Chicago-Style Deep Dish Pizza

Pizza is one of the delicious and popular dishes family members request from time to time. It is easy to make at home, and we give you the details for the best pizza to ever come out of your not-wood-fired oven.

Ingredients:

Dough:

3 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

½ cup yellow cornmeal

1½ teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons sugar

2 ¼ teaspoons instant yeast

1 ¼ cups water, room temperature

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1 teaspoon + 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided

Sauce:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

¼ cup grated onion

¼ teaspoon dried oregano

½ teaspoon salt

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes

¼ teaspoon sugar

2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh basil

1 tablespoon olive oil

Freshly ground black pepper

Topping:

4 cups mozzarella cheese

Pepperoni

¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

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 the dough is glossy and smooth and pulls away from the sides of the 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 a greased spatula, transfer the dough to the 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.

Sauce:

As the 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 heat, stir in basil and oil, then season with salt and pepper.

Laminated Dough:

Adjust the oven rack to a lower position and heat the oven to 425 degrees. Using a rubber spatula, turn the dough out onto a dry work surface [such as a cutting board] and roll it into a 15- by 12-inch rectangle.

Using an offset or a normal spatula, spread softened butter over the surface of the dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border along the edges. Starting at the short end, roll the dough into a tight cylinder (don’t squish it longer in the process; just make it tight enough that the edges cohere).

With the seam side down flatten the cylinder into an 18- by 4-inch rectangle. Cut the rectangle in half crosswise. Working with 1 half, fold into thirds like a business letter; pinch seams together to form a ball. Repeat with the remaining half.

Return balls to an oiled bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and let rise in refrigerator until nearly doubled in volume, 40 to 50 minutes.

Coat two 9-inch round pans with 2 tablespoons of olive oil each. Transfer 1 dough ball. to dry the work surface and roll it out into a 13-inch disk about 1/4 inch thick.

Transfer dough to the pan by rolling dough loosely around the rolling pin and unrolling into the pan. Lightly press dough into pan, working into corners and 1 inch up sides. If the dough resists stretching, let it relax for 5 minutes before trying again. Repeat with the remaining dough ball.

For each pizza, sprinkle 2 cups of mozzarella evenly over the surface of the dough. Spread 1 1/4 cups tomato sauce over cheese and sprinkle 2 tablespoons Parmesan over sauce. Make until crust is golden brown, 20 to 30 minutes. Remove the pizza from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Tip: Place a damp kitchen towel under the mixer and watch it at all times during kneading to prevent it from wobbling off the counter. Handle the dough with lightly oiled hands, or it might stick.