At our house, we have our share of classic, pepperoni-and-cheese style pizzas. But I really enjoy bringing unexpected toppings to a pizza—to shake up the pizza, yes, but also to enjoy other favorite food combinations in a new way. Just about any meal can be transformed into a pizza, and if you have any doubt, peek at my Pizza Party page to see some of the other fun combinations we’ve enjoyed over the past couple of years. Even I was surprised to see how easily Buffalo wings, oysters Rockefeller or jambalaya can be transformed into a perfect, tasty slice.
My goal with this pizza was to recreate the experience of dining at a classic steakhouse, but without the heavy, overstuffed feeling that always seems to follow a glorious meal of steak and potatoes. I knew that balsamic roasted onions belonged on this meat and potato pie, and definitely a touch of bleu cheese, but I needed a minute to figure out the sauce. A typical red sauce wouldn’t do, but I found a few things in the door of the fridge and whipped up an easy steak sauce that was tangy, spicy and just slightly sweet.
A thin crust is right for this pizza and lets the steak and Yukon gold potatoes take center stage. If you have leftover steak, slice it really thin for this pizza. Or follow my lead and use half a package of shaved steak—the kind you’d cook up for a Philly cheesesteak. I used mozzarella on the base, but Monterey jack or any other mild, neutral cheese would be a good choice as well.
The balsamic drizzle complements the funk of the bleu cheese.An echo of balsamic in the sauce helps tie the pizza flavors together.I promise, this is a Yukon gold potato, not pickle slices. Blame my camera!This super thin shaved steak is perfect for this pizza, but I only used half of it.
The result was just right, with enough meat to satisfy but not so much to overwhelm. The Yukon gold potatoes were soft and creamy, and the accent of bleu cheese reminded me of a real steakhouse dinner. Except, of course, for the belly bloat or the outrageous steakhouse price.
3 Tbsp. homemade steak house (recipe below, or use your favorite)
1 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 lb. thinly shaved steak
1 large Yukon gold potato, boiled until fork-tender and sliced thin
1 medium sweet onion, roasted and drizzled with 1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
2 oz. bleu cheese crumbles
Steak Sauce
2 Tbsp. natural ketchup
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp. dark balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
1 tsp. hot sauce (any kind you like)
1/2 tsp. prepared horseradish
1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. onion powder
Salt and pepper to taste
Thin with a little water if needed
Instructions
Drizzle the onion slices with olive oil, season and roast at 350° F for about 30 minutes.
When the onions are soft enough to separate easily, drizzle them with a tablespoon of balsamic and roast another 10 minutes.
Parboil the potato just until it can be pierced with the tip of a knife. Cool, then cut into 1/4″ slices.
Adjust the flavors of the steak sauce to suit your taste, and thin with a bit of water if it seems too thick.
You could read a magazine page through this whisper-thin slice of steak.
Season every layer! Cook the steak slices on high heat, just until they have a few spots of brown.
Tear the seared steak into shreds, making it easy to bite into on each slice of pizza.
Season every layer. 🙂
Spread the steak sauce onto the dough. You might not need all of it.
Scatter the shredded mozzarella over the sauce.
What’s more classic than steak and potatoes?
Distribute all of the balsamic onions onto the pizza. The roasting mellows the strong flavor.
Bleu cheese is a natural with the steak and onions. A few crumbles is all you need, and this pizza is ready for the oven!
Every bite of this pie satisfies the craving for steak and potatoes!
Prepare the onion by slicing it into thin rounds. Arrange the slices on a parchment-lined baking sheet and drizzle them with olive oil. Roast at 350 for about 30 minutes, or until onions have softened and the rings slide apart evenly. Drizzle with balsamic and roast another 10 minutes, taking care not to burn the onions. Set them aside to cool.
Meanwhile, boil the Yukon gold potato until it can be pierced with the tip of a knife, but not to the point of being too soft. Let the potato cool completely, then cut it into slices about 1/4” thin.
Sear shaved steak in a small amount of olive oil just until lightly browned. Shred steak into smaller, bite sized pieces and season with salt and pepper. Set aside until ready to make the pizza.
Shape pizza dough into a 14” round and transfer to a floured and cornmeal-dusted pizza peel. Season the dough with salt and pepper, then swirl on about 1/4 cup of the steak sauce. Scatter mozzarella all over the sauce. Arrange the shredded steak over the cheese, followed by the potato slices and the balsamic onions. Place dots of bleu cheese crumbles over the top of the pizza.
