Chicago-Style Deep Dish Pizza (!!!)

Have you ever had an intense desire for Giordano's Pizza in Chicago, but then realized that the commute from Dallas is just a bit long? No? Just me?

Well, I surely did have a craving, but since travel was out of the question....

I Googled.

Here is an adaptation of the recipe that I found (and found quite delicious!):

Now, to be fair, I'm not much of a "measuring" cook these days. I kind of eyeball things as I go.

1 1/2 cups warm water (I microwave it for about 1 1/2 minutes)
1/4 cup butter
1 1/2 TBSP sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
3/4 cup cornmeal
4 cups flour

I don't do that whole "proofing the yeast" thing, either; every time I have done that, my dough has failed to rise. I throw all of the dry ingredients into my Kitchen Aid mixer, turn it on, and let the dough hook do what it's supposed to do. Then I pour in the warm water, and finally, whatever fat the recipe calls for (in this case, the butter). The Kitchen Aid does all my kneading for me; 7 minutes usually does the trick.

Then you just spread the dough on/in your pans. I used one pizza stone and one cast-iron skillet (thinking that my picky kiddos wouldn't eat the deep-dish, and this recipe makes enough for 2 crusts).

THIS IS IMPORTANT! You need to bake pizza at at least 425. Any less will produce a weird doughy consistency. Bake for 7 minutes, then pull it out and add your toppings: meat and veggies first, then LOADS of cheese, then sauce. Bake for an additional 20 minutes for deep dish, less for traditional pizza.

For the sauce, I took one 8-ounce can of tomato sauce, sprinkled in some Parmesan cheese, some Italian seasoning, and some garlic. That's it!

I hope you enjoy this as much as we did!