Chicago Deep-Dish Pizza

Homemade pizza dough like this recipe calls for is definitely worth the effort, but if you need to cheat, store-bought dough will work just fine. Instead of rolling it out, place the dough in a baking dish and start laying the toppings: ooey-gooey mozzarella cheese, flavorful Italian chicken sausages, tomatoes, fresh herbs, sautéed mushrooms, and plenty of peppers. Thick, bubbly, and covered with cheese, this deep-dish pizza scores!

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1 piece)



2 teaspoons sugar

1 package dry yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons)

1 cup warm water (100° to 110°)

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

12.38 ounces all-purpose flour (about 2 3/4 cups), divided

1/4 cup yellow cornmeal

1/2 teaspoon salt

Cooking spray

2 cups (8 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided

2 precooked mild Italian chicken sausages (about 6 ounces), casings removed, chopped

1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes, drained

1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano

1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh basil

2 cups thinly sliced mushrooms (about 6 ounces)

3/4 cup chopped red bell pepper - optional


1. Dissolve sugar and yeast in warm water in a large bowl; let stand for 5 minutes. Stir in olive oil.

2. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine 11.25 ounces (about 2 1/2 cups) flour, cornmeal, and salt in a bowl. Stir flour mixture into yeast mixture until dough forms a ball. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic (about 5 minutes); add enough of remaining flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to prevent dough from sticking to hands (dough will feel sticky).

3. Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 45 minutes or until doubled in size. (Gently press two fingers into dough. If indentation remains, dough has risen enough.) Punch dough down; cover and let rest 5 minutes. Roll dough into an 11 x 15–inch rectangle on a lightly floured surface. Place dough in a 13 x 9–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray; press dough up sides of dish. Spread 1 1/2 cups cheese evenly over dough. Arrange chopped sausage evenly over cheese.

4. Preheat oven to 400°.

5. Chop tomatoes; place in a sieve. Stir in oregano and basil; drain tomato mixture 10 minutes.

6. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add mushrooms to pan; cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in bell peppers; cook for 8 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Arrange vegetables over sausage; spoon tomato mixture evenly over vegetables and sausage. Sprinkle evenly with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake at 400° for 25 minutes or until crust browns and cheese bubbles. Cool 5 minutes before cutting.

Nutritional Information

Calories:330

Fat:9.2g (sat 4.6g,mono 3.2g,poly 1g)

Protein:17.8g

Carbohydrate:44g

Fiber:3.2g

Cholesterol:31mg

Iron:3.9mg

Sodium:365mg

Calcium:244mg

Cooking Light, OCTOBER 2009


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Recipe: Chicago Deep-Dish Pizza



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ChicagoChef

Excellent. This is a great recipe to have on hand for those nights in with the family while watching a movie. Didn't use any cornmeal and used with my own toppings and pizza sauce. Use any toppings you like and it will turn out great! Served with a side spinach salad. 12/28/10









chefamandalynn

I used whole wheat flour so this did taste distincly "healthy, but it was still very yummy. Very filling, I couldn't believe my husband only ate one serving. I couldn't find the precooked chicken sausage so I just diced up some Hillshire Farms turkey kilbasa. Next time I will make the recipe exactly as written based on all the rave reviews it received. 10/20/10









Dickibean

This recipe was FANTASTIC!!! The dough was super easy to make. The tomato mix was yummy, I added fresh basil and oregano and also sprinkled garlic powder and a drizzle of red wine to jazz it up.I have made this twice within 2 weeks and it is a huge hit! I did spicy Italian sausage and then one with sausage and peperoni.My husband ate half a pan it was sooooo good!!!! 07/21/10









Elizabeth

Made this last night and everyone in my loved it. Made this really easy on myself and bought whole wheat crust (made fresh daily at our grocery store). I used spicy venison sausage, a can of Rotel, one can of regular tomatoes, and added onions, chopped artichoke hearts, and fresh spinach to the vegetables in the recipe. Also had wonderful fresh picked basil and oregano to add. Absolutely fantastic and healthy to boot! Served it with a Spinach Caesar Salad. I will definitely make this again! 05/13/10









Elizabeth

This is a really good weeknight dinner, and it leftovers well. I make the dough in the morning, cover it, and let it rise 8 hours in the fridge while I am at work. Works very well. I added some onion, but for the most part, made according to recipe. it's a household favorite. 05/01/10









Tim

This recipe is absolutely fabulous! I live in the Chicago area and have had deep-dish pizza from the kings and this is pretty much right up there. Plus, its way healthier than what you would normally get from a restaurant. Making the dough from scratch was kind of intimidating, but the success of making made the pizza that much more enjoyable. If you’ve never done it I would recommend going to YouTube and watching some instructional videos. I would recommend using dried oregano and basil than getting the fresh stuff, which read in one of the other reviews. Enjoy! 02/27/10









Runnermel

Wow! This was so good. I regularly make pizza dough, but this was the best I've made. DH and I don't like mushrooms or peppers (weird, I know), so we used regular sauce, turkey pepperoni and cheese. It was awesome. I wish I had doubled the recipe. 02/27/10









ALEXIS

I opened an account on this site just so I could rate this recipe and tell EVERYONE how great it is! You must try this! I didn't have mushrooms so I used frozen chopped spinach (thawed and squeezed out), and I used jalapeno chicken sausage. I can't wait to experiment with some other ingredients! 02/27/10









Kristi

I admit, when I saw the outstanding, I was like...yeah, yeah, it's pizza. However, after I made it, I agree. This was delicious and of course the highest praise is it doesn't skimp on taste at all. A definite repeater for pizza night at my house! 02/26/10









Carie CPink

Wowzers! We substituted Tofurkey Italian sausage for the real stuff. This was great! Lots of veggies and super tasty. Already thinking about the next one I'll be making. Mushroom, olive and blue cheese next time? 02/24/10









Kristen Faith

My husband and I made this for dinner tonight and we absolutely loved it! We bought whole wheat pizza dough from the grocery store and followed the rest of the recipe as stated. It was a such a success that we even sent pictures to friends and family to brag about how amazing it turned out. Perfect meal and much better than take out! 02/21/10









Jessica

This recipe turned out great! The crust was very easy to make. I used rapid rise yeast but still let it go 45 minutes and it turned out fine. I also used a 28oz can of italian-style diced tomatoes rather than using whole tomatoes and chopping them. 01/25/10









crusnock

My husband and I loved this dish. It was hearty, full of veggies, and we loved the tomato topping. The dough turned out great, it was chewy but crisp on the bottom and sides -- just like the "frying" of a deep dish pizza, without all of the grease. I used 1/2 tsp dried oregano and 1/2 tsp dried basil because I didn't have any fresh on hand. Also, my grocery store didn't have the chicken sausage, so I cooked and crumbled 2 Hot Pork Italian Sausage links. Can't wait to make this one again! 12/30/09