This is my current go-to recipe for pizza dough. I normally make the dough in bulk and keep in fridge for a couple of days. Of course we were not going to eat pizza again in two to three days and I had to find different ways to keep the dough. The next method was to bake the pizza slightly and then freeze the discs. This worked wonders while breaking my head on what to pack for kids lunch. My kids loved their pizza and to cut down the extra work of topping the pizza in the busy morning, I decided to top it as normal and then freeze it.
It might sound like a simple task to top the pizza, but when combined with the zillion other things in the morning, everything becomes a chore. When topped and frozen, it is just a matter of preheating the oven and popping the pizza directly from freezer to oven. This is useful for not just lunch boxes but also for those crazy week nights when your kids have a lot of practices or activities and you are just tired dropping and picking them off from various destinations. I love homemade pizza because I can add my favorite toppings and also add minimal cheese since I am not a big fan of cheese.
Looks like my daughter might slowly follow my footsteps since she was asking if she could throw away the cheese on the pizza. Now the pizza was just a plain cheese pizza and it is no longer a pizza with no cheese. Anyway I am happy as long as she gets something in her little tummy. So friends, make extra dough and freeze for later when possible and use the frozen pizzas within three months. Off to the recipe. Recipe adapted slightly from here.
Basic Pizza Dough and Freezing Tips
Basic pizza dough.
Ingredients:
- water - 21/2 - 3 cups (you will need less water if using all purpose flour instead of bread flour)
- yeast - 2 tsp
- sugar - 2 tsp
- bread flour - 6 cups
- olive oil - 2-3 tbsp
- salt - 1 tsp (adjust to taste)
Instructions:
Make a dough with the mentioned ingredients. Place dough in an oiled bowl and allow to rise. When doubled punch it down and allow to rise again.
Form balls of dough and roll into circles. If using them right away top as you would normally and bake in a 450F preheated oven for about 20 min for the mini pizzas. This dough yields about 8 mini pizzas.
If freezing for later, bake the rolled dough for about 3 - 5 minutes until it looks a bit puffy. Allow to cool and then top as you would normally; place on a baking sheet and freeze for about 3 hours uncovered. Then remove from freezer and cover with plastic wrap (clingwrap).
Cover again with foil or place in a ziploc bag for later. When ready to use remove the clingwrap and place the pizza directly from freezer in a preheated 450F oven and bake until done.
1. You can also freeze just the baked discs and top with sauce, toppings and cheese when ready to bake. (Do not thaw the discs.)
2. All purpose flour can also be used instead of bread flour. You might need a lot less water for all purpose flour. Original recipe says to use only 2 cups of water for all purpose flour.
3. I use instant yeast. If using active dry yeast, proof with warm water and sugar before adding to dough.
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Pictorial
1. Make a dough with all the ingredients.
2. Place in an oiled bowl and allow to double. Punch it down after the first rise and let it rise again.
3. After the second rise form balls of the dough. You can make 8 mini pizzas with this dough or 2 large ones.If you are going to make pizza right away: Roll the ball and spread sauce; add toppings and cheese and bake in a 450F preheated oven for about 15 - 20 min for a small pizza.
4. If freezing for later roll the ball into a circle. Place in a preheated 450F oven for about 3 - 5 minutes until it looks a bit puffy.
5. Remove from oven and allow the pizza to cool.
6. Once cooled top as usual and place on a baking sheet and freeze for about 3 hours uncovered.
7. Remove from freezer and cover with cling wrap. Cover again with foil or place in a ziploc bag and freeze for later.When ready to use remove the clingwrap and place the pizza directly from freezer in a preheated 450F oven and bake until done.
Enjoy!
Linking to Basics, Tips & Tricks.
very very useful post and so perfectly made pizza base
Very useful post… nice explanation..
Really a useful post.,thanks for sharing! will try it and give you my feedback
I love the idea of freezing pizzas. It’s great to have on hand when you don’t feel like cooking dinner!
useful post..would love to try it…thanks for sharing