I grew up in upstate New York. There are a lot of Italian-Americans in my area. And a lot of pizza. As I grew up and moved around the country, I noticed that some of the things I took for granted weren’t really things that everyone else experienced. I learned that in cities in other parts of the country, pizza places don’t necessarily sell chicken wings and if they do sell them, it isn’t necessarily a given that you will order them. Pizza and Wings aren’t an automatic combination like they were for me growing up in Spencerport, New York. I also learned that people elsewhere in the country do not use “macaroni” as the general term for any kind of pasta. And even more surprising, I learned that not every house has a constant back-up supply of what I would refer to as macaroni. I remember quite clearly the time when I realized that I somehow was living in a house without macaroni. To this day, I have a small stash of pasta to make sure that doesn’t happen to me again. I also learned that not every family has a Dad who likes to make his own pizza dough. My Dad used to make pizza dough, lightly oil a cookie sheet, and we would have our own Montenaro Pizza Night. My favorite toppings were the classic peppers and onions. Since those days, I have experimented with many fancy toppings from morels to ramps to ground lamb to flank steak and I started using a pizza stone instead of a cookie sheet. But I still use Dad’s recipe. A lot of my friends have started using it, too! I don’t mind sharing it. I know some pizza dough purists may be surprised to see an egg in this recipe, but it has served me well through many a pizza night, so I am passing it on as is.
In a medium size bowl, dissolve 1 packet of Active Dry Yeast with 1 and 1/3 cups of hot tap water. It should feel hot when you put your finger in it, but not so hot that you can’t keep your finger in it for more than a few seconds. That means it will be hot enough to activate the yeast, but not so hot it will kill it.
Mix in 1 egg and 1 teaspoon of salt after the yeast has dissolved.
Put 4 cups of flour in a large bowl and add the water solution to it. I usually combine it by hand, using one hand to mix the dough and trying to keep one hand clean so I can add more flour as needed. I never successfully keep one hand clean, but I still get the dough mixed.
Cover the bowl with a towel and let it rise. Putting it in the sun or a warm part of 
the room is the best. Ideally, it should rise for 2 to 4 hours although when I am in a rush, I have definitely cut this time down to 45 minutes.
The next step is the best and I try to share this step with anyone who hasn’t done it before, because it is so much fun. After the dough has risen, sprinkle some more flour on it and put some flour on your fist and then punch down the dough. You will love it.
Let the dough rise another 2 to 4 hours (or 45 minutes if you are cheating).
Divide the dough into thirds. One time I wrapped each third in plastic and stored it in the refrigerator for two days before rolling it out and making pizzas. It came out great. Usually I make the pizzas right away. I use cornmeal on the surface, because it keeps the dough from sticking to the counter better than flour and it tastes better on the bottom of the crust. I use flour on the rolling pin though. If you are using a pizza stone, put it in the oven and preheat it to 425 degrees. We usually assemble the pizza on a board covered with cornmeal and then use spatulas to slide it from the board into the oven. It helps to have two people for this part. I think it takes about 15 minutes to cook, but I’ve never timed it. I prefer to peek at it regularly and look for browning crusts and cheese.
While the first pizza is cooking, start rolling out the dough for the second. I recommend waiting to put the toppings on until the other pizza is out of the oven, though. The longer the toppings are sitting on the pizza, especially if you have any type of sauce on there, the stickier the dough will become and the harder it will be to transfer the pizza from the board onto the pizza stone.
Give each pizza a few minutes to cool, cut into slices, and enjoy!
And that’s how you do a Montenaro Pizza Night.
