Turkey Sausage & Pepperoni Pizza

I have recently starting making my own pizza.  It's been amazing, but I've been cheating with a Boboli pizza crust.  I decided it was time to concur my fear of yeast and give homemade pizza dough a try.  It was delicious, despite the thickness of it!

Whole Wheat Pizza Dough

Adapted from Allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon white sugar
• 1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, dissolve sugar in warm water. Sprinkle yeast over the top, and let stand for about 10 minutes, until foamy.
2. Stir the olive oil and salt into the yeast mixture, then mix in the whole wheat flour and 1 cup of the all-purpose flour until dough starts to come together. Tip dough out onto a surface floured with the remaining all-purpose flour, and knead until all of the flour has been absorbed, and the ball of dough becomes smooth, about 10 minutes. Place dough in an oiled bowl, and turn to coat the surface. Cover loosely with a towel, and let stand in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.  
3. When the dough is doubled, tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and divide into 2 pieces for 2 thin crust, or leave whole to make one thick crust. Form into a tight ball. Let rise for about 45 minutes, until doubled.
4. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Roll a ball of dough with a rolling pin until it will not stretch any further. Then, drape it over both of your fists, and gently pull the edges outward, while rotating the crust. When the circle has reached the desired size, place on a well oiled pizza pan. Top pizza with your favorite toppings, such as sauce, cheese, meats, or vegetables.
5. Bake for 16 to 20 minutes (depending on thickness) in the preheated oven, until the crust is crisp and golden at the edges, and cheese is melted on the top.

Notes:

·        I used a rapid rise yeast so it only had to sit over about 10 minutes with the towel over it. 

·        I had a hard time shaping it, so I left it as one large pizza crust.  It was very thick, like double dough.  Next time I will cut in half or just half the recipe to make enough for 1 thin crust.

·        Because I had a hard time forming it, when I finally got it, I placed it on a pizza board and covered it with a towel for a couple hours before I made it.

·        Once I was ready to make my pizza, I flipped it over and “folded” over a bit of the dough to form a crust.

·        Mine ended up cooking for closer to 25 minutes.

Topping your Pizza:

Ingredients:

• 2-4 tbsp of olive oil
• 1 tsp basil
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp garlic salt
• 1 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1 link of hot turkey sausage, casing removed
• 8 oz of turkey pepperoni
• 1 pound of part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded

Directions:

• Brush olive oil along the crust of your dough.  I actually brush it over the entire dough.  Top with basil, oregano, crushed red pepper and garlic salt.
• Top with 4 oz of pizza sauce, spread evenly
• Add 1 layer of turkey pepperoni
• Top with ½ the cheese you are using
• Remove casing from sausage, break into small pieces and place on pizza
• Add remaining cheese and top with pepperoni

Notes:

• I don’t measure any of my ingredients, I just eye ball it.
• This pizza is moderately spicy.  To add more kick, add additional layer of crushed red pepper to the top of the pizza.  To lessen spice, use regular turkey sausage and omit crushed red pepper.

WEIGHT WATCHERS POINTS VALUE: I cut this into ~20 squares.  1 square = 3 points