Whisk the yeast and the flour together in a large bowl.
Add 1¼ cup of the water and combine roughly together with a sturdy wooden spoon. The dough will have a “ragged” look. Let it stand for about 1 minute for the flour to hydrate.
Add the rest of the water (½ cup) along with the salt and the oil.
Mix together until there are no visible streaks of flour.
Cover and leave at room temperature, in a draft-free area, for 1 hour.
Then, refrigerate the dough for 24 -36 hours.
When ready to use the dough, remove from the refrigerator, leave at room temperature for 1 hour.
After 1 hour, fold it over itself a few times and shape it into a ball.
Then place the ball of dough in a pizza pan that has been greased with about 1 teaspoon of butter followed by 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
Lightly oil the surface of the dough and allow it to rest for 2 hours. After this waiting period, the dough should easily stretch out.
With lightly oiled fingertips, begin to push and gently poke at the dough, stretching it as you go along (I have a small bowl filled with about 1 teaspoon of oil). Remember to dip your fingers in the olive oil as you are “pushing” the dough into place.
When you are finished stretching the dough, the top will have a very thin layer of oil.
This healthy pizza dough is now ready for your favorite toppings.
Notes
Tips
Use a scale to weigh the whole wheat flour.
Add water in a few additions. This allows the flour to slowly hydrate.
Allow 24 hours for the yeast to work properly. Do not skip this step as this develops the best flavors.
These ingredients make 1 large pizza (15-16 inches); 2 small pizzas (10- 12 inch) or 1 rectangular pizza (10 x 15 inches).Please keep in mind that the nutritional information provided below is just a rough estimate and variations can occur depending on the specific ingredients used.