Deep Dish Pizza

Deep dish cheese pizza with a bready crust

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City/Region: Chicago

Time Period: 1945 | 1947

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The unsung hero of deep dish pizza is a woman named Alice Mae Redmond, who was the head chef at famous pizzerias like Pizzeria Uno and Gino’s. It seems like wherever she went, that was the best pizza place in town. She’s also the one who changed deep dish pizza crust from the bready version in this recipe to a butterier, more biscuit-like version that is found in modern deep dish.

This crust is still delicious, and the sauce is super flavorful. Be sure to cook the sauce down enough so that it’s nice and thick (mine was a bit too watery for my taste). In the 1940s, you could get cheese OR anchovies OR sausage, but not any of them together. I made a cheese pizza with my preferred ratio of about 50/50 cheese to sauce, but feel free to change things up however you like. You could even add more than one topping, though it won’t be quite as historically accurate.

This recipe is for one 12-inch pizza.

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Ingredients:

Dough

• 1 cup (235 ml) whole milk
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 1/2 teaspoons (8 g) dried yeast
• 2 tablespoons (29 g) lukewarm water
• 2 tablespoons (28 g) melted butter
• 2 1/2 cups (300 g) flour
• Olive oil, for greasing the pan

Sauce

• 4 cups (975 g) canned crushed tomatoes
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1/4 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 dried bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 whole onion, peeled
• 4 cups (950 ml) water

Toppings (choose one)*

• Thinly sliced mozzarella cheese
• Anchovies
• Cooked Italian sausage

Seasoning Toppings

• Grated Parmesan cheese
• Dried oregano
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Olive oil

*Deep dish pizzas from the time only had one topping, so to be historically accurate, use cheese OR anchovies OR sausage

Instructions:

1. For the dough: Scald the milk by heating it to around 180°F (82°C). Remove it from the heat and whisk in the salt and sugar. Set it aside to cool until it is lukewarm.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the yeast to the lukewarm water.
3. Once the milk has cooled to lukewarm, add it to the yeast mixture along with the melted butter and about half of the flour.
4. Using the dough hook, mix until it’s all combined, then add the rest of the flour a little at a time, fully incorporating each addition before adding the next. You’re looking for a smooth dough that isn’t sticky. You may not need all of the flour, so stop adding once you get that smooth, non-sticky texture.
5. Once it has come together, knead the dough for a few minutes in the mixer or on an unfloured surface by hand. Place it in a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and let it rise for about 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
6. After the dough has doubled, uncover it and punch the dough down. Shape it back into a ball, then return it to the bowl, cover it again, and place it in the fridge for 1 hour.
7. For the sauce: Pass the crushed tomatoes through a conical sieve. In a large pot, mix all of the sauce ingredients together except for the water, then stir the water in last.
8. Simmer the sauce for 2 to 3 hours until it has thickened to a consistency that you like. Remove the onion.
9. To assemble: While the sauce simmers, take the dough out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature. Stretch and/or roll it out into a circular-ish shape that will be large enough to cover the bottom and go up the sides of a 12-inch cake pan. I made mine about 2 inches (5 cm) high, but pictures from the 1940s and early 1950s look like they’re more like 1 inch (2.5 cm), so do whatever you like here. Cover the pan and let the dough rise until the sauce is ready.
10. Preheat the oven to 500°F (260°C).
11. Cover the bottom of the pizza with the topping of your choice, then cover that with the sauce. Sprinkle on plenty of grated Parmesan cheese, a couple of generous pinches of oregano, freshly ground black pepper, and a few drops of olive oil scattered all over.
12. Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes, or until the crust is done.
13. Let it cool for a few minutes, then slice and serve it forth.

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