SomethingToDo2

Go on, admit it. You, like many Australians, have an underused bread maker tucked away somewhere in your kitchen. When you first laid eyes on it, it was love. Over time (a matter of only a few loaves for some), you grew tired of its demanding ways and put it somewhere out of sight and out of mind.

Well, it’s time to dust off this trusty appliance and discover the joys of homemade pizza dough — bread maker-style. All you need are a few ingredients that you probably already have at home and a bit of time to prepare.

Ingredients for two large pizzas (feeds about 4-6 — you can halve the dough ingredients if you don’t have as many mouths to feed; it works just fine):

  • 600g plain flour
  • 5g dry yeast
  • 3 teaspoons sea salt
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 3 teaspoons milk
  • 410mL water
  • Spare flour for kneading

1. Put all the ingredients into your bread maker and select a dough setting that takes about 45 minutes to complete. My bread maker actually has a pizza setting, which is a bit of good luck really.

2. While the dough mixes and rests in the bread maker, you can get all your toppings ready and pre-heat the oven to 220°C (200°C if your oven is fan forced). Also get two large, flat trays ready — any shape works — and line them with non-stick paper.

3. When the bread maker has finished with the dough, dust your hands with the spare flour, then tip the dough out onto a cutting board dusted with flour. This is a bit sticky, but good fun. Give the dough a quick knead, then divide it into two lumps. Transfer the dough lumps to your trays, pre-dusted with a bit of flour.

4. If you find yourself without a rolling pin (like me), you can use a wine or vodka bottle to roll out the dough to fit the trays. Put on your favourite toppings, then set the pizzas aside to rest for about 20 minutes.

5. Put the pizzas into the oven and in 15 minutes you have delicious, homemade pizza. Simple!

With thanks to Sydney’s Bourke Street Bakery for sharing this excellent pizza dough recipe (and many others) in their book Bourke Street Bakery: The ultimate baking companion. If any professional bakers are offended by this method … sorry!