balls in olive oil before flattening into pizza crust in the pans
dough should form into 2 12-14 inch round pizza crusts
place on pizza stone or cookie sheets

preheat oven to 500

For the sauce and topping
1 cup marinara
2 tsp oregano
2 oz bags of pepperoni
16 oz shredded mozarella

spread dough evenly with sauce, pepperoni and mozarella
bake for 5 to 7 minutes or until cheese is completely melted and slightly golden

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