Veggie Lovers Pizza

Ingredients

Pizza Dough
• 1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 1 cup lukewarm water
• 3 1/4 cups flour
• 1 TBS + 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 TBS salt

Toppings
• 14 oz can of pizza sauce
• 3/4 lb mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1/4 lb cheddar cheese, shredded
• 8 brown mushrooms, sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 1 can olives, drained and sliced

Instructions

Make the Dough
1. Dissolve the yeast completely in a large bowl by stirring it into 1/4 cup of the lukewarm water. Dissolve in 10 minutes or less. Once fully dissolved, add in 1 cup of the flour and mix thoroughly.
2. Continuing to stir, gradually add 1 TBS of olive oil, salt, 1/4 cup of lukewarm water, and 1 additional cup of flour. As you add the last of the lukewarm water (up to 1/2 cup) and flour (up to 1 1/4 cups), add them in small amounts, working them in gradually to get the right consistency – soft, but not sticky. *
3. Take the dough out of the bowl and place onto a clean work surface. Pick up and slap down on the counter several times until it has stretched out to be about 10 inches long. Fold the dough over itself towards you, and then push away using the heel of your palm. Fold again and push again. Rotate the dough one quarter turn and repeat, slapping it down on the work surface and kneading. Repeat this procedure for up to 10 minutes or until the dough feels soft and silky. Pat the dough into a rounded shape.
4. Coat the inside of a large mixing bowl with 1 tsp olive oil. Place the dough in the bowl and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Allow the dough to rest in a warm spot in the kitchen about 3 hours or until it has doubled in size.
5. Lightly coat pizza pan with olive oil. Divide the dough by 2. Wrap extra dough in plastic wrap and place in refrigerator if not using immediately. Using a rolling pin, roll dough out into a 14″ circle. Place dough onto pizza pan and pinch any holes in dough closed.

Make the Pizza
1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Spread pizza sauce over prepped dough evenly to taste, leaving about 1 inch of dough exposed around edge. Top with mozzarella cheese and cheddar cheese, sprinkling evenly over sauce. Top with the vegetables, spreading it all out as evenly as possible over the pizza.
3. Place pizza in preheated oven. Bake for 15 minutes, then rotate the pan. Check again after another 10-15 minutes. Cheese should be melted and the dough should be crisp and all lift up with lifted by the edge.
4. Allow to cool for at least 5 minutes before slicing.