Pizza is one of those things that is a staple in our family. And since we’re not into having takeout meals all the time, homemade is the way to go. But for a long time, our favorite pizza dough took a very long time to prepare – too long for a spontaneous pizza night. This quick dough however is ready in 10 minutes, easy to handle and can even be enhanced with extra nutrients. It also works well for quick bread sticks and other snacks.
Every now and then, it’s just one of those days. A somewhat chaotic start to the day, struggling to have all kids off to school on time. Concentrated and sometimes a bit frustrating work hours until the kids come back home. Help with homework, driving the kids to activities, playtime in the garden – and all of a sudden it’s dinnertime.
And of course I forgot to prepare the dough for the pizza we were planning to have… what now? A quick trip to the store to buy frozen pizzas? Switch to pasta with tomato sauce instead? From now on, there’s a perfect solution for those moment!
Quick pizza dough
When I was doing some research for one of my bread/dough books (so far only available through my German blog), I realized that one thing that was missing from it was an alternative to ready-made pizza dough from the chilled foods section.
My favorite pizza dough takes at least an hour (unless I have one of my beloved fridge doughs ready, which I’m going to write about in one of my next posts). So I decided to adjust a flatbread dough I already used a lot, to make it even quicker.
Fresh pizza dough in just 10 minutes
With a little bit of research I discovered that a little bit of kneading (which I usually try to avoid – call me lazy if you want) really speeds up the process. the result is a wonderful pizza dough that’s easy to use and ready for the toppings in just 10 minutes.
Sure, nothing beats a classic pizza dough that’s been kneaded for a long time and allowed to rise for longer. But if what you’re looking for is a quick alternative to chilled ready-made pizza dough, then this one’s for you.
- It can be made by hand, using a hand mixer or a food processor
- It rises while you’re preheating the oven and preparing the toppings
- It’s very easy to use
- The crust is crunchy and stable enough to hold its own weight (so the pizza is finger food, as it should be – no utensils required)
Pizza dough with hidden nutrients
This dough is also perfect for hiding all sorts of healthy green nutrients. How? Just add a heaped tablespoon of green superfood powder to the flour.
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The green nutrients have virtually no impact on taste and the only thing you’ll notice is a very slight green hue. After baking, it’s hardly noticeable. So if you’d like to improve your family’s nutrient intake, why not give it a try?
Topping and baking the quick pizza
I suggest you use this best pizza sauce recipe as the basis of your toppings. it’s delicious and quick to make.
You can use any toppings you fancy. I love pizza with arugula, olives and feta cheese. Or just some wild garlic butter and cheese as a flatbread, which goes extremely well with a tomato soup.
For best results, use a high temperature in the oven. If your oven has a pizza setting, that’s the one to use. Otherwise, 440 – 480°F (230-250°C) are a good choice. Find out what works best in your oven.
Quick pizza dough for more than one meal
This dough is very versatile and can be used for much more than just pizza. For example, you could also try:
- bread sticks to have with a salad
- pigs in a blanket as a party food
- flatbread made in a frying pan or on the grill
It’s also easy to simply halve the recipe. However, since I’m a big fan of doing the work once and benefitting multiple times, I like to freeze any remaining dough. That way, next time it’s even quicker.
For freezing, I like to use reusable silicone freezer bags. They are more environmentally friendly than single use bags and also easy to handle when freezing doughs.
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Yield: 1 tray or four small pizzas
Quick pizza dough
This quick pizza dough is ready in 10 minutes and can even pack extra nutrients. Freezer friendly and the kids love it.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time10 minutes
Total Time20 minutes
Ingredients
- 3 cups white flour
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 1/4 tsp dry yeast
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 2 tbsp sugar
Instructions
Preheat oven to 440 - 480°F (230-250°C)
By hand
- mix flour, yeast, and salt in a big bowl
- dissolve sugar in warm water and add olive oil
- add liquids to the flour mixture and fold in with a spatula (if the dough is too sticky, add a bit more flour)
- put the dough on a flour-covered surface and knead for four minutes (watch this video for details)
- form a ball and put it back in the bowl
With a hand mixer
- mix flour, yeast, and salt in a big bowl
- dissolve sugar in warm water and add olive oil
- add liquids to the flour mixture and use the dough hooks to knead for four minutes
- if necessary add 1-2 tbsp of flour
With a food processor
- add warm water, sugar, and olive oil to the food processor and briefly mix
- add flour, salt, and yeast
- use the dough hook to knead for four minutes
- add 1-2 tbsp of flour if necessary
- if the food processor has a heating element (such as the kenwood Cooking Chef, Thermomix or similar devices), use it to heat to 85-95°F while kneading
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- until it's kneaded, the dough will be rather soft and sticky. After kneading it should easily separate from the bowl with a spatula and keep its shape
- leave the dough covered for five minutes while preparing the toppings
- for a whole tray of pizza, cover the tray with a thin layer of flour and corn semolina and spread the dough evenly on top (by rolling with a pin and/or pulling it into shape)
- for individual pizzas, cut the dough into four equal portions
- cover a tray with a thin layer of flour and corn semolina
- roll each portion of dough into a ball, then press flat and pull into a round shape with your fingertips. For extra-thin pizza, hold up the flattened dough like a steering wheel and pass it from one hand to the other until it's pulled into a thing circle by its own weight.
- add toppings
- bake for 7-12 minutes, depending on your oven and the number of toppings
Notes
For extra nutrients, add 1 tbsp of green superfood powder into the dough.
For more crispness, replace 1/3 cup of flour with corn semolina
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 462Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 879mgCarbohydrates: 79gFiber: 3gSugar: 7gProtein: 11g
These nutritional vaues were automatically calculated. They are for a pizza base without toppings and only give a rough indication.