Slide the pizza into a very hot (550° F) oven, preferably onto a pizza steel or stone. Bake for 6 minutes, until cheese is bubbly and crust is golden brown.
Anybody who doesn’t get excited about pizza has, well, never had a good one. That’s my philosophy, and it’s one of the many reasons my husband, Les, and I are so darn compatible. Our tenacity in searching out the best foods is another. It is not possible for me to pass on reading an article about food—whether it relates to a trend, a signature dish or a hot new restaurant. Les is the same. So when we found ourselves at Modern Apizza in New Haven, Connecticut, near the end of our summer vacation, it was pretty much heaven for both of us.
You have to say it like the locals do… it’s Modern “Ah-Beetz!”
Our visit was not by chance; it was intended to be a highlight from the very start of our vacation planning, and we worked other aspects of our trip around it. That’s how seriously we take our pizza. And we had a big inside connection that won me a behind-the-scenes tour of the place, through the kitchen and prep spaces, and all the way down to the basement where they make more sauce and dough than I have ever imagined.
All these buckets of sauce are made for just one day’s pizzas.Those mixers are a wee bit bigger than my KitchenAid, yes? That’s 400 pounds of high-gluten flour, for ONE day’s pizzas!
How did I have such an opportunity, you might wonder, to be invited into the heart of this business that is 650 miles from my home? Easy. Les knows the owners! During what seems like a lifetime ago, when he lived in the New Haven area, Les owned a home two doors down from Bill and Mary Pustari, who bought Modern Apizza in 1988 and continued the long tradition of excellence there that had begun in 1934. After a few years owning the place, they expanded the dining room and added a second, oil-fired brick oven to their kitchen to keep pace with the popularity of their amazing pizzas.
When Les reached out to his old friends to inform them of our plans to visit New Haven, they were gracious to offer me a tour of the restaurant, to witness the magic up close and personal. For me, it was as exciting as many of the backstage events I had experienced during my radio years and one of the biggest highlights of our entire trip, and I’m excited to share my experience, and the pizza it inspired me to make at home. But first—lunch!
Oh, YUM!
Our server, Arianna (who also happens to be a daughter of the owners), didn’t hesitate when we asked which pizza is most popular with their customers.
“Hands down, the Italian Bomb,” she said. Well, sure, the one with sausage, bacon, pepperoni, mushroom, onions, peppers and fresh garlic, of course! That sounded like a lot to chew on for lunch, and we decided on a half-and-half pizza (kind of amazing they are willing to do that), with artichoke hearts and eggplant on one side, and Italian sausage with hot cherry peppers on the other. Both combinations were delicious, but what I could not get over was the complex flavor and chewy-but-crisp texture of the crust, and I was about to come face-to-face with the signature ingredient that gives Modern Apizza a culinary edge over its competitors.
Veggie heaven, with artichoke hearts and eggplants.Italian sausage and hot pepper “apizza.”This looks and feels exactly like the crust I’ve been working to achieve at home!
When it was time for my “backstage” tour, Bill took me first through the kitchen, and then to the original oven, which they still fire up when business is booming. An oil-fired oven is an incredible sight, and when Bill informed me that the coolest spot in the oven is 700° F, I couldn’t resist asking what the hottest temperature in the oven was. Care to guess?
Modern Apizza’s original brick oven, still in action after all these years.
“The temperature of fire,” Bill answered. Wow!
From there, Bill led me downstairs to the basement of the restaurant and to a very special, very old refrigerator that is home to a very old resident—and the secret to their flavorful dough—a sourdough starter!
Behind this antique refrigerator door lies the secret to Modern Apizza’s great flavor.Hello, Gorgeous!!! 🙂
They call this glorious culture “The Bitch.”
Despite her unbecoming name, The Bitch is a beloved member of the family at Modern Apizza. They feed her every day, and if there is ever a weather emergency or power outage, she goes home with someone for safekeeping. Bill told me that several years ago, he wanted to take Modern’s pizzas to a new level, so he got a bit of a 100-year-old starter from a local French bakery, and that ushered in a whole new chapter in Modern’s history. This revelation thrilled my sourdough-loving heart to pieces and connected the dots on why our lunch pizza reminded me of home.
