Garlic & Herb Pizza Dough

There are two types of people in this world, pizza crust-eaters, and pizza crust-deserters. I, myself, am an eater and happen to think that a pizza's crust is crucial in gauging the success of a slice. Sure, the toppings are essential, the cheese to sauce ratio is definitely a consideration, but the crust, really the dough, lays the bedrock for the foundation of a pizza pie. While I operate under a "no crust left behind" way of enjoying pizza, it is my understanding that some people find the crusts to be dry, crunchy, and bland.  While these valid feelings may be a fair appraisal of crusts of pizzas past, but with flavors of garlic, paprika, rosemary, thyme, and orange peel, this Garlic & Herb pizza dough may have you asking your friends, "are you going to eat your crusts?"

Yield: Makes four 9-inch pizzas

Ingredients:

Instructions:

1. Place all-purpose flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer, stir to incorporate.
2. In a separate bowl, combine lukewarm water, yeast, sugar, and olive oil; stir to combine and pour into dry ingredients.
3. Mix by hand until the dough just comes together (it will look shaggy and uneven), cover with plastic and rest 30 minutes at room temperature.
4. Place bowl on a stand mixer, add Spicewalla Garlic & Herb Blend, mix for 10 minutes on medium speed. 
5. Cover with plastic and let sit at room temp for 2 hours or until doubled in size.
6. Remove dough from the bowl and onto a floured surface (cutting board or kitchen counter), lightly flour hands.
7. Divide dough into 4ths, roll each portion into a tight ball.
8. Place in a deep pan, cover tightly with plastic and refrigerate for 24 hours.
9. Remove dough from the fridge and let it sit out at room temperature for 1 hour before handling.
10. Place a cast-iron pan or pizza stone in your oven and preheat at the highest temperature possible for 1 hour.
11. Working with one dough portion at a time, place on a lightly floured surface and sprinkle flour over top.

12. Use your fingertips to press down into the dough, pushing outward to create a crust. 
13. Lift the dough off the table and begin to gently stretch with your hands into about a 9-inch circle.
14. Place on a lightly floured pizza peel or small wooden cutting board, quickly cover with sauce and toppings and slide off of peel onto cast iron pan or pizza stone.

15. Bake 5-7 mins until crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted.
16. Invite some friends over and enjoy!

Recipe courtesy of Alyse Baca with help from Tony Scalia