Potato-Based Pizza or Focaccia Dough Recipe

This recipe is enough for 2 - 9" pizzas or focaccias

Ingredients:

8 ounces - Potatoes, preferably yellow Finnish
1 1/4 teaspoons - Active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons - Warm water (105 -115°F)
3 3/4 cups - Durum flour or unbleached all-purpose flour (If using unbleached flour, reduce water by 2 tablespoons).
2 teaspoons - Sea salt

Preparation:

About 20 minutes before you are ready to make the dough, peel the potatoes and boil them until tender, drain, and mash or press them, through a ricer. Use the potatoes while they are still warm but not so hot as to kill the yeast; they should be about the same temperature as the yeast water.

Stir the yeast into the warm water in a large mixing bowl. Add the flour, mashed potatoes, and salt in two additions and mix until the dough comes together. If you are making this by hand, knead the dough for 10 minutes until the dough is velvety, firm and slightly sticky. You may want to spread 1 to 2 tablespoons of flour on the board to reduce the stickiness.

FIRST RISE
Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and leave to rise until doubled, about 1 1/2 hours.

SHAPING AND SECOND RISE
Divide the dough in half on a lightly floured surface, and shape each into a ball. Place each ball into a well-oiled 9-inch round baking pan, and stretch the dough toward the edges. Cover with a damp towel, let sit for ten minutes, and then stretch a bit farther to the edges. Cover again and leave until doubled, about 45 minutes.

BAKING
Preheat the over to 400°F. Just before you are ready to bake, dimple to dough with your fingertips. Add toppings of your choice. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until golden. Remove from pans and let cool on racks.