Lievito Madre Pizza Dough

FEEDING THE LIEVITO MADRE

1. Remove the Starter from the fridge, let it sit at room temperature for about an hour or two, then remove the top part of the dough which tends to be dry and or crusty, knead a couple of times to combine, then keep 150 grams of the dough (discard anything over the 150 grams, at this point you can make something using the discard), place the dough in a bowl and add the flour and water, combine with a fork.Then move to a flat surface and knead to form a compact dough, make a cross. From here there are two different ways to let it rise. 1. Place all the starter in a bowl, and let rest in a warm draft free area for about 4-6 hours, until doubled, if it doesn't double in size then refresh again using the same instructions as above. Then remove the amount needed for the recipe and the remaining, form into a ball, make a cross and place back in the jar and refrigerate. Or 2. You can divide the starter after you have fed it, the recipe starter you can place in a bowl, and the remaining in the jar, both will be covered and placed in a draft free area for about 4-6 hours, the bowl starter will be used for the recipe and the jar starter will be refrigerated. You decide which is easier for you.

FOR THE PIZZA DOUGH

1. Once the starter is ready, place the recipe starter (broken into pieces) in a stand up mixer, add the water and honey. With the flat beater combine until it has a milky constituency and all is combined.Then add the flour, and with the dough hook knead for about a minute then add the salt, continue to knead for 5 minutes.Move to a flat surface, form into a ball and place in a lightly oiled bowl, rolling the dough to lightly coat with oil, cover the bowl and let rise in a warm draft free area for 4 hours.
2. Remove the dough from the bowl and fold the dough a 4 times. Place the dough* again in the bowl, cover and let rise a second time for 4 hours.
3. Pre-heat oven to 425F (220C). Lightly oil a large (9x13 inch / 24x34 cm) or 2 small cookie sheets.
4. Place the dough on the prepared cookie sheet, let it sit for about 10-15 minutes (relaxing the dough makes it easier to stretch) then shape the dough into the desired pizza shape. Add your favourite toppings and bake for about 10-15 minutes, when the pizza is ready, top with shredded mozzarella cheese and bake for a couple of minutes or until the cheese has melted.

*If you prefer to make 2 pizzas then divide the dough in half and form into 2 balls for the 2nd rise. I get one large pizza with a thicker crust. So you could have 2 medium thin crust pizzas if you divide it in two parts.