---------- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.05
 
      Title: Pizza Dough Technique
 Categories: Bread machi, Breads, Internation, Pizza and c
      Yield: 1 servings
 
           *****
 
  Recipe by: Robert Reichel
  I worked in a pizzaria in New York during High School, and this is how we
  did
  it there.  I make pizza about once a month.
  
  What usually messes people up is that their dough is not round to begin
  with,
  and is not of uniform density throughout.  If the dough is not uniformly
  dense,
  you end up with it stretching easier in some directions than others, and
  you
  end up with a lot of holes and thin spots.  Not good.
  
  The key to success is a procedure called (amazingly enough) "rounding" the
  dough.  I do this after the first rise, when I divide my large dough up
  into
  two individual doughs (my pizzas are always born in pairs, it's easier
  that way
  and you have a backup in case you mess one up).
  
  So you take your dough out of its warm place and dump it on the counter
  and pat
  off all the excess olive oil.  It will have a rough texture from the
  gasses
  that have built up, and it will be puffy.  Punch it down on the counter to
  get
  all the gas out of it, and divide it in half.  Use a scale, and if one is
  too
  big, just cut a little piece off and jam it into the cut part of the other
  piece.  Your goal is to try to keep the outside surface of the dough
  intact and
  smooth, so you don't want to stick random pieces of dough to it.
  
  Push the dough down on the counter and incorporate any little pieces
  you've
  glued on to bring it up to weight.  Then, keeping the outside surface up
  at all
  times, gently fold the dough over on itself in a downward direction.
  Pretend
  your stroking the top of an upright mushroom, with the heel of your hand
  at the
  very top and your fingers pointing down.  As you stroke, the gluten sheet
  at
  the top will stretch and relax.  Curve the stuff that comes down with your
  fingers like you're shoving it up into the base of the mushroom.  Rotate
  45
  degrees and repeat, being careful not to tear the gluten sheet.  So it's
  pull/shove/rotate/pull.
  
  Once you've gone around a few times and the dough is a nice tight little
  ball,
  scrunch the bottom together into a sort of nipple shape, so that it holds
  together.  If it doesn't hold together, your dough is too oily, pat some
  off
  and try again.
  
  What you should end up with is a nice firm ball of dough with a round top
  and a
  slightly flat bottom that doesn't unravel when you put it on the counter.
  Let
  it sit for a couple of minutes, and then oil a small bowl, plop the dough
  top
  down into the bowl so the top gets oily, then flip it over so the bottom
  gets oily, and then with the flat part of your fingers push the dough ball
  down
  into the bottom of the bowl so it's like a pancake.  Cover with saran wrap
  and
  allow to rise.
  
  By the way, the only cookbook I've seen that describes this procedure well
  is
  "The Italian Baker" by Carol Field.  Excellent book, highly recommended.
  
  When you're ready to make the 'za, dump the dough out onto a floured
  surface
  and pat off the olive oil.  Push it down into a pancake and flour both
  sides.
  It should be perfectly round at this point.  The trick is to keep it that
  way.
  
  Push it down with the flat of your hand like the hands of a clock, keeping
  it
  round as you go in circles.  It will spread out as much as it can this
  way, and
  should remain circular if your surface is will floured (don't be afraid of
  too
  much flour at this point, you can always bang it off later).
  
  Cup your left hand around the edge of the dough so that your little finger
  is
  parallel to the edge, and with the fingertips of your right hand push down
  into
  the edge making a trench about 1/2" from the edge.  This will be your
  crust.
  Go all the way around as evenly as possible.
  
  Pick the dough up by this trench and put your fists under the dough so
  that
  it's hanging on the knuckles of the back of your hands.  Pull you hands
 
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