I got more confirmation about my pizza-at-home techniques when we went back upstairs to the kitchen, where William (also a Pustari) and George worked in harmony with Jesse, the oven guy, preparing pizzas to order for their customers, at an astonishing rate of two pizzas per minute. Honestly, I wanted to throw on an apron and jump in on the action!
They have this down to a science!
From the shaping of the dough, the order of topping ingredients, the high-heat baking and the natural leavening of the pizza dough itself, I left Modern Apizza feeling that I was doing something right—or, really, doing a lot of things right, at home. All my research, trial and error had put me on the right pizza path, and that is a very good feeling. Before I share my home pizza that was inspired by this visit, can you stand just a little more bragging on Modern Apizza?
Yes, it takes time to crush and recycle all the cans. But, as Bill Pustari told me, it’s the right thing to do.As do the other amazing pizzerias in New Haven, Modern Apizza serves up local soft drinks from Foxon Park.Fresh from the local farm!
Despite the extra time it takes his prep crew, Bill is committed to doing right by his community. All those cans for the tomato sauce get recycled. He purchases sausage from a local butcher, serves local Foxon Park soft drinks, and Modern’s mozzarella comes from Liuzzi’s, the same Italian market Les and I had visited earlier in the week. Just before he arrived at the restaurant, Bill had met with a farmer to purchase local tomatoes to be used on the fresh tomato pizza which is, of course, a New Haven classic. All these neighbors supporting each other and finding great success—kinda makes me want to live in New Haven!
Sourdough was the key to the great flavor we experienced at Modern Apizza, and it’s my go-to pizza dough at home. My favorite recipe is linked in the ingredients list, and I recommend using a pizza steel and the hottest temperature your home oven can handle. My dough ferments in the refrigerator, but I bring it to almost-room temperature when I’m ready to shape and bake it.
Use firm, whole milk mozzarella for best results—and yes, you absolutely should shred it yourself rather than using pre-shredded, pre-bagged cheese. Pre-bagged cheese may be convenient but it is coated with a powdery substance that prevents clumping in the bag, which unfortunately for use on pizzas also prevents even melting. So please shred your own; it’s worth it.
Instructions
Crumble the Italian sausage and cook in cast iron just until it starts to brown. Add the onions and cook a minute or two more.
Hot or mild, your choice! Drain them and pat dry with paper towels. Chop into smaller bits if desired.
Swirl your sauce onto the shaped pizza dough, then scatter a generous amount of freshly shredded mozzarella over the whole thing.
Arrange the sausage and cherry peppers all over the pizza.
This is a new thing for me, thanks to my experience at Modern Apizza. Drizzle a bit of extra virgin olive oil over the pie before you slide it into the oven.
The hot pizza steel gives us a bit of brick-oven style baking at home. Our pizzas take about 6 minutes.
Loving it! 🙂
Preheat the oven to 550°F, with the oven rack positioned about 8 inches below the top element and a pizza steel in place for a solid hour at temperature.
Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Crumble up the Italian sausage and brown it until some of the edges are just developing a crust. You want it to hang onto its moisture for the most part, as it will cook again in the oven. Add the onions to the skillet and cook until they are softened. Transfer the meat and onions to a bowl and cool completely.
Drain the cherry peppers and pat them dry on layers of paper towel. Chop them into bite-sized pieces.
When the oven is ready, shape the dough into a 14” round and transfer to a flour- and cornmeal-dusted pizza peel, which will make it easy to slide the pizza into the hot oven.
Swirl pizza sauce over the dough, then scatter parm-romano and mozzarella evenly. Arrange the cooked sausage and onions over the pizza, and follow that with the cherry peppers.
Drizzle olive oil lightly over the toppings and quickly transfer the pizza to the hot oven for about 6 minutes, or until the cheese is hot and bubbly and the edges of the crust are browned and blistered.
Right here in the middle of gray, dull, Dry January, I think we could all enjoy a warm-weather trip down memory lane, and a taste of sweet summer tomatoes like the ones on this pizza. I’ve been waiting many months to share this story with you, and because this month is such a drag, I’m actually thankful that it took me so long to get to it. Life has been busy since we wrapped up our kitchen remodel, but now that the holidays are behind us, I’ve been looking at these pictures again and remembering the sweet time my husband, Les, and I had on our vacation through New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.
