Whole Wheat Dough

Whole Wheat Dough

1 Tbls. sugar or honey
1 1/4 cups warm water (110 degrees)
1 pack (1/4 ounce) dry yeast
1 1/4 cups white flour
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup olive oil

Dissolve sugar in water and add yeast. Stir gently until disssolved (about 1 minute). Let stand until the yeast foams slightly (about 5 minutes) to insure that the yeast is effective. Combine 3 cups of the flour and salt in a large bowl. Pour in the yeast mixture and oil if you are using it. Begin kneading the mixture, gradually adding enough of the remaining 1/4 cup flour so that the dough is no longer sticky.

Continue kneading until the dough is smooth and elastic (another 10−15 minutes by hand). Shape dough into a ball and put in an oiled bowl, turning the dough to coat it with the oil.

Let rise until doubled in bulk (45 minutes to 1−1/2 hours, depending on the yeast and the temperature). Punch down the dough and shape into 1 or 2 pieces. The entire recipe will make two 12 inch pizzas. Shape the dough either by hand or with a rolling pin, stretching out as necessary to achieve a thin dough. For a lighter crust, let the dough sit for a half hour after shaping before constructing pizza and baking.