Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza
Ingredients:
Crust
• 4 cups All-Purpose Flour
• 3 Tbs yellow cornmeal
• 1¾ tsp salt
• 2¾ tsp instant yeast
• 2 Tbs olive oil, divided
• 4 Tbs butter, melted
• 2 Tbs vegetable oil or salad oil
• 1 cup + 2 Tbs lukewarm water
Filling
• ½ lb mozzarella cheese, sliced or ½ lb vegan mozzarella cheese, sliced
• ½ lb bulk Italian sausage or ½ lb vegan Italian sausage crumbles
• 2 cups of the sautéed vegetables of your choice, divided
• 28-ounce can chopped tomatoes
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 Tbs sugar
• ½ tsp dried oregano
• ½ tsp dried basil
• ½ tsp dried rosemary
• ½ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or ½ cup vegan parmesan cheese
• 2 Tbs olive oil, to drizzle on top
Instructions:
Mix the dough ingredients, and knead to make a smooth crust. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, turn to coat, cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size, 60 to 90 minutes.
While the dough is rising, spray two 9-inch cake pans with cooking spray, then add 1 Tbs olive oil to each, tilting the pans to cover the bottom and 2 inches up the sides.
Divide the dough in half and stretch it to make two 12-inch circles. Lay the dough in the pans and stretch it towards the edges till it starts to shrink back. Cover the pans and let the dough rest for 15 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 425°F.
Stretch the dough to cover the bottom of each pan, then gently push it up the sides. Let the crust rest for an additional 15 minutes. Bake the crusts for 10 minutes, until they are set and barely beginning to brown. While they are baking, prepare the filling.
Drain the tomatoes thoroughly, combine them with the oregano, rosemary and basil, add the garlic and sugar, and add salt to taste. Cover the bottom of one crust with the sliced mozzarella and the other crust with vegan mozzarella cheese. Add the sausage to the pizza with real mozzarella, and vegan sausage crumbles to the other. Divide the sautéed vegetables and the tomato mixture between the two pizzas. Sprinkle with the grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or vegan parmesan, and drizzle with the olive oil.
Bake the pizzas for 25 minutes, or until the filling is bubbly and the toppings are golden brown. Remove the pizzas from the oven, allow them to cool for 10 minutes, and carefully lift them out of the pans onto cooling racks. Allow the pizza to cool for at least 15 minutes before cutting and serving.