Deep Dish Pizza

We have had a lot of fun this summer making pizza at home.  We have used all kinds of different sauces and toppings and are just about convinced not to order take-out pizza anymore.  Why would we when we can make exactly what we want at home for less money in just about the same amount of time?  We were at the mall last weekend getting Joe a new cell phone and of course I had to drag him into all of my favorite stores, Restoration Hardware, Pottery Barn, Williams Sonoma and Crate and Barrel (do you see a pattern here?).  At Crate and Barrel we stumbled upon this table with all kinds of pizza making and serving pieces.  One of them was a deep dish pizza pan.  Joe brought it over to me and we looked at each other with the same expression on our faces.  What a great idea it would be to expand our pizza making options to include deep dish as well as traditional NY style pizza.  The pan was only $18.95 so it was definitely coming home with us.  We picked up a few really neat looking European beer mugs and we were off.

Two days later we made our first deep dish pizza and I have to say, it came out really good.  The pan made a 15 inch deep dish pie and we were only able to eat a quarter of it for dinner that night so I had some for dinner the next night while Joe was working late, he had some for lunch the day after that and we both had it for dinner another night.  Needless to say it fed us for awhile.  We reheated it in the convection toaster oven and it came out just as good as the first time we ate it.  I will be making this again.

The only thing to keep in mind if you want to make this recipe is timing.  The dough needs at least 6-8 hours to rest in the refrigerator so make sure you either make your dough first thing in the morning or even the night before you want to make and eat the pizza.  Joe has pictures of the entire pie in the pan on his new cell phone.  As soon as he sends them to me, I will put one up so you can see what the entire pie looks like.

Deep Dish Pizza
Adapted from Pizzamaking.com

Ingredients
For the dough
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup self rising white corn meal
1/2 cup canola oil
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 1/4 tsp instant yeast

For the pizza
1 recipe dough (see above)
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes in puree
1 tbsp dried Italian seasoning
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 lb ground beef
2 links sweet italian sausage
1 red bell pepper, large dice
5 oz cremini mushrooms, sliced
3/4 - 1 lb mozzarella and provolone cheese, sliced
3 tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated

Directions
In a the bowl of a stand mixer, add the water, sugar, yeast, flour, corn meal and salt.  Mix with paddle attachment on low speed for a couple of minutes until dough comes together, then slowly add the oil.  Switch to dough hook and continue to mix dough for 7-9 more minutes until it is wet and smooth.  It should be tacky but not sticky to the touch.  Form the dough into a ball and place into a well oiled bowl.  Loosely cover with plastic wrap and then a dish towel and put in the refrigerator for at least 6-8 hour or overnight.

Take the dough out of the refrigerator about one hour prior to making the pizza.  Set the bottom oven rack to the lowest position and preheat the over to 450 degrees F for at least 30 minutes prior to baking.

In a medium pot, combine crushed tomatoes, Italian seasoning, garlic powder and onion powder.  Cook over low heat for 30-45 minutes.

In a large skillet cook ground beef until cooked through.  Set aside.  Place sausage links in the pan and cook 8-10 minutes, turning occasionally.  Remove links from pan and slice thinly.  Place slices back in the pan and continue to saute until browned on both sides and cooked complete.  Remove from pan and set aside.  Add bell pepper and mushrooms to the pan, adding some olive oil if need be and saute until cooked 4-5 minutes.

Coat the bottom of a 15 inch deep dish pan with oil.  Place the dough ball in the center of the pan and press it out until lit covers the entire bottom.  Then, using your fingers, pull the dough up the sides of the pan.  The edge should be pinched against the sides of the pan.  If the dough resists holding shape, cover with a towel and let rest for 15-20 minutes before trying again.

Cover the bottom of the dough with the sliced cheese.  Add the ground beef, sausage, peppers and mushrooms on top of the cheese.  Top with the tomato sauce.  Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese on top of the tomatoes.

Place in the center of the bottom rack of the oven and cook for 20-25 minutes, turning once half way through.  Remove from the oven and let cool for about 3 minutes.  Slice into wedges and serve hot.