Deep Dish Pizza - 5 stars

this was the most exciting meal i've made in a while. i came up with the idea to make deep dish pizza on a monday, planned it for that saturday, and then waited anxiously all week long for saturday to arrive. :-) i was just as excited for this as i was for making my thanksgiving and christmas meals!

i didn't own any deep dish pizza pans, so i decided to take the plunge and buy some cast iron pans. i bought a 12" skillet and a 10 1/2" skillet. (amazon had a special going on, so i also ended up with 5 qt cast iron pot and lid, and a bamboo steamer :) ) the brand of the cast iron is lodge logic - they're really affordable, so honestly, i was worried about the quality of them. they are awesome though! i don't cook with cast iron every day, so i'm hoping they'll last for a long time too. they also come pre-seasoned, which is fantastic.

i built these pizzas from scratch. i had to make two - one for tony with his regular cheese, and one for me and my soy cheese. the first step was to make the dough. this was fairly easy, once i figured out that kneading this dough does not require me to mash it into the countertop, but rather to gently knead it until it was elastic and smooth. i think i've kneaded dough a total of three times in my entire life. this time it ended up being a success, and it was quite satisfying to create this ball of pizza dough from some flour, yeast, water and salt.

i let it rise in the oven for a couple hours - it more than doubled in size!

while the dough was rising, i made the sauce. i sauteed one diced red onion, a few minced cloves of garlic, fennel seed, red pepper flakes, fresh oregano, dried basil, salt, and black pepper together for a few minutes, then dumped a 28 oz can of diced tomato into the pan. i let this simmer uncovered for about a half hour, stirring occasionally. i also mushed up the diced tomato chunks so that the sauce would be a bit smoother.

i split the dough in half, brushed my cast iron skillets with a bit of vegetable oil, and pressed each dough half into them.



then came the toppings, in the following order:

mozzarella cheese
red onion slivers
pepperoni
crisp hunks of italian sausage
a bit of crumbly bacon
sliced button mushrooms
roasted red bell pepper
the pizza sauce
parmesan

yes... you read that correctly - the sauce goes on TOP of all of the other toppings in a deep dish pizza. mmmmm. tony also added capers to his.



i didn't feel like we had enough sauce though. i like a really saucy pizza, and the amount i made just didn't allow for that. i'd double the sauce recipe next time.

i baked these for ~ 30 minutes at 450f. WOW! they were absolutely amazing! i've only had deep dish once, when i was in chicago for work, and this tasted so similar. the crust was soft and flaky, and the whole pizza slice actually stayed together, which i didn't expect! making this was such a pleasant way to spend my saturday afternoon / evening!

Chicago-style Deep Dish Pizza Dough:

• 11/2 cups warm water (about 110 degrees F)
• 1 (1/4-ounce) packages active dry yeast
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup semolina flour
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil, plus 2 teaspoons to grease bowl
• 1 teaspoon salt

In a large bowl, combine the water, yeast, and sugar and stir to combine. Let sit until the mixture is foamy, about 5 minutes.

Add 1 1/2 cups of the flour, the semolina, 1/2 cup of the oil, and the salt, mixing by hand until it is all incorporated and the mixture is smooth. Continue adding the flour, 1/4 cup at a time, working the dough after each addition, until all the flour is incorporated but the dough is still slightly sticky.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth but still slightly tacky, 3 to 5 minutes. Oil a large mixing bowl with the remaining 2 teaspoons oil.

Place the dough in the bowl and turn to oil all sides. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set in a warm, draft-free place until nearly doubled in size, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Divide into 2 equal portions and use as directed.

Chicago-style Deep Dish Pizza Sauce & Pizza Baking Instructions:

· 2 tablespoons olive oil

· 1 tablespoon chopped fresh garlic

· 2 teaspoons chopped fresh basil

· 1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano

· 1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds

· 1/2 teaspoon salt

· 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

· 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

· 1 (28-ounce) can plum tomatoes, coarsely crushed

· 1 tablespoon dry red wine

· 1 teaspoon sugar

· Pizza toppings of your choice: mozzarella, parmesan, pepperoni, mushroom, bell pepper, red onion, sun-dried tomato, olives, etc.

Directions

While the dough is rising, make the tomato sauce. In a medium saucepan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add the herbs, seeds, salt, and black and red peppers, and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes, wine and sugar, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened, 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool completely before using.

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F.

Oil 2 seasoned 12-inch round deep-dish pizza pans with the extra-virgin olive oil. Press 1 piece of dough into each pan, pressing to the edge and stretching about 1 1/2 inches up the sides. Let rest for 5 minutes.

Layer the mozzarella cheese all over the bottom of the pies. Top each with half of the pepperoni, mushrooms, bell pepper rings, onions, black olives and sausage. Ladle the sauce evenly over each pizza and top with Parmesan.

Bake until the top is golden and the cheese is bubbly and the crust is golden brown, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven, slice and serve hot.