Amy's Pizza Dough

Yield: 2 12-inch pizzas
Ingredients:

- 1 1/4 cups warm water, (105-115 degrees) Separated: use 1/4 cup first w/yeast then add 1 cup later
- 1 envelope active dry yeast, (.25 ounce) (2 1/4 tsp)
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 1/2 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons cornmeal
- 1 cup pizza sauce or spaghetti sauce
- toppings such as pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, olives, ham, peppers, etc.
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded

Directions:

1. Place 1/4 cup warm water in a large bowl. Sprinkle yeast over water; stir in sugar. Let stand 5 minutes. Add remaining water, oil, and salt. Stir in flour until dough pulls away from side of bowl.

2. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth, 8-10 minutes. Coat large bowl with cooking spray; place dough in bowl, turning to grease top. Cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let rise in warm place until almost double in size, about 45 minutes.

3. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Punch down dough. Coat two 12-inch pizza pans with cooking spray; sprinkle pans with cornmeal. (If using Pampered Chef pizza stone, omit cooking spray and just sprinkle with cornmeal.) Divide dough in half. Roll dough to fit prepared pans or stones. Press dough against edge to form rim. Bake crust for 10 minutes.

4. Remove crust from oven and top with pizza sauce or spaghetti sauce. Add the toppings of choice. Bake for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese and bake until cheese is melted, about 5-10 minutes longer.

5. Hint: The secret to rolling pizza dough is to let it rest for 10 minutes after it is about half the size needed. Then it will easily stretch the rest of the way.