Deep Dish Pizza

               
                 Ever since I got my bread maker, I started making things that I hadn't made before.  Not that I couldn't have before, I just never thought about it.  So now it is like, you want me to make bread? No problem. Rolls? No problem? Pizza? Why not?

                 As opposed to using a stand mixer to mix dough, the bread machine just lets me put in the ingredients, push start, and then I'm off to deal with whatever is needing dealing with.  With 4 kids, there is always "needing" somewhere.

                So making something like pizza has become a "no big deal".

                I am going to share my recipe for what I call "Hamburger Patty Deep Dish Chicago Style Pizza".  I was inspired by seeing a special on one cable network that was discussing Chicago Style Pizza.  It showed a pie that had a patty of sausage on the bottom.  It looked delicious, with lots of sauce and plenty of cheese.

                Now I don't like sausage, but I had a package of ground beef that needed cooking.  As I was going through King Arthur Flour's website looking for a brioche recipe, I noticed the Deep Dish Pizza crust recipe.  I decided that Deep Dish Pizza was on the menu for the night, and that I would use ground beef instead of sausage.



Here are the ingredients for the crust.  I got it from King Arthur Flour.

• 4 cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 3 tablespoons yellow cornmeal
• 1 3/4 teaspoons salt
• 2 3/4 teaspoons instant yeast
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil or salad oil
• 1 cup + 2 tablespoons lukewarm water

In a bread machine, just put in all the ingredients in the bread machine and push the dough cycle.  I let the dough rise even after the cycle was over.

It took about 1 hour and 15 minutes. 

If you use a stand mixer, mix all the ingredients together until you have a nice dough and then place the dough in an oiled bowl and let rise for at least an hour.

After I put the ingredients in the bread machine, I started on my sauce.

Here are the ingredients I used.

• 2 28 oz. cans of Fire Roasted Crushed tomatoes
• 2 sliced cloves of garlic
• 1 Tbl fresh chopped basil
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 2 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp sugar
• 2 Tbl olive oil

Heat up your pot with the olive oil on medium.  Add your garlic and saute for about a minute.

Then add your tomatoes and remaining ingredients.  Let the sauce come to a low boil and cover stirring occasionally.  Let the sauce cook for at least an hour.

Adjust your seasonings if needed.

I wanted a smooth sauce so I used my immersion blender to smooth all of the chunks of tomato.

For the filling I used a large hamburger patty made from 1 lb of ground beef, and a mix of 
Italian cheeses that included mozzarella, provolone, and parmesan.

I kneaded the meat with 1 tsp of salt and 1/2 tsp of pepper.

I used my cast iron pan to cook the meat.  I simply spread the meat around the edges of the pan to form the patty.  I lightly salted and peppered the outside of the patty.  

When it started to brown on the bottom, I flipped it.  When it was done cooking I put it aside.

 Now back to the dough.

I had enough dough for 2 pizza's.  I used a springform pan for the deep dish.  I used non-stick spray, and then brushed olive oil on it.  I put aluminum foil underneath in case there would be any leaks.

Take your dough and form a circle.  I just hold it up and pull with my hands initially.  Then I place the dough in the pan and get it close to the edges until it pulls back.  Let the dough rest for 15 minutes.  You will want to start heating your oven to 425F now.

After the 15 minutes, push the edges up your springform.  Then let it rest for another 15 minutes.

Now put it in the oven for 10 minutes.

When it comes out of the oven, place your cheese in a nice layer.  

Then place the hamburger patty, or whatever filling you have chosen.

Add more cheese and then cover it all with the sauce.

Now place it back in the oven.  I have foil under the springform in case of leaks.

Let it cook for 35 minutes.  Keep an eye that the crust doesn't burn.

When it is done, take it out.  Remove the springform and slice.

 

            
             The hamburger, the cheese, the sauce all come together to create a party in your mouth.  The crust is a delightful receptacle for all those ingredients.

             Two things, first, you can pre- make the crust and freeze it for future use.  You will just need to cook the crust for about 18-20 minutes.  Wrap up and freeze.

             Whatever sauce you have leftover you can freeze.  With my recipe I had enough leftover to fill 2 Ziploc containers full.