homemade Pizza dough - always a hit!

6 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose white flour

(I use 3 cups whole wheat and 3 1/2 cups white, the more white the fluffier the bread, the more wheat the heavier)

1 1/2 tbsp coarse sea salt

1 1/2 tbsp granulated yeast

3 cups lukewarm water

These are the same ingredients as for the French Boule crusty bread recipe, the dough works just as well flat as a pizza bottom as in a ball for european style bread.

Add dry ingredients in kitchenaid, add water last, kneed well on low setting until dough rolls up in ball. Transfer ball of dough to plastic gallon container with lid, but keep lid crooked so air can escape. Leave on kitchen counter for at least 2 hours to rise and then put in fridge until you need it

Take out container at least 2 hours before you need it, if used cold the dough does not rise correctly - this amount of dough makes two large pizza bottoms.

The dough seems to store a long time in the fridge.

After a while it discolors a bit purple but it still works fine (it sourdoughs, which is why it is advised to scrape out but not rinse the container between batches to transfer correct sourdough mother - I rinse it though, I don't like it too sour).

Recipe adapted from the Mother Earth Magazine article "Easy, No-Knead Crusty Bread" by Roger Doiron, found here