Title: Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza
Categories: Pizza
Yield: 6 Servings
| 1 | | Crust |
| 1 | c | Warm water (110-115 deg) |
| 1 | pk | Active dry yeast |
| 3 1/2 | c | Flour |
| 1/2 | c | Coarse ground cornmeal |
| 1 | ts | Salt |
| 1/4 | c | Vegetable oil |
| 1 | | Filling |
| 1 | lb | Mozzarella, sliced |
| 1 | lb | Sausage |
| 28 | oz | Can whole tomatoes |
| 2 | | Garlic cloves, minced |
| 3 | ts | Dried oregano, -or- |
| 5 | | Basil leaves, shredded |
| 4 | tb | Grated Parmesan cheese |
Drain and coarsely crush the tomatoes. Remove sausage from casing and
crumble. Pour the warm water into a large mixing bowl and dissolve the
yeast with a fork. Add 1 cup of flour, all of the cornmeal, salt, and, and
vegetable oil. Mix well with a spoon. Continue stirring in the rest of the
flour 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough comes away from the sides of the
bowl. Flour your hands and the work surface and kneed the ball of dough
until it is no longer sticky. Let the dough rise in an oiled bowl, sealed
with plastic wrap, for 45 to 60 minutes in a warm place, until it is
doubled in bulk. Punch it down and kneed it briefly. Press it into an oiled
15-inch deep dish pizza pan, until it comes 2 inches up the sides and is
even on the bottom of the pan. Let the dough rise 15-20 minutes before
filling. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. While the dough is rising,
prepare the filling. Cook the crumbled sausage until it is no longer pink,
and drain it of it's excess fat. Drain and chop the tomatoes. When the
dough has finished its second rising, lay the cheese over the dough shell.
Then distribute the sausage and garlic over the cheese. Top with the
tomatoes. Sprinkle on the seasonings and Parmesan cheese. Bake for 15
minutes at 500 degrees. Then lower the temperature to 400 degrees and bake
for 25 to 35 minutes longer. Lift up a section of the crust from time to
time with a spatula to check on its color. The crust will be golden brown
when done. Serve immediately.