Skinny Pizza Dough

How was Skinny Pizza Dough Created?

I first wrote this recipe in December of 2017, after I could not for the life of me get the viral Weight Watchers  “Two Ingredient Dough” to work out for me without having yogurt all over my hands, or having to add a shit ton more flour, which basically defeated the whole purpose!

With the addition of yeast and water, it’s a whole new ball game.  It feels like traditional pizza dough.  I talked about this recipe on social media for months on end (and I make pizza once or twice a week!) and it took hundreds of postings before people starting making it.

I think I saw my first post of someone making it in October 2018, and it’s been made thousands of times since then, which makes me so happy! 

How Do I Track Skinny Pizza Dough on WW?

CLICK HERE TO ADD SKINNY PIZZA DOUGH TO YOUR TRACKER.  This recipe is for 1 ounce of dough, so adjust as needed for however many ounces of dough that you use. For example, if I made a personal pizza with 5 ounces of dough, I need to track 5 “servings” since each serving is for 1 ounce.

Frequently Asked Questions about my Skinny Pizza Dough

This post has been updated several times as I try to include everything that people have asked over the years! I do see a lot of similar questions, so here are the answers. 

DO I NEED A BAKING STEEL?

While it’s not necessary, I do think it’s the best vessel for making restaurant quality pizza in your own home kitchen.  Andris FINALLY gave me a discount code!  Biz10 saves 10% at checkout – you can click their link here.  They are expensive, but I’ve had mine for over six years and I’ll have it until the day I die. 😂

Instead of a baking steel, you can also get a good and sturdy jelly roll pan (which is essentially a baking/cookie sheet with taller sides) – find one that can go to 450 degrees – and then you can preheat it like I do my baking steel and you’ll get a crispier crust. The magic in this is that the pizza will cook from both the top and bottom simultaneously, so the crust gets extra crispy.

No matter what you cook it on, please use parchment paper! It’s so much easier to build the pizza on the parchment paper than it is to carry the pizza in and out of the oven without.

In the below photo, I tried baking on a regular baking sheet at 425 for 15 minutes.  I pre-heated the baking sheet for 20 minutes before placing my pizza on the hot baking sheet, and I got a nice crispy crust! Plenty of people have said that their baking sheets can be preheated at 500 degrees, but start with 425 and see what works for you with your baking sheet and oven.  If it’s not crispy at 425 degrees, bump up the temp in 25 degree increments.

WHAT TYPE OF YEAST SHOULD I USE?   

There are two types of yeast – regular active dry and instant yeast (which can also be called fast-rising, rapid-rise, quick rise, or even bread machine yeast – depending on what brand you use).  These can be used interchangeably – the only advantage of using the instant yeast is that your dough will rise faster – perfect on those nights when you get home from work and you’re like “f*ck, I wanted pizza tonight!”  Whether you let the dough rest overnight or use instant yeast and enjoy it within 30 minutes, it will be delicious!

WHAT IF MY SKINNY PIZZA DOUGH DOESN’T RISE?

If your Skinny Pizza Dough doesn’t rise, chances are that your yeast is expired. The best way to make sure that your yeast is active is to proof the yeast.  To do this, simply take the 1/2 cup water in the recipe, add the 1 teaspoon of yeast with a pinch of sugar and mix until combined.  Let it sit for 10 minutes.  If it’s super foamy on top (i.e. the yeast doesn’t sink to the bottom) you are good to go!  Add the 2 cups of self-rising flour to a bowl, add the 1 teaspoon salt, mix with a fork, then add the water/yeast mixture and yogurt and mix until combined. If the yeast sinks to the bottom or the mixture doesn’t get foamy, I would recommend replacing your yeast.

Note: I always recommend for cost savings to purchase the jar of yeast over the packets. You will get many more servings of yeast from the jar than the packets, and it will still last a while in your fridge! 

I LIVE ALONE, CAN I HALVE THE RECIPE? 

