Place the flour, salt, and yeast in a food processor
fitted with the metal blade.
With the machine running, pour in all but 2
tablespoons of the water through the feed tube.Process for 30 seconds.Stop the machine and if the dough seems
too dry, add the remaining water and process another 15 seconds for a
total of 45 seconds.
Stop the machine and take the temperature of the
dough with an instant-read thermometer, which should read between 75°F and 80°F.If the
temperature is lower than 75°F,
process the dough for an additional 5 seconds, up to twice more, until it
reaches the desired temperature.If
the temperature is higher than 80°F,
remove the thermometer, scrape the dough into an ungreased
bowl, and refrigerate for 5 to 10 minutes.Check the temperature after 5 minutes; it should be 80°F or cooler by that time.
Remove the dough from the processor (assuming you
haven’t already) and place it in a large ungreased
bowl, and cover with plastic wrap.Allow the dough to ferment for 2½ to 3 hours at room temperature of 70°F to 72°F.It will not double at
this point, but will increase in volume somewhat.
Place the
bowl of dough in the refrigerator and retard for at least 4 hours or up to
36 hours.
To form the
dough, remove from the refrigerator and cut into thirds or quarters.On a lightly floured work surface, using
the palms of your hands flatten the dough to a thickness of about ½
inch.Move the dough to a
generously floured baking sheet and loosely cover with plastic wrap.Allow to come to room temperature.This should take 30 minutes or so.
Shape the
dough into a pizza on a generously floured work surface.Use corn meal on the pizza peel to
prevent the dough from sticking.
Bake in a
500°F oven (pre-heat at least 1 hour before baking, preferably with a
pizza stone in the oven).