Honey-Beer Pizza Dough

Some days when I’m at work, I sit at my desk and stare off into the distance (or the wall of my cube) and picture myself as a professional/full-time food blogger:  in this fantasy, I am home in my ‘imaginary’ kitchen, and the sun is shining on my brand new stainless steel appliances and granite countertops.  I am ready to try a new recipe, and I have all of my ingredients perfectly laid out on the island, each measured out in their own little bowls.  I take my time mixing and mashing and whisking, and retire to the living room to watch Barefoot Contessa while it’s cooking (because ya know, it’s ‘research’).   And then it’s ready! It looks like a picture from Bon Appetit, and tastes even better!  And the best part is that I have all the time in the world to photograph this masterpiece during the time of day when the natural light is the best and I can style my little head off for hours, because heck, it’s my job to do so.  What a life!

And then I hear – “Kate – Kate – how are those TPS reports comin’ along?”

Dammit.

In reality though (I don’t really work with TPS reports sillies), after rushing home from work to let Hairy out, I usually am still am missing about 5 of the ingredients that I need for the night’s recipe, and as summer is dwindling down, so is the amount of daylight, and it’s a race against the clock to try to get anything done in time to photograph it in ideal lighting.

What’s this tangent all about? Along with many delicious recipes that I have felt are worth sharing, tonight’s was one that lost the ‘natural light’ race, and instead of being shot in a beautiful beam of sun filtered through the window, it was shot in the soft glow of an IKEA lamp (ew).

But, this Honey-Beer Pizza Dough was too good not to share.  Adapted from Girl Versus Dough’s recipe (and by adapted, I mean adding a splash of honey) it was a flavorful base for your favorite pizza pie!

Honey-Beer Pizza Dough
*Adapted from Girl Versus Dough

INGREDIENTS
(the original recipe was 2x this amt, yielding 2 crusts – the below measurements will yield 1 crust – sorry folks, couldn’t bring myself to tackle Market Basket on a Tuesday night)

2 cups all-purpose bread  flour

1 & 1/4 tsp active dry yeast

1/2 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

1 tbsp olive oil

3/4 cup room-temperature beer
(the stronger the flavor, the better – I used Old Leg Humper Porter – yes, that is real)

1/2 tbsp. honey

1) Place all ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fixed with a paddle attachment and mixed until just combined. Replace paddle attachment with dough hook and knead dough until smooth and elastic, about 7 minutes (or knead by hand on a lightly floured countertop for about 10 minutes). Form dough into a ball, place in a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

2) Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Remove risen dough from bowl and punch down. Shape dough into a 10-12 inch round or 8-by-12 inch rectangle. Place onto pizza stone or parchment paper-lined baking sheet. For thin crust, bake pizza immediately. For medium to thick crust, let dough rest for about 30 minutes.

3) Add your toppings and bake for about 10 minutes (or until cheese has reached desired level of meltedness).

So at about 10 p.m. when this bad boy wrapped up, I sampled a sliver and the dough was so good. The porter added a ton of flavor I think I would even add more honey next time.  I was timid with it because I didn’t want it to be too sweet, but it could definitely use more.  I personally like that little hint of sweetness.

Tomorrow’s daydream: Martha comes over for lunch – and we talk recipes – and maybe some stories from the clink.