Ingredients
300g high grade flour
25g yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1 standard cup lukewarm water
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon olive oil
Method
Pour the flour on to the bench in a heap, make a hollow centre to form the “well” and add a level teaspoon of salt, sugar and olive oil. Crumble the yeast into a small cup of lukewarm water, pour it into the well a little at a time and start mixing. At the start the dough will be soft and sticky, but it will become stiffer and more elastic as you knead it.
Thump the dough hard against the table and press your wrists against it to make it smooth and even. When you have repeated this procedure many times, you will find that the dough comes away from your hands and the bench easily and now forms a ball. Cut a cross on the top and leave to rise in a warm corner of the bench covered with a clean tea towel.
Leave for about two hours, during which time the dough will double in size. At this point, after rising, the dough may be kneaded again for a few minutes and used immediately or frozen.
