Homemade Pizza with Whole Wheat Crust

OOOOh-so delicious!

When I read this post that my good friend Angie had at A'lil Country Sugar

for whole wheat pizza crust, I knew it was going to be something I tried soon, especially since her family raved about it, and I hadn't made pizza at home for some time.

I invite you to check out Angie's post and recipe (psst - at the link above)

So I made it for our Valentine's Day dinner - just the 2 of us.  I made it into a heart-shaped (kinda) pizza crust....you get the idea anyway.

I also 'kicked it up a notch' by making a stuffed crust with string cheese around the outside edge, wrapped in the dough.  It was easy to do and made it tasty and cheesy-er. (ahem...healthier too)

There was a lot of dough.  Since we like thick crust, that's what we enjoyed. I pre-baked it for about 8 - 9 minutes before adding the sauce and toppings.  I think it would easily fill a larger cookie sheet, depending on how thick you prefer the crust.  

I also sprinkled some cornmeal on the greased pan prior to spreading the dough as we like the crunch and taste it adds to pizza.

This is what it looked like after pre-baking....

I spread canned pizza sauce on the crust, added some mozzarella cheese, then chopped canadian bacon, pineapple tidbits and black olives, then more shredded cheese. 

It was the perfect combination for our taste buds.

MMMM!  Just mouth-watering, don't you think?

It was very delicious and filling. This will definitely be something we enjoy again.

I made a few simple changes in the recipe... I'll share them within the recipe itself. 

Here ya go....

WHOLE WHEAT PIZZA CRUST

1 pkg. (scant 1 Tb.) active dry yeast

1-1/2 c. warm water (110 - 115 degrees)

2 Tbs. vegetable oil (I used canola)

1-1/4 c. whole wheat flour (I used 1 - I was running low)

2 Tbs. sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

1-3/4 to 2 c. all purpose flour (I used 2-1/4) 

Preheat oven to 350.

In large bowl, dissolve yeast in water; add oil. Combine whole wheat flour, sugar and salt; add to yeast mixture and stir until smooth. Stir in enough all-purpose flour to form a soft dough.  Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6 - 8 minutes.  Place in a greased bowl; turn once to grease top.  Cover and let rise in a warm place for 15 - 20 minutes (I let mine rise for 30 minutes on top of stove while oven is heating). Punch dough down.  Pat dough onto the bottom of a 14-inch pizza stone sprinkled lightly with Semolina flour. (I used cornmeal). Form an edge while pressing the dough.  Add the toppings of your choice and bake 30-35 minutes. When crust is golden brown, the pizza is done.

(Another change I made was to bake it for about 22 - 25 minutes at 375 - I was in a rush and it turned out fine.)

HAPPY PIZZA EATING!!!!!!!

This post has been linked to Miz Helen's Full Plate Thursday
Linked to Foodie Friday Made it on Monday Country Pot Luck #2
Ingredient Spotlight