This is a simple and delicious recipe for spelt pizza dough. Pizza makes our shortlist for comfort foods, or perhaps the shortlist in general. Unfortunately, being such a crusty caloric cornucopia, pizza is often relegated to an occasional indulgence. That’s probably a good idea. But if you do indulge, give this spelt flour pizza dough recipe a try, and you can feel (slightly) better knowing that the nutritious, whole-grain spelt flour makes it all ok.
Spelt Flour Pizza Dough
For those who are sensitive to gluten, this recipe may be of particular interest to you as your body may tolerate this spelt flour pizza crust version better than the usual high-gluten, refined wheat flour that goes into the typical pizza crust.
It’s true: some things you just cannot replicate. The facsimile always comes out a bit fuzzy. Luckily, this spelt flour pizza tastes like a proper pizza crust. That said, since the spelt flour is milled from whole spelt grains, the crust will not be as chewy or stretchy as typical crusts. This more brittle consistency is part of why spelt is easier to digest.
The proteins in spelt, particularly gluten, are more fragile and tend to break down when kneaded as opposed to traditional wheat that stiffens when kneaded, resulting in a more elastic dough. Despite the slightly less chewy texture, this spelt pizza dough crust is delightful. Give it a try!
Ingredients for spelt pizza dough
Spelt pizza dough ingredients
- 2 cups spelt flour
- ¾ cup warm water
- 1 pkg dry active yeast (1/4 oz, 7g, approx. 2 ¼ tsp)
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp honey
- 2 tsp salt
Spelt pizza dough ingredients
Directions
In a large mixing bowl, pour ¾ cup warm (110-115F) water; add yeast and let stand until a layer of foam builds, about 5 minutes.
Gently whisk honey, oil, and salt into yeast mixture. Gradually add spelt flour and stir until dough forms. Dough should be slightly sticky but well formed.
Place dough ball into a bowl lightly oiled with olive oil, rub light layer of oil over the dough and cover with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place, away from direct light and drafts.
Let rest until spelt dough has doubled in bulk, usually around one hour. On a lightly floured surface, punch down dough and gently knead a few turns. Hand form onto baking sheet or pre-heated pizza stone that has been prepared with a light dusting of cornmeal or flour and you are ready to add your toppings and bake.
Bake at 425 to 450 for 12-15 minutes, until crust has browned.
Tips
After yeast has risen you can divide the spelt dough into smaller portions for multiple pizzas. The dough can be stored in the refrigerator overnight – or even frozen, but will require time for the yeast to re-activate prior to baking.
To avoid a soggy crust on those topping-heavy combinations, brush the crust with olive oil and pre-bake for 2-3 minutes then remove from oven, add toppings and continue baking.
When using a pizza stone, as we have here, the improved heat transfer gives the pizza a crispy outer crust without over cooking or drying out the middle, which can be an issue when baking at high temperatures. Want more information about spelt? Read our post What is spelt.