Basic Pizza Dough

Directions

1. 1
   Put yeast into the warm water and let it sit for five minutes. Let it dissolve and then stir it all up.
2. 2
   Add in the salt, olive oil, the 1/2 cup of cheese, and 1 1/2 cups of flour. Begin mixing until fully mixed and add up to another cup and a half of flour.
3. 3
   Knead by hand until smooth. You can also use a stand mixer. When the dough is smooth, spray a bowl with some cooking oil or olive oil and cover. Let rise about an hour. Punch down.
4. 4
   Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
5. 5
   One recipe makes two thin crust pizzas or one larger thicker crust pizza. When making a single pizza, cook longer.
6. 6
   Optional variations: This is also a good dough to make into breadsticks. Shape into breadsticks and sprinkle more Parmesan on top.
7. 7
   Add herbs typically used in Italian cooking like oregano and basil into the dough.
8. 8
   Brush melted butter along the crust before cooking.