Wolfgang Puck transformed pizza in America; everyone wanted a taste of the interesting flavors he came up with.
Makes 8 individual pizzas or 2 twelve-inch pizzas
Pizza Dough:
1 tbsp. active dry yeast
lukewarm water
3 tbsp. granulated sugar
2 tbsp. sea salt
5½–6 cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing, if desired
Pizza Toppings:
1 cup tomato or pizza sauce
3 medium plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
16 oz. goat cheese, crumbled
1. Preheat the oven to 450°F.
2. To make the dough, dissolve the yeast in about ¼ cup water in a small bowl. Set aside and let bubble.
3. In a separate bowl, dissolve the sugar and salt in 2 cups of lukewarm water.
4. In another, large bowl, combine 3 cup of the flour and 1 cup of the lukewarm water mixture, stirring with a wooden spoon for a few minutes. Add the olive oil and mix well. Add the dissolved yeast mixture and stir for 1 minute. Add 2 more cups of the flour, mixing well, then add the remaining 1 cup of the water mixture.
5. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead until it is smooth and elastic. Cover with a tea towel and let rest for 10 to 15 minutes. Divide the dough into 8 portions for individual pizzas, or 2 for large pizzas.
6. Roll out the dough into 4½-inch rounds for small pizzas, or 12-inch rounds for large pizzas. Brush with olive oil if desired.
7. To top the pizzas: Spread the tomato sauce on the dough and sprinkle with the chopped tomatoes and crumbled cheese. Bake until the top is lightly browned and the crust is crisp, 10 to 12 minutes for small pizzas and 12 to 20 minutes for the large pizzas.
Tip: To make a crispier crust, bake your pizzas directly on a pizza stone that has been heated in the oven for 30 minutes prior to baking.
Spago Sunset, 1993.