Ingredients

For 2 10-inch pizzas

Dough

320g 00 flour 
180g water at room temperature
7g fine salt
2.5g dried instant yeast

Tomato sauce

1 Tinned tomato
2 tablespoons tomato puree
Salt and pepper

Toppings for a margarita

Tomato sauce
Half of a 125g mozzarella ball
Olive oil
Basil 

Toppings for parma ham and rocket

Tomato sauce
Half of a 125g mozzarella ball
1-2 slices parma ham
A handful of rocket
Shaved parmesan

Toppings for a four-cheese

Tomato sauce
25g gorgonzola
Half of a 125g mozzarella ball
25g parmesan
25g goat cheese

Method

1. Mix all the dough ingredients into a shaggy mass in a large bowl, starting by adding the water first. You can do this by hand or use a wooden spoon. 
2. Cover the bowl with cling film or a damp cloth. if the cloth isn’t damp the dough may dry out. 
3. Leave the dough to rest for around 1 hour 
4. Turn the dough out onto the counter and knead for about 5 minutes.
5. Place the dough back into the bowl and cover tightly.
6. Leave the dough to prove for around 20 hours at room temperature. Don’t worry too much about the shape, just leave it in one big lump. 
7. About 4 hours before you intend to cook the pizza, divide the dough into 2 equal parts, about 250g each. 
8. Place each dough ball into a small bowl and cover with cling film. Leave the dough balls to prove again for about 4 hours. 
9. To make the tomato sauce, add a tin of quality tomatoes to a blender and blend into a smooth sauce. Cook it on medium-low heat until it reaches the desired thickness. It should be quick thick but still runny.
10. Add 2 tablespoons of tomato puree for a richer and sweeter sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste. 
11. About 30 minutes before you cook the pizzas, break up the mozzarella and wrap it in kitchen paper to remove the moisture. This will prevent the pizzas from getting soggy. 
12. Now get your oven up to the highest temperature with a pizza stone or upside-down baking tray inside. To cook the pizza in the Ninja woodfire pizza oven, preheat it to 370℃ using the artisan pizza style.
13. In a large bowl, cover the base with a generous amount of flour. Dust a dough ball (in the small bowl it was proving in) with plenty of flour then remove from the small bowl. Place it in the larger bowl. 
14. In the large bowl, press the dough ball down from the centre towards the edges. This will move the air from the middle of the dough to the outside where it will form a crust. Be careful not to press the edge of the dough down, once the air is removed, you will not have a well-risen crust. 
15. Keep turning the dough as you work the air towards the edges. You should start forming a small pizza shape at this stage. 
16. Turn the dough over to repeat this process in the bowl, on the other side. 
17. Remove from the bowl and place on the counter, making sure the base of the dough is coated with plenty of flour. 
18. Stretch the dough, remembering not to touch the crust, hold the dough down with your right hand, and with the other hand gently stretch the dough outwards. 
19. Repeat the stretch, keep turning the dough and repeating this until you have a base which is about 10 inches in diameter. you can usually go thinner than you think so don’t worry too much about the dough ripping. 
20. Top the base with 2-3 tablespoons of tomato sauce and spread gently across the pizza and up to just before the crusts. Don’t press the pizza down as you spread as it may make the dough stick to the counter. 
21. Spread about half a 125g mozzarella ball evenly across the pizza and you are ready to cook. At this point you can also add your other ingredients if you want, eg. Parmesan, basil, cooked mushrooms, etc. 
22. Slide the pizza onto a flour-dusted chopping board (or a pizza peel if you have one). Load straight onto the baking stone or baking tray inside the oven. Cook for about 6-8 minutes, turning every 2-3 minutes as required. If using the Ninja woodfire pizza oven, choosing the artisan pizza style will automatically set the timer at 2.5 minutes.
23. Remove the pizza from the oven and place on a chopping board or a plate. Drizzle a little olive oil if you like or some grated parmesan. 
24. Let the pizza cool a little and serve it hot!

When you’re ready to cook the pizza, shape and cook them one at a time. If they are shaped and left to sit before cooking, they may stick to the surface and then rip when moved. 

If using a fan-assisted oven, cook the pizza somewhere between the very top shelf and the middle shelf, as I find it cooks better. I’ve tried putting it at the very top, but it doesn’t cook as nicely and takes longer. Every oven is different, you can experiment a few times to see where is the hottest shelf in your oven. 

What do you think about the recipe? Share with me in the comments below! You can also join my email list for the latest recipes 🙂

Janice xx