Margherita Pizza

Instructions

1. To make this pizza, we will need a large bowl, where we will place 600 g of type 0 flour with 300 ml of water and 3 g of fresh brewer's yeast (or 1 g if using dry yeast). Mix perfectly with a spoon until the flour has absorbed all the water (this will take about 2 minutes). This process is called pre-fermentation.

   

2. Cover the well-combined mixture with kitchen plastic wrap. Let it rest for 12 hours at room temperature. I usually place it inside the turned-off oven. NOT IN THE REFRIGERATOR.

   

3. After 12 hours, the dough will look like this.

   

4. Into the bowl with the pre-ferment, add 350 ml of water and the other 3 g of fresh yeast (1 g dry). Stir quickly. Next, add the remaining flours, the type 2 and the whole wheat flour. Knead vigorously with the spoon.

   

5. Add the salt and the remaining 50 ml of water. Work the dough very well; it will be quite elastic.

   

6. Pour in the oil.

   

7. Knead thoroughly until all the liquids are absorbed.

   

8. Let it rest for another 3 hours, until doubled in volume.

   

9. Place the dough on a surface well dusted with semolina.

   

10. Gently stretch it out.

    

11. Cut it into approximately 6 pieces of 250 g of dough. Always on a floured surface, work each dough ball by making small circles and pulling it toward you, until each one is very smooth. Place them on a couple of floured trays, well separated from one another.

    

12. Place one tray over the other so the dough is protected from the air. Let rest for another 3-4 hours, always at room temperature.

    

13. Preheat the oven to 250°C (480°F). After this final fermentation, place one dough ball on a surface covered with semolina flour and gently stretch it from the center outward with your fingertips, trying to leave the edges slightly higher. In a bowl, place the tomato sauce and a little oregano.

    

14. Place the stretched dough in an individual pizza pan well greased with oil.

    

15. Add a little tomato sauce, with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil on top and a pinch of salt.

    

16. Bake at maximum temperature on the lowest rack of the oven, trying to imitate a wood-fired oven, for about 5-7 minutes or until well golden; this will depend on the thickness of the pizza. Remove from the oven.

    

17. Put it back in the oven, this time on the top rack, for another 5 minutes. Remove again and add slices of mozzarella. The aroma in our home will be delicious! Note: If your cheese is not mozzarella but a melting cheese, then the second time you bake it on the top rack, bake for 3 minutes, remove it, add the cheese and bake for another 3 minutes or until the cheese is golden.