Recipe: Home-made whole wheat pizza crust

Pizza is a favorite in our household, mainly because we have a 3 1/2 year old who would eat it every day should we indulge her; however, with the $3.99 delivery charge plus the greasy, high-caloric, sub-par taste of most delivery pizzas, we haven't been all that enthused to order lately.  So, I went on the hunt for a home-made pizza crust recipe and fell in-love with this one from AllRecipes.com.  It's a whole wheat crust that gets crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside, should you bake it just right (see my notes below)!

Recipe: Home-made whole wheat pizza crust

Ingredients

1 teaspoon white sugar
1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Directions

1. In a large bowl, dissolve sugar in warm water. Sprinkle yeast over the top, and let stand for about 10 minutes, until foamy.
2. Stir the olive oil and salt into the yeast mixture, then mix in the whole wheat flour and 1 cup of the all-purpose flour until dough starts to come together. Tip dough out onto a surface floured with the remaining all-purpose flour, and knead until all of the flour has been absorbed, and the ball of dough becomes smooth, about 10 minutes.  Note: I put the mixture into my stand mixer and used my dough-hook to kneed the dough (on low speed) for the 10 minutes. Place dough in an oiled bowl, and turn to coat the surface. Cover loosely with a towel, and let stand in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
3. When the dough is doubled, tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and divide into 2 pieces for 2 thin crust, or leave whole to make one thick crust. Form into a tight ball. Let rise for about 45 minutes, until doubled.
4. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Roll a ball of dough with a rolling pin until it will not stretch any further. Then, drape it over both of your fists, and gently pull the edges outward, while rotating the crust. When the circle has reached the desired size, place on a well oiled pizza pan.  Note: I oiled a cookie sheet.  Poke the dough all over with a fork and bake 10 minutes plain.  Then, top pizza with your favorite toppings, such as sauce, cheese, meats, or vegetables.
5. Bake for another 6-8 minutes (depending on thickness) in the preheated oven, until the crust is crisp and golden at the edges, and cheese is melted on the top. Note: Using a spatula, I slid the pizza off the cookie sheet and let it continue to bake right on the oven rack for these 6-8 minutes so that the crust would get nice and crispy. 

I most frequently use store-bought Boboli sauce, Canadian bacon, fresh pineapple, and a combination of provolone cheese and mozzarella cheese.  

To make a sausage, spinach and provolone pizza, thaw a box of frozen, chopped spinach and squeeze in a towel until no more liquid can be extracted.  Mix half the spinach with 1/2 cup of pizza sauce and spread on crust.  Brown 1/2lb of your favorite sausage in a pan, drain and then, sprinkle over pizza sauce.  Layer on slices (approximately 6) or shredded provolone cheese and bake according to step 5.