Classic pizza margherita

Makes 6 pizzas For the pizza dough, you will need:

350g strong white flour (see note) 1 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons caster sugar 200ml cold water 1 x 7g sachet fast-acting yeast 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for brushing

For the tomato sauce, you will need:

450g ripe tomatoes, halved 3 cloves of garlic, unpeeled 5 tablespoons olive oil 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar Good pinch of caster sugar Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

You will also need:

Fine semolina or fine polenta, for dusting 250g grated or torn mozzarella Your choice of toppings (optional) A small handful of basil leaves, torn

Note:

If you’d prefer to make wholemeal pizza dough, pictured above, just replace half (175g) of the strong white flour with strong wholemeal flour 1 First, make the dough. Put the strong white flour, the salt and the caster sugar in a large bowl and mix them well. 2 Measure the cold water in a jug, then add the sachet of fast-acting yeast and the olive oil, and mix together. Make a well in the centre of the flour, salt and sugar mixture, then add the water, yeast and olive oil mixture, and mix together until you have a loose dough. 3 Transfer the dough from the bowl to a lightly floured work surface. Cover the dough with a clean tea towel, or the upturned bowl, and allow it to rest for five minutes. Then uncover the dough and knead it for 10 minutes, until it feels smooth and slightly springy — only use a tiny dusting of flour while kneading, if it is necessary. You can also knead the dough in an electric food mixer using the dough-hook attachment. 4 Once the dough is kneaded, let it sit again for a few minutes, covered with the tea towel or the upturned bowl.