Our road trip presented a unique opportunity for me to do one of my favorite things—research of famous local foods—and this time, I was studying different but not necessarily opposed pizza styles. And after my extensive research (which was essentially just eating a lot of pizza), I have a confession. More of an announcement, really. For all the times I have claimed victory in the challenge to make homemade pizza that rivals my husband’s memory of his beloved N.Y.-style pizza, I stand corrected. My pizza at home does not at all rival the pizza of New York. It rivals a completely different style of pizza.
New York pizza is, of course, known for its gigantic slices and an ultra-thin and crispy crust that is easy to fold for eating on the run as you dash off to catch the subway or, if you’re lucky, a Broadway show. We had a taste of this N.Y. pie on our day trip into the city last August, as we stopped at one of the more acclaimed pizzerias, Bleecker Street Pizza. A friend of ours who is a native New Yorker (like my hubby) swears it is the best, so we put it on our “must do” list.
Legendary pizza slices, served up daily!
Big-time bragging rights!That swirl of tomato sauce! And ALL THAT CHEESE.Les still enjoys a classic N.Y. slice!This was definitely worth the trip!
Notice their media props outside? Those are well-deserved, and the pies looked great, with the seasoned tomato sauce swirled out onto the dough (as I’m still learning to do at home, with hubby’s coaching) and, of course, all that cheese. It was good, but the crust didn’t feel or taste like the one I have developed at home—the crust that Les says is “just right.”
I can’t say for sure, but I suspect the Bleecker Street dough was dusted with rice flour. This is a simple trick that puts a crackling-crisp texture on the bottom crust and it’s good for reheating the slices, as they do to order, but it does not add flavor. Our research into pizza excellence would continue the next day, because we had plans to visit another legendary pizza town—New Haven, Connecticut. And that’s where I had my epiphany.
Greetings from New Haven, home of a whole different kind of pizza.
Les spent 19 years in the New Haven area, and I have heard plenty from him about various food joints he loved there, and especially about the white clam pizza, which we have worked to perfect over the past few years and now serve at home every New Year’s Eve. A random internet search for this unusual seafood pizza will lead you directly to New Haven, and particularly to Frank Pepe Pizzeria, which has been making white clam pizza since 1925. My mouth was watering from the time we arrived just before noon, and for the entire 30-minute wait, as there was a line of hungry pizza lovers wrapped all the way around the restaurant. We had waited so long for me to have a taste of real Frank Pepe’s pizza, we ordered three of them!
The roasted red pepper and pepperoni pizza (say that three times fast)! 🙂White clam pizza and fresh tomato pizza at Frank Pepe’s.
The crust on the first pizza—roasted red pepper with pepperoni—seemed instantly familiar, with more of the character I had been making at home, and Les agreed it was superior to the pie we had enjoyed the day before on Bleecker St. And there was something different about the flavor of the dough as well, something more complex, and we supposed it had to do with the higher heat ovens than what is used in the N.Y. pizzerias.
Frank Pepe’s uses an enormous coal-fired oven with a brick floor, and the pizzaolo has a pizza peel with a handle that is about 7 feet long—giving him access to load and spin the pizzas in the oven, but at a safe distance from the intense heat.
The coal-fired oven at Frank Pepe’s must be enormous inside, because they are churning out pizzas every few seconds.
My interest was piqued when the other two pizzas arrived at our table. First, there was a fresh tomato pizza, which is a limited-season thing and quite a big deal in New Haven, and it was very fresh and bright, exactly like summer. Finally, the legendary white clam pizza, and I was certain it would be pure nirvana for my taste buds.
Look at the huge chunks of fresh tomato! The white clam pizza is said to have originated at Frank Pepe’s, and they do load it up with clams!
Sometimes your imagination (or even your memory) of something can outrank the real thing and maybe that’s what happened, but it wasn’t until I finally dared to lean across the table and whisper the words, “I think ours at home is better,” and Les instantly agreed, that the reason occurred to me. As quickly as they were churning out specialty pizzas at Frank Pepe Pizzeria, there is no way they can manage using freshly shucked clams, as we do at home every New Year’s Eve. Nope, these clams had to be from a can. Still, the crust was very good and more like the one that Les has encouraged me to emulate. What I didn’t like was the dusty black char that was prevalent across the bottom of the pizzas, and even a bit on top of my white clam slice—it was the stuff we avoid at home by scraping off the hot steel before sliding another pizza into the oven. But I get it, they are slammed busy with a line out the door even as we left. Overall, it was still a great experience, and we boxed up our leftover slices to continue our journey through New Haven.
