Food Recipes Dinner Pizza & Calzones Perfect Pizza Margherita 3.7 (6) 8 Reviews Letting the dough rest in the refrigerator overnight results in a chewy crust with a slight tang. It can sit for up to three days, which adds even more texture and flavor complexity. By Grace Parisi Grace Parisi Grace Parisi a former senior test kitchen editor for Food & Wine, where she wrote several successful monthly columns: Food & Wine Handbook, Tasting & Testing, Flavor of the Month, Power Pantry, and Chefs Recipes Made Easy. Parisi has also been published in McCall’s, Redbook, and The New York Times, has written five hit cookbooks, and has appeared numerous times on national television. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Updated on November 5, 2022 Rate PRINT Share Trending Videos Close this video player Photo: © James Baigrie Active Time: 45 mins Total Time: 10 hrs Yield: 4 (13-inch) pizzas Ingredients Dough 1 envelope active dry yeast 2 cups warm water (90°F to 105°F), divided ½ teaspoon sugar 4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting 2 ½ teaspoons kosher salt Extra-virgin olive oil Toppings 1 (14-ounce) can peeled whole San Marzano tomatoes, drained ½ teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided Coarse sea salt Freshly ground black pepper 2 pounds buffalo mozzarella, thinly sliced 32 large basil leaves, torn into pieces Directions In a large bowl, mix the yeast with 1/2 cup of the warm water and the sugar. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining 1 1/2 cups of warm water, flour, and kosher salt and stir until dough forms. Turn the dough out onto a well-floured work surface and knead, adding flour as necessary until a silky and soft dough forms. Use a pastry scraper to help knead the dough. Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl and brush all over with olive oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or for up to 3 days. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface; punch down and divide into 4 pieces. Form each piece into a ball. Rub each ball with oil and transfer to a baking sheet. Cover the balls loosely with plastic wrap and let rise in a draft-free place for 1 hour. Meanwhile, set a pizza stone in the oven and preheat the oven to 500°F, allowing at least 45 minutes for the stone to heat. Pass the tomatoes through a food mill set over a medium bowl or pulse them in a food processor until coarsely chopped. Stir in the oregano and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and season generously with salt and pepper. On a lightly floured surface, stretch one ball of dough into a 13-inch round; transfer to a floured pizza peel, adding flour where the dough sticks. Spread 1/4 cup of the tomato sauce over the dough to within 1 inch of the edge. Spread one-fourth of the cheese over the pizza and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of oil. Season with sea salt and pepper and slide the pizza onto the stone. Bake until the bottom is charred and the cheese is melted, about 8 minutes. Scatter one-fourth of the basil on top and let stand for 3 minutes before serving. Repeat with the remaining dough and toppings. Originally appeared: March 2007 Rate It Print