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I am a judgment matchmaking specialist (Judgment Broker) who writes a lot. This article is my opinion about how to make pizza dough and shells as healthy as possible.
To make fiber-rich or regular pizza crusts, you will obtain the best results with this equipment:
1) A regular oven.
2) A metal pizza screen (about 18 inches, find them on EBay).
3) A round pizza bakers stone, eighteen inches in diameter works best.
4) A baking rolling pin. 5) A flexible baking screen.
6) A good electric mixer, as healthy pizza dough seems more like wet cement than dough.
7) A wooden cutting board, bigger is better, find them on EBay.
8) A large knife, a cleaver works best.
Making pizza crust at home is baking, and is not digital. The analog results depend on a wide variety of situations including temperature, humidity, ingredients, equipment, your effort, etc. So, any recipe, including the one below will not be exact. If the dough is too thick or too thin, it will not work right, more about that in the recipe.
The ingredients below create a tasty whole wheat crust with fantastic nutrition. However, not everyone will like it. You can change the recipe by substituting a few ingredients with regular flour, to your preference of taste and convenience. The dough needs to rise for 6-24 hours (six works, twelve is best, and 24 hours will still work.)
For this recipe, use the metal bowl that comes with electric mixers, and add these ingredients, which have my recommended sources:
Two to three cups of premium whole wheat flour (the best kind is King Arthur brand).
One-third cup of coconut flour (the best kind is Tropical traditions).
One-third cup of barley flour (I recommend Arrowhead Mills).
1/3 cup of resistant wheat starch (the best kind is Hi Maize).
One-third cup of oat fiber (the best kind is Lifesource Foods, LLC).
One-third cup of white flour now, a bit more later (the best kind is King Arthur brand).
Then, add:
Two tablespoons of pizza dough flavoring (the best kind is King Arthur brand).
3 tablespoons of ground or crushed flax seed.
Two to three tablespoons of honey.
2 tablespoons crushed rosemary. 1/2 a teaspoon of sea salt (or regular salt).
1 teaspoon of yeast (I recommend SAF Instant).
1 cup of water (more as needed).
Start the mixer on a low speed, the number 2 position on most mixers works well. The speed should be fast enough to provide the torque and speed needed for this super-fiber dough, without throwing any dough out from the bowl. It takes about 15-20 minutes to mix, and you need to supervise and work on it.
There are two things to watch for while it mixes. First, is there enough water? When there is not enough water, the flour will stay dry near the bottom of the bowl. Slowly, add only as much water as is required. Be patient because it takes awhile for the water to blend in.
The other thing to monitor, is that the thick dough tends to form sections of dry, unmixed flour on the sides of the bowl. You can tilt the blender while it is still running, in different directions, to make the dough mix up better. Sometimes, you must turn off the mixer, and use a spoon to gently scrape any unmixed flour globs back down into the bowl.
The goal is for the dough to form one ball, that is turning into itself in the mixer. You might have to add a small amount of white flour, to make it act more like "dough". I have found it best to add a bit too much water, so the powder is completely absorbed, then add white flour gradually, until the dough is not sticky to the touch.
For the final adjustments, you must add a bit of water and flour as needed, to make it function as a ball of dough, yet not be really sticky.
Like many works of art, sometimes things do not go perfectly. Sometimes the dough forms spikes and patterns, and simply does not seem to want to mix right, because it's so fiber-rich. If you have to, turn off the mixer, and take the dough out of the bowl. Then, turn on the mixer and add 1 inch chunks of dough back into the bowl, which forces it to mix well. This is easier and faster than it sounds.
When the dough is one ball, turning into itself, and is not too sticky, turn off the mixer, take the bowl out, and cover it with plastic wrap. Move the bowl to a slightly warm location - on top of a fridge, above a lighted cabinet, or a similar quiet and warm place. I think room temperature would work if you let the dough rise longer. Eight to sixteen hours seems to work best.
A vacuum cleaner works very well to clean up any spilled or loose flour dust. While the dough is rising, be sure you have some pizza sauce. See my other article for how to make a great pizza sauce, and a great pizza.
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