Gennaro’s Perfect Pizza Recipe

Method
Preheat the oven to 220ºC/425ºF/gas 7. Put the flour and salt into a large bowl. Add the yeast to 325ml lukewarm water and stir to dissolve, then gradually add to the flour, mixing well until you get a rough dough – if it’s too sticky, add a little more flour. Shape the dough into a ball, then cover with a tea towel and leave to rest for 5 minutes. On a flour-dusted surface, knead the dough for 8 to 10 minutes, or until smooth and elastic. Split the dough into four equal-sized balls, knead each piece for a couple of minutes, then roll into balls and place on a clean semolina-dusted tray (if you don’t have semolina, it’s fine to use breadcrumbs too). Dust with a little more flour, cover with a damp tea towel and leave to rise in a warm place for around 2 hours, or until doubled in size.
On a flour-dusted surface, use your hands to stretch a ball of dough into a circle, roughly 35cm to 40cm in diameter – I try and get the dough to the thickness of a pancake, leaving the border slightly thicker. Repeat with the remaining dough, then sprinkle two large baking trays with the semolina and place the pizza bases on top.
Evenly spread the tomato sauce over each base – you don’t want to use too much as the pizza bases will get soggy. Drizzle with olive oil, grate over the Parmesan and tear the mozzarella and basil leaves on top. Place the pizza in the oven for 7 to 10 minutes, depending on how crispy you like them, then drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and eat straight away.