Applesauce Pizza Crust

Happy Friday! One of our favorite weekend meals is (big surprise) pizza! Although I love our usual whole wheat dough, sometimes I'm looking for a crust that's a little different. I'll experiment with various flours and add-ins, trying to change the flavor and texture (while still ending up with usable dough!). I recently decided to try adding applesauce - I was hoping to add moisture and softness to the crust.  And I'd say I succeeded! We enjoyed this pizza al fresco, thanks to the amazing spring weather we're still having.

Unlike our regular whole-wheat pizza crust, this one is soft and somewhat sweet. The dough has a softer texture and can easily be hand-stretched to make the pizza skin (rather than rolled out). If the dough turns out too sweet for your taste, feel free to omit the honey. We both really liked the sweetness level - it's not super sweet at all, but the sweetness is definitely present.

Applesauce Pizza Crust
Yield: 2 medium pizza crusts

INGREDIENTS
1 cup white-whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups bread flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp italian seasoning (dried herbs)
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast (1 packet)
1 cup water
2 tbsp honey
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 tbsp olive oil

DIRECTIONS
1. Combine flours, salt, herbs, and yeast in a large mixing bowl, and stir to combine.
2. Create a well in the middle of the flour mixture, and pour in the wet ingredients. Stir to combine all ingredients, switching to your hands to incorporate all of the flour. This dough will remain slightly sticky, but add a bit more flour if it is too difficult to work with. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes.
3. Oil a large mixing bowl, place the dough in it, and flip once to coat with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled, about an hour.
4. Punch down the dough and let it rise to double again, about 30 minutes.  Preheat your oven to 450 degrees, with a pizza stone on the middle rack.
5. Divide dough into two pieces. Stretch and/or toss on your fists to make a pizza skin the size of your pizza stone.
6. Bake for about 8 minutes, popping any bubbles that form with a fork.
7. Remove the pizza crust from the oven, flip it over, and top as desired (sauce, cheese, you know the drill). Return to the oven and bake 10-12 minutes more, until the cheese is browning and the crust is golden.
8. Slice and enjoy!