Now I'm not as technically gifted or fancy as a lot of you folks but I do have my passions. Mostly Pizza and Beer.
was one of a number of trials on some new Americana dough recipes.
So I know it has been a bit but here is the recipe info for the Americana style dough I used above- * 22.5 oz unbleached high-gluten flour/bread flour (I like King Arthur's Bread Flour) * 3T sugar * 2t table salt * 2t IDY (Instant dry Yeast) * 1/4c vegetable oil * 1c milk * 3/4c water @105F Mix all ingredients in a large bowl with a metal spoon until all the flour is incorporated. (~ 4mins). Let rest for ~ 5 mins. Then mix for another 2-3mins. Until soft, sticky and passes the "windowpane test" Add more water or flour to adjust the dryness/stickyness of dough. Divide dough into 4 equal 10oz balls. Round the balls and lightly brush with oil. Place in freezer bags. Let rest for ~ 15mins then place in fridge overnight. Remove from fridge and let stand for ~ 1.5hrs to give the dough some better workability. The dough should be easy to work without being too plastic / blown.
Stretching / Dressing the dough- There are a lot of different ways to stretch out Americana dough like this. Its durable enough to take some relatively rough, inexperienced handling so it shouldn't be too bad. The only key is DO NOT ROLL IT! I can't stress that enough. You'll ruin the crumb. Tossing is perfect for this dough, though. Top it however you want! The one I pictured is a homemade tomato sauce, basil, tomato slices, and mozzarella (with a little bit of parm to bring out the flavor). A good trick is to mix some of the cheese down in with the sauce, really helps to get some carmelizing in the oven. Cook @ 550F (highest most ovens will go) for 5 mins on a pan. Transfer to the rack and cook for ~3 more to crisp up the bottom. The oven time and temp are incredibly crucial. People seem to be too afraid of turning it up and don't get a good enough oven spring out of the dough.
My notes after trying it- * Dough needed extra flour ~ 2T to get consistency I wanted. * Dough held up fine in fridge for up to 3 days (but were getting overblown by day 3 and would not push it much longer). I also froze 2 of the balls after the first night in the fridge to test how well they thawed. After thawing, they were a bit more blown than I would have liked but still workable. Needed a bit longer of time out at room temp to get proper elasticity and spring. * True to style the conicione had a nice crumb and crust was bready in general. Worked well overall and would be a good dough for heavier toppings.