Chicago Style Pizza

One of my lovely readers noticed my absence lately (hi Linda!). I was wondering if anyone was still reading and I am glad to know that one reader is still hanging on.

I tease...and yet. Really. It's kinda lonely in here.

A couple weeks ago my mom and I made a trip with my daughter to Chicago, to the American Girl store. Yes, we drove six and a half hours one way just to take her to the American Girl Sore. For her birthday. Once in a lifetime kinda thing.

I was really disappointed that we never got any Chicago-style pizza while we were there. I was actually really disappointed that we had one good meal the whole time we were there, and that was breakfast, but that's another story. As luck would have it the Monday after we got home the Brown-eyed Baker featured Chicago style pizza. It took about .00001 seconds for me to decide that I needed to make Chicago style pizza for dinner.

Thanks to the Brown-eyed Baker I never have to go to Chicago again (because now the AG store is off the bucket list). This recipe was very easy to follow and it was delicious pizza! My boys love, loved it, and I think it will be making an appearance here often. The dough might look complicated, but it's not. It's easy as...pie.

I think my one mistake was to use shredded Parmesan instead of grated. I think we needed grated, although no one complained.  Next time I will use grated. Also modified -- I used a couple tablespoons of sugar instead of the 1/4 teaspoon Michelle used. We like sweet sauce.

 

Chicago Style Pizza

makes 2 pizzas

For the Dough:
3¼ c. all-purpose flour
½ c. yellow cornmeal
1½ t. salt
2 t. sugar
2¼ t. instant yeast
1¼ c. water, room temperature
3 T. unsalted butter, melted
4 T. unsalted butter, softened
1 t. + 4 T. olive oil, divided

For the Sauce:
2 T. unsalted butter
¼ c. grated onion
¼ t. dried oregano
½ t. salt
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
¼ t. sugar ( I used at least 2 T.)
2 T. coarsely chopped fresh basil
1 T. olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper

For the Toppings:
1 pound mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 4 cups)
(Pepperoni)
¼ c. grated Parmesan cheese

 Make the Dough: Whisk together the flour, cornmeal, salt, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl. Add water and melted butter and mix on low speed, using a dough hook, until fully combined, 1 to 2 minutes, scraping sides and bottom of bowl occasionally. Increase speed to medium and knead until dough is glossy and smooth and pulls away from sides of bowl, 4 to 5 minutes. (You can easily make this by hand, mixing in the water and butter with a spatula and then kneading by hand.)

Coat a large bowl with 1 teaspoon olive oil. Using greased spatula, transfer dough to bowl, turning to coat the dough in oil; cover tightly with plastic wrap. Let rise at room temperature until nearly doubled in volume, 45 to 60 minutes.

 Make the Sauce: While dough rises, heat the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat until melted. Add onion, oregano, and salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has evaporated and onion is golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in tomatoes and sugar, increase heat to high, and bring to a simmer. Lower heat to medium-low and simmer until reduced to about 2½ cups, 25 to 30 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the basil and olive oil, then season with salt and pepper.

 Laminate the Dough: Turn the dough out onto dry work surface and roll into a 15×12-inch rectangle. Using an offset spatula, spread the softened butter over the surface of the dough, leaving a ½-inch border along the edges. Starting at the short end, roll the dough into a tight cylinder. With seam side down, flatten the cylinder into an 18×4-inch rectangle. Cut rectangle in half crosswise. Working with one half, fold into thirds like a business letter; pinch seams together to form ball. Repeat with remaining half. Return balls to oiled bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and let rise in refrigerator until nearly doubled in volume, 40 to 50 minutes. Meanwhile, adjust oven rack to lower position and preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

 Bake the Pizzas: Coat two 9-inch round cake pans with 2 tablespoons olive oil each. Transfer 1 dough ball to dry work surface and roll out into a 13-inch circle. Transfer dough to the pan by rolling the dough loosely around a rolling pin and unrolling into pan. Lightly press dough into pan, working into corners and 1 inch up sides. If dough resists stretching, let it relax for 5 minutes before trying again. Repeat with remaining dough ball.

 For each pizza, sprinkle 2 cups mozzarella evenly over surface of dough. (If you’re using any meat or veggie toppings, add them now, on top of the cheese.) Spread 1¼ cups tomato sauce over the cheese (or toppings) and sprinkle 2 tablespoons Parmesan over sauce. 

Bake until crust is golden brown, 20 to 30 minutes. Remove pizza from oven and let rest 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Source: Brown-eyed Baker

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