Pizza

I make the pizza dough using my bread maker.  It's also easy to do it by hand or a food processor.  The basic crust recipe I use is as follows:

Ingredients: (makes 1 lb)
2 1/2 cups wheat flour                            
2 Tbsp vital wheat gluten
1 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp yeast (dry)
2 Tbsp oil
1 cup warm water (about 100 deg F)
herbs (I used dried rosemary.)

Directions:
1.  Place the ingredients in the pan in the order specified by your bread machine and set it on the pizza cycle.
     (a)  If you don't have a machine then add the yeast to the sugar dissolved in warm water (about 100 deg F).  This is called proofing the yeast.  After it bubbles up mix in the rest of the ingredients.  Knead for at least 10 mins.  Let it rise in a well oiled container in a warm place until it is doubled in size.  Proceed to step 2.
     (b)  If you have a big enough food processor add the wet ingredients first along with the yeast  and sugar, and slowly add the other ingredients and knead until it comes together as a ball.  Take it out and knead it for a
for a few more minutes.  Let it rise in a well oiled container in a warm place until it is doubled in size.  Proceed to step 2.
2.  Preheat the oven to 425 deg F or (~ 220 deg C).  Take out the dough.  It should elastic.  Punch it down and make it into a ball.  Cover and let it rest for a few minutes.
3.  Roll out the dough (makes one 16 inch pizza) on a floured surface or press it out onto an oiled pan.  I find cast iron pans make the best crust.  I used the 16 inch aluminium pan with holes today.  Poke holes evenly with a fork.  We do this to prevent the crust from puffing up when it pre-bakes.  Cover it with a cloth and let it rest for 15 - 20 minutes.  You will find that the dough rises a little more.
4.  Put  the crust in the oven for 10 - 12 mins until the crust is lightly browned.
5.  Take it out, top it and put it back for 15 - 20 mins until the mozzarella is melted, bubbly and browned in some parts.

The crust is crunchy on the outside and soft inside.  It's delicious and smells heavenly!
The one I made today had 2 cups of wheat flour and 1/2 cup of rye flour.  The resulting base was not too bad.  But I think it can use some tweaking.  
Today's toppings were pasta sauce (base), mozzarella, onions, baby spinach, tomatoes, jalapeno peppers and bell pepper.

Freezing the dough:
It is easy to double the recipe, punch it and freeze half the portion for another day.  To make the crust, just take it out of the freezer, let it thaw for a few hours and start from step 2.  You can even make mini pre-baked crusts and freeze these individually.  When you want one take it out, top it and stick it in the oven. 

Tips:
*  Make sure  your yeast is fresh and not old!
*  You may need to add more water or less depending on the humidity of your place.
*  If you use heavy flours you will need to use a little more water.  
*  Avoid using toppings that have high water content (eg. frozen spinach).  It will make the crust soggy!!
*  For even baking, rotate the pan halfway through the baking period.