Thin Crust Pizza Dough

Yield:1 14-inch pizza

We love home-made pizza, so much so that we rarely go out for pizza anymore. My favorite pizza crust is a part-wheat thin crust pizza dough that comes from a old Cuisinart magazine publication. I jazzed it up a bit by adding some of my favorite Penzey's pizza seasoning and some grated parmesan to the dough, but the dough is good even without those additions. One of the great things about this dough is that it's mixed together in the food processor in about 15 minutes, and 10 of those minutes are just proofing yeast. Once the dough is formed, it can be either used immediately (no additional rising necessary!) or it can be placed in the refrigerator in a zip-top bag for up to 24 hours for better flavor and convenience. This flexibility allows me to have pizza on my timetable! The dough makes one 14-inch crust but can easily be doubled.

1 packaged dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp) 1 tsp sugar 1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp warm water (105° to 115°F) 1 cup plus 2 tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour 1/2 tsp Penzey's pizza seasoning (optional) 2 tbsp freshly grated parmesan cheese (optional) 3/4 tsp salt 2 tsp olive oil 1 1/2 tbsp white or yellow cornmeal for pan vegetable oil for pan

1. Stir the yeast and sugar into the warm water and let it stand for 10 minutes.

2. With the metal blade in place, put the flours, salt, cheese and pizza seasoning into the food processor bowl. Pulse the machine to combine and "sift" the dry ingredients. With the machine running, pour the yeast mixture through the feed rube and continue to process for about 45 seconds, until the dough pulls away from the side of the bowl. Add the oil through the feed tube and process for 60 seconds more. If the dough sticks to the side of the bowl, add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, processing for 10 seconds after each addition, until the dough leaves the side of the bowl but remains soft.

3. The dough may be used directly from the food processor. The texture of the dough will improve and it will be easier to roll if it rests in the refrigerator for 1 hour or up to 24 hours, sealed in a lightly floured 1 gallon plastic bag.

4. To make pizza, preheat the oven to 425°F and grease a baking sheet lightly with vegetable oil and sprinkle it with cornmeal to prevent sticking. Spray your counter or flat surface with cooking oil. Roll the dough out on the greased counter into a 14 inch circle. Transfer to the baking pan and roll the edges to create a raised edge crust. Add your favorite sauce, toppings and cheese and bake for 15-20 minutes.