Well, you could, but make the whole recipe!  It lasts in the fridge for 7 days, and actually gets better the longer it sits in the fridge.  By day 7, you’ll notice that the dough is a bit wet and really stinky, like in the best way possible – think sourdough bread stinky. You should toss it out if you see brown spots on the dough or it’s slimy.  Time to make a new batch!

WHAT TEMPERATURE SHOULD I COOK MY PIZZA? 

Here is my rule of thumb:

FOR THIN CRUST:  If you have a regular cookie sheet – bake at 425 for about 12 -15 minutes for a thin crust.  If you have a good jelly roll pan, bake at 450 for 9-11 minutes.  If you have a baking steel, bake at 500 degrees for 7-9 minutes – or until your desired doneness – I tend to like mine on the more well done side. 

FOR PAN OR DEEP DISH PIZZA:  you’ll want to bring the temperature down to 425 in increase the baking time to 20 minutes for pan pizza, and 30 minutes for deep dish.  I make my pan pizza in an 8 inch cast iron skillet.  I make my deep dish pizza in an 8 or 10 inch cake pan.

FOR DEEP DISH PIZZA:  You need to order the ingredients differently because of the longer baking process.  I use a cake pan and brush the pan with oil (you can check out my detailed post here)  you need to put the dough in the pan first, then put the cheese layer first, top with whatever else you are using (sausage, mushrooms, etc.) and then TOP with sauce.  You need to sauce farthest from the bottom of the dough so the dough is crisp, not soggy.

CAN YOU PROOF THE DOUGH IN AN INSTANT POT?

Yep!  My IG friend Rachel told me about this method.  Simply mix the ingredients in the instant pot (I usually double or triple the recipe in the instant pot) and use the yogurt setting.  It automatically sets a timer for 30 minutes, but I leave it in there for 3 hours.  If you have an older instant pot, you may have a “keep warm” setting.  Many people told me that they have used this method, but only for the 30 minutes, then turn the instant pot off and let it sit there for 30 minutes.  Simply dump the dough on your counter, add a bit of flour to bring together and store a ziplock bag.

I used my zero point marinara and sauteed mushrooms.

Then added baby spinach and two ounces of Trader Joe’s lite mozzarella cheese (2 points).

Baked it on my baking steel for 14 minutes.  The bottom crust was amazing and the lite mozzarella got super cheesy. One quarter of the dough recipe is 5 points, my toppings were free except for the cheese, making this pizza 7 smart points and totally filling.

Continue to Content

Skinny Pizza Dough

Yield: 4 individual pizzas

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Additional Time: 12 hours

Total Time: 12 hours 15 minutes

The ORIGINAL skinny pizza dough. Not just for pizza, great for naan, dumplings, pasta - the sky's the limit!

Print

Ingredients

• 2 cups self-rising flour
• 1/2 cup non-fat Greek yogurt
• 1 teaspoon yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup water

Instructions

1. In a bowl, mix the flour, salt and yeast together. Sir in the yogurt and mix until it starts to combine. Start with just shy of 1/2 cup of water, mixing until it comes together, adding a tablespoon of water at a time until it fully comes together.
2. Place the dough in the microwave, covered with a towel or saran wrap, to slow rise all day. Refrigerate at the end of the night.
3. On the day of baking, heat oven to 500 degrees. I use 5 ounces of dough for an individual pizza, but the dough is one point per ounce on all plans.
4. Roll out, top with desired toppings, and bake for 8-11 minutes, or until desired doneness.

Notes

If you are weirded out by leaving the dough in the microwave because of the yogurt, you can slow rise the dough in the fridge for 24 hours. I bake my pizza on a baking steel, if you don't have one, reduce the temperature of the oven to 450 and use a jelly roll pan, but preheat the pan for 30 minutes before baking.

To track this dough to your WW app or check the point value, click HERE!

