Sourdough Einkorn Pizza Crust

Pizza made with easily digestible heirloom grains plus some probiotics?  Yes, please!  Pizza is my absolute favorite food.  It has been my favorite since I can remember and living in Italy for five years only served to intensify my love of this food. My kids and husband love pizza too which makes our weekly pizza night something we all look forward to.  Over the years, I have developed a recipe for a sourdough einkorn pizza crust that tastes like the hand-crafted pizzas from Italy.  I wanted the texture of the crust to be chewy and yet a bit crunchy.  This recipe achieves both of those demands.  The added bonus is that this sourdough einkorn pizza crust is healthy and can be loaded with probiotics too.  

The argument has been made that the lactobacillus in the bread dough will release spores when it is in danger of dying.  These spores can survive even in incredibly inhospitable environments like the high heat of the oven.  The theory states that when the environment becomes more ideal, these spores “hatch” and create their own colony of beneficial bacteria.  This could explain how sourdough does not readily mold and how it can continue to sour as it sits out at room temperature (source).  And even if it isn’t full of probiotics, I am going to share my favorite crazy topping that will ensure you get some probiotics into the meal!

Get all of the tools you need to start working with sourdough. 

Sourdough Einkorn Pizza Crust Recipe Notes

A recipe for this crust is located below; however, I have some notes to give you first!  These are especially important if you are not accustomed to working with einkorn flour.

• It is important to note that this recipe has been designed for einkorn wheat flour and it may not work as well with other types. Einkorn is unique in its profile and I find that it does best with a wet dough that is not kneaded much at all.

This picture illustrates the consistency of the dough as well as how much olive oil I use. It isn’t necessary to use the olive oil at all, but I feel like it makes it even better!

• Ideally, you will have a kitchen scale as Einkorn flour is easiest to work with if you have more exact measurements
• Even though it is sourdough, typically the “sour” flavor is not even noticeable. Instead, the true flavor of the einkorn wheat shines through. This recipe calls for the commercially ground Einkorn flour. I opted for the commercially ground as it has had some of the bran removed. Home ground flour does not give this dough the typical chewy crust that we are accustomed to with pizza. If you do not wish to use commercially ground einkorn, simply substitute home ground using the gram weight.

Should be made from starter which has been fed in the last 12 hours. This is an example of the bubbles I usually see in my active starter.

Souring time—varies based on room temperature.  Because there is so little starter used in this recipe, it typically takes a minimum of 4 hours at a warmer temperature to get a good rise in the dough.  For an even more developed flavor, try souring for longer or even overnight in the refrigerator.

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Sourdough Einkorn Pizza Crust

¼ cup starter (80 grams)
6 cups commercially ground einkorn flour (750 grams)
2 cups water
2 teaspoons of salt
Olive oil for greasing the bowl and dough

1. Select your mixing bowl (either a simple bowl or an electric mixing bowl) and pour in the 2 cups of water. Next measure/weigh flour and starter into the bowl. Add salt to the flour mixture and then mix. Mix/knead until the dough forms a rough ball. The dough will still be sticky, but not so sticky that it doesn’t come together into a ball. Let the dough ball rest for a few minutes and mix/knead one more time (approximately 1 min).
2. Place or scrape dough into a well-oiled bowl. Turn the dough to make sure it is all covered with oil. This oil will help to make the crust nice and crispy when baking. Cover the dough and let it rise in a warm place for approximately 4 to 8 hours. The time that it rests will depend on the temperature in your house. In the summer, it only takes 4 hours for my dough to proof whereas, during the cooler months, it takes 8 hours. If you let it rise too long, it will be harder to work with as it will be very stretchy and break apart.
3. Heat oven to the highest temperature possible (500 or 550 degrees) and place a pizza stone (or two) into the oven and allow them to heat up for at least 30 minutes. It is also possible to use a stone-wear baking sheet or even just a regular baking sheet for your pizza.
4. There are several options for getting your pizza onto the baking sheet. Unlike regular wheat flour, the gluten in einkorn is much more fragile and it is not easy to work with especially since the dough is also very sticky.
5. Option 1--Flour the work surface well with commercially ground Einkorn flour. Divide the dough into portions based on the size of pizza you want to make or just tear off portions of the dough as needed to make each pizza. Do not try to knead the dough again at this point. Instead, attempt to press it out without totally deflating the dough. Because einkorn is not easy to work with, I highly recommend making smaller size pizzas.
6. Gently flatten and press out the dough on your floured work surface. After gently flattening your dough into a small circle, take your hot pizza stone or pan out of the oven. Quickly transfer your pizza dough to the stone and very carefully continue to spread it out on the stone. Please be careful with your hands as the stone is incredibly hot! Spread sauce on the dough, sprinkle with cheese and toppings and then bake until nice and crispy. The cooking time will vary based on how hot the oven and stone are. Check the pizza often until you are accustomed to how long it takes to bake.
7. Take your pizza out of the oven and repeat the process with the remaining dough.
8. Option 2--Use plenty of olive oil in the bowl, and make sure your hands are also well greased. Take the hot stone or baking dish out of the oven. Tear off a piece of the dough and start to stretch it out into the shape of a pizza. Do not try to knead the dough again at this point. Instead, place it carefully on the hot baking pan/stone and attempt to press it out without totally deflating the dough. Because einkorn is not easy to work with, I highly recommend making smaller size pizzas. Please be careful with your hands as the stone is incredibly hot!
9. Spread sauce on the dough, sprinkle with cheese and toppings and then bake until nice and crispy. The cooking time will vary based on how hot the oven and stone are. Check the pizza often until you are accustomed to how long it takes to bake.
10. Take your pizza out of the oven and repeat the process with the remaining dough.
11. Option 3--Instead of risking your hands with the hot baking pan or stone, use a very well floured pizza peel to transfer the completed/topped pizza to a stone in the oven. Word of warning, it is not always easy to get the pizza off of the peel.
12. The cooking time will vary based on how hot the oven and stone are. Check the pizza often until you are accustomed to how long it takes to bake.
13. Take your pizza out of the oven and repeat the process with the remaining dough.

Sourdough Einkorn Pizza Sauce and Toppings

Years ago I thought that pizza sauce required something other than a basic tomato/basil mixture.  After all, the grocery store sold pizza sauce in a jar!  After living in Italy, I realized how truly simple the Italians keep their pizza and that this simplicity is what allows all of the flavors to combine in perfection.

For my sauce, I use either one jar of Bionaturae strained tomatoes with one jar of Bionaturae tomato paste or Jovial crushed tomatoes (or any other crushed/strained tomatoes in a glass jar)  I simply add basil and salt to taste and cook it down a bit.   You can always add garlic to this sauce too, but we prefer the simple basil sauce.  Raw milk mozzarella is our favorite cheese, and fresh mozzarella is amazing too.

Want to make absolutely sure your sourdough einkorn pizza is a probiotic?  Add sauerkraut!  Yes, you read that correctly...sauerkraut!  As a kid growing up in Iowa, my favorite pizza place actually had a veggie pizza with sauerkraut topping.  It was my absolute favorite!  I have been able to replicate this with raw homemade sauerkraut. I actually eat it on my pizza every week and while my husband, at first, thought it was going to ruin his pizza, he has now grown to love it too!  My kids have all grown up with it so they love it and will actually ask for it as a topping! Give it a try and see how great it actually is!

Interested in more recipes like our sourdough einkorn pizza crust?  If you need more help with meal planning make sure to check out this post for great tips and this one for how to save money with a meal plan.