Before I came to Ayurveda, I used to make traditional pizza bases that are fermented slowly, rising with yeast. It was a staple: the bubbles in the dough would be of true restaurant style, the deep flavour - delicious. I never thought this could ever compare to a yeast free quick recipes.
Having struggled with bloating, I learnt that Ayurveda does not recommend breads with yeast because they contribute to intestinal Candida overgrowth. On top of that, the slow fermentation process I admired so much, can contribute to problems related to extra heat, like headaches, irritability and high acidity.
So after a few experiments with this quick and easy fresh dough base, I could not believe that my whole family loved it so much. They don't mind the lack of big bubbles at all. On the contrary, they ask for this pizza more and more. This base is crunchy like a thin pizza crust.
This pizza is so delicious as it is, but feel free to use this simple recipe as a base. You can always add extra toppings for variety.
Simple Pizza with Nomato Sauce
Equipment
- stone pizza tray, optional
Ingredients
Base
- 3 cup wheat or spelt flour - I freshly mill 2 cups of grain on a fine setting
- 2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 or 1 1/4 tsp pink salt
- enough boiling water to make cottage cheese like consistency
- 1 1/2 tbsp coriander seed powder - optional
- 2 tsp celery seed powder - optional
- 2 tsp caraway seed powder - optional
Nomato Sauce (see notes)
Simple Toppings
- 2 cups fresh cheese (homemade is best or use fresh mozzarella or unaged goat's cheese) - recipe in the notes
- fresh basil leaves - to decorate
Instructions
Base
- Reserve 1/2 cup flour for rolling the dough out.
- Combine the base ingredients with a fork till you achieve a cottage cheese like consistency.Now using hands, bring the dough into a soft ball. It shouldn't be sticky or dry. Adjust with adding a touch of water, if it is too dry, or a little more flour, if too sticky.
- Cover for 20 minutes
Pizza
- Preheat one or two stone pizza trays (if using) in a 240C oven (464F) / 220 C Fan (428 F).
- Divide the dough into two parts.
- Using the extra flour you reserved, roll out each one of them into a pizza base.
- Keep them under a towel when not ready to go to the oven.
- Spread the Nomato Sauce, add the ricotta and return to the oven for about 5 minutes or until cooked. The pizza should neither be burnt, nor look wet.
- Garnish with freshly torn basil just before you serve.
