I’m a little bit obsessed with pizza, I really am. It’s the one thing I never tire of ordering in on days when cooking just feels like the most boring thing to do, but it’s also the one thing I never tire of messing around with in the kitchen. Not just the toppings, but the pizza dough itself. I’ve made this spinach and artichoke one with my favourite slow-rise dough that produces a chewy, super flavourful crust, very like the ones I ate and loved so much when I was lucky enough to visit Italy.The same dough even makes the most amazing breadsticks!

But before all of that, I used to make a wholewheat dough that is super quick to rise and very flavourful because wholewheat just has a more nutty, intense flavour. Top that off with your favourite tomato sauce (more on that later) and lots of mozzarella and you have basically the most perfect margherita. This used to be an older post on the blog, but I needed to revamp it and though you can certainly make a margherita pizza on various other doughs, this one is really good!

The recipe for the dough is one I’ve made many, many times from Sally’s Baking Addiction and it never fails. Over the years I’ve understood when the dough feels right plus small adjustments I need to make for Indian temperatures and kitchens. It uses more yeast than you’d expect, so it rises faster and can become a little bready if you don’t flatten it out thin enough while baking. It still has a soft, chewy center and crispy outer crust. And it makes two pizzas because let’s face it, why make just one?

To get that really authentic margherita flavour, I find two things to be very important. Indian tomatoes have a different flavour and that original awesomeness comes from Italian tomatoes. You can use the canned variety or do what I did for this post and use a readymade pizza sauce by an Italian brand like Barilla. I tried it on a whim and I’m in LOVE. It’s technically a pasta sauce but works for either.

The second thing that’s important is basil. Fresh basil in the sauce and on the pizza, which is something I learned from TheKitchn. If you’re making it at home, stirring a bit of basil into your tomatoes, even if they’re the Indian ones, gives a whole other level of flavour. And it tastes so much like the real thing! I’ll add more sauce details in the recipe notes below.

And now let’s talk cheese! Mozzarella is a must here, and not the pre-shredded kind because that comes with added ingredients to prevent the cheese from sticking together in the bag. That also causes it to brown way too soon in the oven. Buy a block of mozzarella, and shred it at home yourself. The other thing I’ve found worked well for me, is to add the cheese on the pizza about halfway through the baking time. This way, it melts down, but doesn’t stay in the oven long enough to burn in the high heat that’s required to cook the pizza. You can go to town and add lots of cheese, or add just enough to complement the sauce, your call!

Ok, I’m done blabbing! I think it’s time we make some pizza. Lots of details in the recipe below!

Please read the recipe notes before beginning.

Wholewheat Margherita Pizza

Homemade wholewheat pizza dough with tomato sauce and mozzarella for a classic margherita

Prep Time: 30

Cook Time: 25

Total Time: 55

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Ingredients

For the dough (makes two pizzas)

1 and 1/2 cups warm water, you should be able to comfortably dip in a finger (375 ml)
1 tsp caster sugar
1 tbsp active dry yeast
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp honey
2 tsps salt
3 cups wholewheat flour (340 gms) plus a little extra for kneading

For the topping (for two pizzas)

1 and 1/2 cups pizza sauce (see notes)
1 and 1/2 cups freshly shredded mozzarella cheese (170 gms)
A handful of fresh basil leaves
Salt, pepper, oregano: optional and as needed

Instructions

Combine the warm water, yeast and sugar in a small bowl. Cover with clingfilm and allow to rest for 5 to 10 minutes, until frothy on the surface. If this doesn't happen, your yeast is dead and you will need to start over. Always make sure you're using yeast within the expiry date.
In a large mixing bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the olive oil, honey and salt.
Pour in the yeast mixture and stir. Now add the flour and mix either by hand or on low speed using the dough hook, until the dough starts to come together.
Knead for about 5 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. If using a mixer, you may find the dough starts to jump around a lot. It helps to finish off the kneading by hand. Though the dough is a little firm, it should be easy to knead even entirely by hand. When you a poke a finger on the surface and the dough slowly bounces back, it is ready to rise.
Form the dough into a bowl, and place in a lightly oiled bowl (just use the same mixing bowl). Cover with clingfilm and set aside to rise for 1 to 2 hours until doubled. In warm climates, this dough may double in less than an hour so keep an eye on it.
After the dough has doubled in size, remove the clingfilm and give the dough a light punch to deflate it. Split it into two, roll each half into a ball and place in two individual, lightly greased bowls, covering them with clingflim. Let the dough balls rest at least 20 minutes. If you don't plan to make two pizzas at once, place the second dough ball (without resting for 20 mins) into a ziplock bag and press all the air out. Freeze for 3 months, and thaw overnight before using and at room temp for 30 minutes before baking.
Preheat the oven to 250 C.
Lightly flour a 12" non-stick pizza plate, or place a large piece of non-stick baking paper on the kitchen counter. Place the dough ball on it and flatten and stretch it with your hands to create a 12" pizza, but it doesn't have to be a precise circle! If using baking paper, slide it onto a tray after flattening the dough. It is important to really flatten that dough so the base isn't too thick after baking.
Brush a teaspoon of olive oil onto the crust to prevent the topping from making it soggy.
Lift about half an inch of the edge of the dough to form a crust all around. Press with your fingers to seal it onto the base so that it keeps its shape while baking.
Spread 3/4 cup of pizza sauce onto the base. Then transfer to the oven and bake for 10 minutes. Take the pizza out, and sprinkle 3/4 cup cheese all over it. Place it back in the oven and bake for 10 to 15 minutes more until the cheese has melted and browned slightly, the crust is crispy and the smell is unbelievable!
Top the pizza with fresh basil leaves, slice and serve hot! Leftover slices can be refrigerated for 2 to 3 days. Repeat with the second half of the dough. Happy pizza making!

Notes

*Cook time is per pizza. Prep time does not include rise time.

*I used Barilla Basilico pasta sauce here, on a whim because it had no preservatives and seemed as authentic as possible. It was delicious and I highly recommend it! If you want to make a homemade sauce, canned Italian tomatoes are recommended. Simply blend the contents of one 400 gm can in a food processor along with 2 to 3 garlic cloves, 1/4 cup basil leaves, salt and pepper to taste. Blend till as smooth as you like, and strain once to get rid of extra liquid that makes the crust soggy. It's a close approximation of the readymade sauce. If you plan to use Indian tomatoes, know that the flavour isn't quite the same even though the same will be delicious! You'll need 3 to 4 of these tomatoes, with the seeds and excess juice removed, and the other ingredients remain the same.

*You can also use fresh buffalo mozzarella here instead of shredding a mozzarella block, but personally, I prefer the fresh one in salads and shredded one for pizzas because it gets more melty!

*Pizza dough from Sally’s Baking Addiction

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