Authentic Italian Pizza Dough Recipe from Casa San Carlo
Pizza pronta!
The hubby and I heard those words ring out many times over the course of our stay at Casa San Carlo in Monteleone d’Orivetto, Umbria, Italy. Wednesday night each week is pizza night. On pizza night the guests and staff are invited to get together, around the 800-degree brick pizza oven, and make pizzas.
I’ve used the same pizza dough recipe for years and it’s good. But it has never quite tasted the same or had the same texture as the pizzas we ate in Italy. Needless to say, I was thrilled to learn the Italian way of making pizza dough while spending six weeks working as a chef at Casa San Carlo.
The Pizza Dough – the Most Important Part of the Pizza
The dough, the platform of the pizza, is the most important part of the pizza. The toppings are also very important. Buy the best quality of ingredients that you can afford. But since the pizza dough is your base, having the right dough recipe is essential for having an awesome pizza.
We learned a lot about making pizza while at Casa San Carlo. The fun began a few hours ahead of pizza night when we prepped the toppings for the guests. Chopping, slicing and dicing our way through a few kilos of pizza toppings. AND depending on the number of guests, kneaded up to six kilos of pizza dough per evening.
Wood-Fired Pizzas and Helping the Guests
Once pizza night started we supervised the guests in their pizza-making endeavors. All while making sure they didn’t run out of toppings until they had eaten at least one too many pizzas. David had the honor of learning how to build awood fire in the oven. Plus, how to pick up the prepared pizzas, cook them in the oven and return them to each guest, mostly without incident. He did manage to flip one or two upside down while figuring out the wrist trick.
I’ve always been sold on the flavor of wood-fired pizza and am even more so now. Someday, I’ll have my own wood-fired pizza oven out on the patio next to the grill. All because pizza cooked any other way just doesn’t ooze in yumminess the way a wood-fired one does. Until then, I’ll cook my pizzas in the oven or on the grill.
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We spent a fun six weeks making pizzas and other food at Casa San Carlo. We made new friends, learned new foods and found, even more, reasons to love the Umbrian region of Italy. Yes, we were just a little tired of pizza for a few weeks after being there. BUT it wasn’t long before we were back to making our own homemade pizzas once again. Just with a new pizza dough recipe this time.
Authentic Italian Pizza Dough Recipe from Casa San Carlo
Ingredients
Instructions
- In a large bowl mix the yeast and the warm milk until the yeast dissolves and allow to sit for about 10 minutes and looking bubbly.
- Add the rest of the ingredients, except semolina, stirring well to mix. Then turn out a floured surface and knead the dough until smooth and elastic, about 8 to 10 minutes.
- Clean the large mixing bowl, dry well and coat with a thin coat of olive oil. Place the prepared dough in a greased bowl, turning once to coat the top with oil.
- Cover the bowl and allow the dough to rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled, about 45 minutes to an hour.
- Preheat oven to 425º F or 225º C.
- Punch dough down and divide into two pieces for large pizzas. Divide more if you want smaller ones. Roll the dough out to desired thickness.
- Place on lightly greased pizza pans or use a pizza stone.
- Add the ingredients of your choice and pop into the hot oven until the crust and cheese are golden brown, about 12 to 15 minutes.