Make the dough

1. Start this on the counter in the morning on a day you’ll be home.  This dough almost thrives on neglect, yet it is best if you can eyeball it to check the dough’s progress periodically.
2. Stir the flour, yeast, and water in a medium size bowl.  Knead the dough together by folding it over on itself a few times just to incorporate all of the flour.  Cover the dough.
3. Set the dough aside until it doubles in size and starts to get bubbly.  This will take about 4 hours in a 70 degree kitchen.
4. Pour the olive oil and sprinkle on the salt on the active, bubbly dough.  Squish the oil into the dough with your hands, folding the dough over on itself a few times to incorporate it.  It’s okay if there’s a little oil on the surface of the dough.
5. Cover the dough and let it sit for another 2-4 hours.  This will give the yeast a little more time to work and rise at room temperature.  After that time, you’ll notice large bubbles on the surface of your dough.
6. Cover the dough well, and then place the dough in the refrigerator at least overnight, and up to 2 days.

Preheating the oven

1. Preheat your oven to its highest setting (hopefully 500F) for about 30 minutes, with a pizza stone if you have one.  Be sure the pizza stone is placed on the rack height closest to the top of the oven.  If you don’t have one, place an overturned sheet tray in the oven to preheat in the place of a stone.
2. After 30 minutes, turn the broiler on for an additional 20 minutes.  Once the broiler has been on, turn your oven back on to its original highest setting.  The broiler adds some additional heat, letting the stone pick up some more heat.  If you want more color on your crust later, you can also turn the broiler on later in the baking process.  After this, you can choose if you want to bake your pizza in a sheet tray (easier!) or freeform directly on the stone (more advanced).

Par-baking method on sheet trays (easy)

1. When the oven is close to being preheated, divide your dough into 2 pieces.
2. Pour a good drizzle of olive oil on 2 sheet trays, brushing the oil into all corners of each tray.
3. Pat out a portion of the dough in the center of one of the trays.  Do the same on the second tray.  Stretch the dough into the 1^st tray.  When it resists and starts springing back, work on the 2^nd tray.  By going back and forth between the two trays, stretching the dough a little at a time, you’ll allow the dough to rest enough that it will relax enough to stretch further.  After a few minutes, the dough should be stretched into 2 even crusts that fit the bottom of both your sheet trays.  Cover them with kitchen towels while the oven finishes preheating.
4. Place the first tray onto the hot stone.  Bake for about 7 minutes, until the dough holds its shape and you can pull it out of the sheet tray easily.
5. Remove the crust from the sheet tray onto either an overturned sheet tray or a pizza peel.  Add your toppings to the par-baked crust.  Slide the pizza back onto the hot stone and bake until the cheese is hot and bubbly.  In my oven, this will take about 5-6 more minutes, but it may take less or more in your oven.
6. If you want a little more color on your crust or cheese, turn the broiler back until you get the color you want.

Baking without a sheet tray (requires more practice)

1. Preheat the oven as outlined above.
2. When you’re ready to bake, divide the dough into 2 pieces or more, depending on how big you want your pizzas.  Pat the dough out into a rough circle on a lightly floured surface.  Gently stretch the dough into a larger circle about 1/4″ thick.
3. Place the dough onto a pizza peel or an overturned sheet tray that’s been generously sprinkled with semolina or cornmeal.  Do a little sliding test, making sure that the dough isn’t sticking to the peel/tray.
4. Add the toppings straight onto the dough.  Slide the dough onto the hot stone.  Have some tongs on hand if you didn’t hit the target well.  Quickly and safely push the dough onto the stone.
5. Bake the pizza until the bottom is well browned and crisp.  Broil the top for more color if you’d like.