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 22 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 44Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 186mgCarbohydrates: 9gFiber: 0gSugar: 0gProtein: 2g

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Instagram

WHAT IF I DON’T LIKE GREEY YOGURT?

Replace the greek yogurt with cottage cheese! Hannah prefers this to the OG recipe! 

Continue to Content

Skinny Pizza Dough with Cottage Cheese

Yield: 22 servings

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Additional Time: 12 hours

Total Time: 12 hours 5 minutes

If you don't like Greek yogurt, you'll love this switch! By accident I decided to use 1/2 cup whipped fat free cottage cheese in place of the Greek yogurt and it was the best decision evah! Light, flakey, and Hannah prefers this to the OG skinny dough.

Print

Ingredients

• 2 cups self-rising flour
• 1 teaspoon yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup whipped fat free cottage cheese*
• 1/2 cup water

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, mix the flour and salt. Add the yeast, cottage cheese and water and mix until combined.
2. Place plastic wrap on top and store in your microwave for 12 hours. Refrigerate and use up to 7 days.

Notes

* I just put cottage cheese in my food processor and whipped until smooth and stored it back in the container.

Click for the WW tracker. It's 1 point an ounce.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 22 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 43Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 244mgCarbohydrates: 9gFiber: 0gSugar: 0gProtein: 2g

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Instagram

IS THERE A LOWER CARB VERSION OF SKINNY PIZZA DOUGH?

Yes! Here is a low carb skinny pizza dough made with King Arthur Keto Wheat Baking Flour.  

This is on the pricey side as one 16 ounce bag of flour is around $11.00.  But each bag makes two batches of dough.  Each batch of dough makes 4 individual 5 ounce crusts, so the cost is going to be around $1.10 per crust.

Continue to Content

Low Carb Skinny Pizza Dough

Yield: 21

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 12 hours

Total Time: 12 hours 5 minutes

A LOW CARB PIZZA THAT DOESN'T HAVE CHICKEN! I recently discovered King Arthur Keto Wheat Baking Flour and was a bit skeptical. The dough is a bit "elastic" and took a bit of elbow grease to roll it out, but I loved how this came out. Do I prefer the OG dough - yes! But this dough is very close to the original one. If you are living a low carb lifestyle, or living with diabetes, you will love this option.

Print

Ingredients

• 2 cups King Arthur Flour Keto Wheat Baking Flour
• 1 teaspoon active yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup nonfat Greek yogurt (any brand works)
• 1/2 cup + 6 tablespoons water*

Instructions

1. Optional: proof your yeast - add the water, yeast and 1/2 teaspoon sugar and let sit for 10 minutes. If it's frothy, you are good to go!
2. Mix the flour and salt together. Pour in the yeast water, the yogurt and stir just until combined.
3. Cover and set aside in the microwave for 12 hours.
4. Note: this doesn't rise a whole lot, but I did get 21 ounces of dough

Notes

My usual individual pizza is 5 ounces of dough, which is 2 WW points. Click this link for the WW tracker.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Instagram

Happy Monday my friends – make it a great day!  And make this pizza dough!  You’ll thank me later. 😀

Say Goodbye to Two Ingredient “Dough”

Party Pizza Friday just got a whole lot better with this Skinny Pizza Dough! It seems that all the Weight Watcher peeps are making the two ingredient “dough.”  I found the recipe through Jane (the mucho mama on Instagram) who found it from Jen (jen_weightwatchers on Instagram) and people are making everything from bread sticks, to bagels, and obviously pizza dough.  You just use equal portions of plain Greek yogurt (non-fat) with an equal portion of self-rising flour.  People have also had equal success with using plain old all-purpose flour. I personally could never get it to mix properly and it always tasted…gross! It’s not like regular dough, because it’s…not! 

I took it just a step further and decided to add yeast because I think it adds to the texture and actually creates a traditional dough.  My no rise pizza dough has long been used by blog readers over the years, so this recipe is the same concept – just better!