Whole wheat Pizza

(It is your own homemade and healthier version of deep-dish or thin-crust pizza with any amount of favorite toppings in less than 20 minutes.  Here is a recipe for one medium-sized pizza)

Ingredients:

Whole wheat flour: 2 Cups

Basil leaves: 6-7

Olive oil: 100 gm

Salt: 1 tsp

Yeast powder: ½ tbsp

Warm water: 1 cup

Fine flour (Maida): 10 gm

Parchment paper: 1

The Sauce:

Tomatoes Puree: 1 cup

Onion: 1 cup

Chicken/vegetable stock (optional) :1 cube

Oregano dried: 2 tsp

Red chilies (optional) 1 tsp

Garlic: 5 cloves

 Toppings:  One can add any amount of cold-cuts, pre-cooked and processed meats.  Vegetables like, olives, eggplant, mushrooms, bell-peppers, cottage cheese and sundries tomatoes make for excellent combination of a pizza.  You can also add some grapes to give a sweet dimension to the flavours. 

Cheese: You can use different combinations of cheese as it adds depth to the flavours.  The classic pizza cheeses are mozzarella, cheddar and Gouda.    100 gm of cheese is sufficient for a medium size pizza.

 Preparation:

The Crust:

Make the pizza dough, for the crust, a couple of hours before your meal-time

1. In a bowl, mix water, yeast and sugar together and let it sit for 10 minutes;

2. Once the mixture foams up, add whole wheat flour, salt, finely chopped basil leaves and olive oil. Bring it all together by kneading with your hands to make soft dough.  You should be able to pinch it without the dough sticking to your fingers.

3. After wrapping the bowl with cling film keep it aside for at least two hours for the dough to rise.

The Sauce:

On a pre-heated pan, put a 2 tbsp of olive oil and add coarsely chopped onions.  Fry till translucent and add the pureed tomatoes.  Once the oil starts to appear on the side, add garlic, chilies, chicken/vegetable stock cube, salt, sugar and oregano.  Mix them well for two more minutes. Check for flavours and adjust.   Remove the pan from the fire and keep aside to cool down.

Preparing Pizza:

1. Start with the crust.  Tear off a piece of parchment paper and sprinkle Maida over it.  Take a chunk of the dough, make a medium sized ball and roll it out think with a Belan.  Keep the thickness according to the crust of your liking.  Roll the edges inward so that the cheese and the sauce don’t flow out while baking.

2. By now, pre-heat oven at 250 degree, together with the backing try, for 15 minutes before the pizza goes in.

3. Add the sauce to the crust and spread it evenly and generously

4. Add the thinly sliced meats and veggies to the crust.

5. Grate all the three kinds of cheese with equal measure on top of the meats and veggies.

6. Put the crust together with the parchment paper on the baking tray.

7. Bake the Pizza till the crust firms up and the cheese turns golden.

8. Drizzle extra virgin olive oil before serving hot.

pic courtesy:http://www.inspiredbycharm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/IMG_8906-1024x682.jpg