Meet Vince, Head of DITALIA and Expert Taster! Growing up Italian, Vince was able to experience firsthand the joys of the Italian cooking. He watched his father, Vincenzo, craft incredible meals from his childhood. He also watched him build the foundation of Ditalia, a flourishing business that prides itself on creating genuine relationships, working with high quality products, and crafting awesome memories.
Vince’s favorite Ditalia recipe is pizza, naturally.
Why I love Pizza….it is always a perfect canvas for exploration, flavors and creativity. There doesn’t have to be any rules. however, using high quality ingredients is always the best way to approach it.
There aren’t strict rules for this recipe, but the Di Piazza way is about simplicity and letting great ingredients shine. On Vince’s pizza, you’ll usually only find 2 – 4 toppings including the cheese. Sprinkle in some fig jam if you’re feeling adventurous.
Ingredients
Two Pizzas (10” - 12” in diameter)
250 grams 00 Chef Flour (about 2 cups)
1/4 cup warm water
1/2 cool water
1/4 tsp Active Dry Yeast
1 tsp Fine Sea Salt
1/2 tsp Granulated Sugar
Preparation
26 hours
Dissolve the yeast in warm water with the sugar. In a standing mixer bowl, add the cool water and dissolved yeast.
With the mixer on slow speed, using the paddle blade, add about 1/3 or so of the flour and mix (increasing the speed) for a minute or two, until a smooth “batter” forms. This helps to develop the gluten in the dough.
Add remaining flour and salt. Once the dough comes together, switch to a dough hook and use a slow/med speed to knead the dough for 8-10 minutes.
First Proofing - Form dough into a ball and transfer to a bowl lightly oiled with EVOO and cover with plastic wrap until rested and has slightly grown in size. (approx 1.5 hours) *Since very little yeast is used, the dough shouldn’t double in size (as is common for bread recipes).
Second Proofing - Remove dough from bowl and portion into two dough balls. Place on floured sheet pan, cover well with plastic wrap and a towel to make a tight seal, and refrigerate for 24 hours.
Remove dough balls from fridge 1.5 hours prior to making pizza to allow the dough to be more workable.
1 hour prior to making pizzas, preheat oven to max temperature
Roll out dough into two pizzas, 10” - 12” in diameter on baking stone or baking steel. Top with favorite sauce and toppings.
