Make-Ahead Pizza
By America's Test KitchenPublished on August 12, 2013
Time
1¾ hours, plus 1 hour rising and up to 1 month freezing
Yield
Serves 4-6 (Makes two 12-inch pizzas)
Ingredients
Dough
1 ½ cups half-and-half, heated to 110 degrees½ cup water, heated to 110 degrees2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 4 cups (20 ounces/567 grams) all-purpose flour ¼ cup (1 ounce/28 grams) cornstarch 2 ¼ teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast ½ teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon sugar 1 ½ teaspoons saltSauce and Toppings
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional for brushing1 tablespoon tomato paste 2 garlic cloves, minced1 tablespoon dried basil 1 teaspoon dried oregano ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated¼ cup half-and-halfBefore You Begin
You will need two 12-inch disposable aluminum pizza pans and a baking stone for this recipe. See related testing for the test kitchen’s recommended baking stone.
Instructions
- MAKE DOUGH Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 200 degrees. When oven reaches 200 degrees, shut it off. Grease large bowl. Combine half-and-half, water, and oil in liquid measuring cup. In bowl of stand mixer fitted with dough hook, mix flour, cornstarch, yeast, baking powder, sugar, and salt until combined. With mixer on medium-low speed, add half-and-half mixture in steady stream and mix until dough comes together, about 1 minute. Continue mixing until sticky strands form around exterior but center of dough is uniform in texture, about 5 minutes. Transfer dough to prepared bowl, coat lightly with cooking spray, cover with plastic wrap, and place in warm oven. Let rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- MAKE SAUCE Pulse tomatoes in food processor until coarsely ground. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Cook tomato paste until just beginning to brown, about 2 minutes. Stir in garlic, basil, oregano, and pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add pulsed tomatoes and simmer until reduced to 1½ cups, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and let cool.
- CONSTRUCT PIZZA Remove dough from oven and divide in half. Transfer each half to 12-inch disposable aluminum pizza pan and, using oiled hands, press dough to cover pan. Combine mozzarella, Parmesan, and half-and-half in large bowl and stir with rubber spatula until well combined. Top each pizza evenly with half of sauce and half of cheese, leaving ½-inch border around edges. Wrap each pizza tightly with plastic, then aluminum foil. Freeze up to 1 month.
- BAKE PIZZA Adjust oven rack to lowest position, place pizza stone on rack, and heat oven to 500 degrees. Discard foil and plastic and remove frozen pizza from aluminum pan. Place pizza on large square of parchment paper and brush edges of dough lightly with oil. Transfer parchment and pizza to hot pizza stone. Cover pizza loosely with greased aluminum foil and bake until underside is golden brown and cheese is starting to melt, about 25 minutes. Discard foil and bake until crust is golden brown and cheese is completely melted, about 5 more minutes. Serve.
Time
1¾ hours, plus 1 hour rising and up to 1 month freezingYield
Serves 4-6 (Makes two 12-inch pizzas)Ingredients
Dough
1 ½ cups half-and-half, heated to 110 degrees
½ cup water, heated to 110 degrees
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 cups (20 ounces/567 grams) all-purpose flour
¼ cup (1 ounce/28 grams) cornstarch
2 ¼ teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon sugar
1 ½ teaspoons salt
Sauce and Toppings
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional for brushing
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
¼ cup half-and-half
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Dough
1 ½ cups half-and-half, heated to 110 degrees
½ cup water, heated to 110 degrees
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 cups (20 ounces/567 grams) all-purpose flour
¼ cup (1 ounce/28 grams) cornstarch
2 ¼ teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon sugar
1 ½ teaspoons salt
Sauce and Toppings
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional for brushing
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
¼ cup half-and-half
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Dough
1 ½ cups half-and-half, heated to 110 degrees
½ cup water, heated to 110 degrees
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 cups (20 ounces/567 grams) all-purpose flour
¼ cup (1 ounce/28 grams) cornstarch
2 ¼ teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon sugar
1 ½ teaspoons salt
Sauce and Toppings
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional for brushing
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
¼ cup half-and-half
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
Make-Ahead Pizza is tricky. Ice crystals that form in dough in the freezer puncture the yeast cells, inhibiting their ability to form carbon dioxide, which is what causes the dough to rise. To bolster the dough’s rising power, we added baking powder. To eliminate any toughness on the crust’s interior, we turned to half-and-half. The dairy added extra richness and made a soft dough that tasters appreciated. We also replaced some of the flour with cornstarch to further tenderize the dough. To achieve a crisp, chewy exterior crust, we tweaked the water-to-flour ratio of the dough. Since inevitable moisture loss occurs in the freezer, we mixed up dough with a higher proportion of water to flour, patted the dough out into disposable aluminum pizza pans, gave the pizza a few days in the freezer, and then baked it. For the sauce, switching from fresh to dried herbs and doubling the amounts normally called for compensated for the dulling deep freeze.
Before You Begin
You will need two 12-inch disposable aluminum pizza pans and a baking stone for this recipe. See related testing for the test kitchen’s recommended baking stone.
Instructions
- MAKE DOUGH Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 200 degrees. When oven reaches 200 degrees, shut it off. Grease large bowl. Combine half-and-half, water, and oil in liquid measuring cup. In bowl of stand mixer fitted with dough hook, mix flour, cornstarch, yeast, baking powder, sugar, and salt until combined. With mixer on medium-low speed, add half-and-half mixture in steady stream and mix until dough comes together, about 1 minute. Continue mixing until sticky strands form around exterior but center of dough is uniform in texture, about 5 minutes. Transfer dough to prepared bowl, coat lightly with cooking spray, cover with plastic wrap, and place in warm oven. Let rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- MAKE SAUCE Pulse tomatoes in food processor until coarsely ground. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Cook tomato paste until just beginning to brown, about 2 minutes. Stir in garlic, basil, oregano, and pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add pulsed tomatoes and simmer until reduced to 1½ cups, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and let cool.
- CONSTRUCT PIZZA Remove dough from oven and divide in half. Transfer each half to 12-inch disposable aluminum pizza pan and, using oiled hands, press dough to cover pan. Combine mozzarella, Parmesan, and half-and-half in large bowl and stir with rubber spatula until well combined. Top each pizza evenly with half of sauce and half of cheese, leaving ½-inch border around edges. Wrap each pizza tightly with plastic, then aluminum foil. Freeze up to 1 month.
- BAKE PIZZA Adjust oven rack to lowest position, place pizza stone on rack, and heat oven to 500 degrees. Discard foil and plastic and remove frozen pizza from aluminum pan. Place pizza on large square of parchment paper and brush edges of dough lightly with oil. Transfer parchment and pizza to hot pizza stone. Cover pizza loosely with greased aluminum foil and bake until underside is golden brown and cheese is starting to melt, about 25 minutes. Discard foil and bake until crust is golden brown and cheese is completely melted, about 5 more minutes. Serve.
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