We had one more pizza joint to experience and it turned out to be the best of the bunch, not only for the pizza but for the overall experience. So much so, in fact, that it deserves its own post—tomorrow!
Until then, please enjoy this recipe—my own—for fresh tomato pizza, which I created at home the first weekend after we returned from our trip!
We don’t have a huge, coal-fired oven, but we are still getting it done at home!
My version used farmers’ market, late-season heirloom tomatoes and some fresh basil I plucked from a plant that was growing on my kitchen counter. It was post-Labor Day, but we were technically still in the final days of summer, and this pizza captured all the beautiful freshness of that.
The base, of course, is what I have long called My Real N.Y. Pizza Dough, but obviously I will have to update that because my careful, ahem, “research” proved my dough more closely resembles what the locals in New Haven call “apizza.”
Ingredients
2 heirloom tomatoes, cut in 1/4’’ slices
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 ball of pizza dough at close to room temperature
About 3/4 cup freshly shredded whole milk mozzarella
A handful of fresh basil leaves
Extra virgin olive oil
*Notes
As always, the oven should be as hot as a home oven goes—550°F. and heated for an hour with a heavy pizza steel for the best-ever, crispy texture. If you do not have a steel, use a pizza stone and preheat to the hottest temperature possible for your particular stone. This combination of steel or stone and very high heat will emulate the brick oven baking that makes this style of pizza so special.
Instructions
Slice your fresh tomatoes and sprinkle them with salt. This will season them, and also draw out excess moisture.
After several minutes, drain the tomatoes on layers of paper towel.
Guess what I did with the tomato juices on the plate? 😉
Shape the pizza dough into a 14″ round. Use the link to my pizza dough recipe if you’d like to see my shaping technique. Season it with salt and pepper and transfer to a prepared pizza peel.
My swirl of sauce is not quite as perfect as that of the experts at Bleecker St. or Frank Pepe, but I’m working on it! Sprinkle on some parm-romano before the other toppings.
Freshly grated, whole milk mozzarella is what I use on most of my pizzas.
Look at these gorgeous fresh tomatoes! I’m already craving this for next summer.
A few fresh basil leaves and a quick drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, and this pie is ready for the oven.
Yeah, baby!!! At 550° F, this is done in about 6 minutes.
My crust more closely resembles the New Haven-style pizzas, especially with the blistered edges from the high heat of our pizza steel. These flavors were simple but amazing!
Spread the tomato slices out onto a large plate and sprinkle kosher salt over them. Be generous with the salt, as it will draw out excess moisture, concentrating the flavor of the tomatoes. Let this rest 20 minutes while you enjoy a cocktail (or whatever you do before dinner). Transfer the tomatoes to layered paper towels and pat dry.I actually poured the salted tomato juice from the plate right into my martini for a savory twist. When Dry January is over, I may do that again! 😉
Shape the dough into a 14” round and place it on a flour and cornmeal-dusted peel. Swirl on sauce, then sprinkle parm-romano evenly, not minding if some of it lands on the dough edges. Scatter the mozzarella on top, give it a few quick twists of freshly cracked black pepper, and arrange the drained tomato slices and basil leaves. Lightly drizzle the top of the pizza with olive oil and dash it off into the screaming-hot oven for about six minutes.
“Live, from Leftover Land!” Wouldn’t that be a fun name for a game show featuring contestants presenting their most creative effort with post-Thanksgiving overflow? At our house, we tend to go all out on Thanksgiving, regardless of whether we have a houseful or a handful of guests. This year, it was the latter, but that did not stop us from cooking a 17-pound bird. It was my year for the turkey, and I broke one of my own cardinal rules in my decision to try a new method, dry brining. My leap of faith paid off, big time, with a juicy, extremely flavorful bird. And now, there’s a bunch left over.
They say “don’t experiment on Thanksgiving,” but this risk paid off in a BIG flavor kind of way.
No matter who cooks the turkey (we alternate years, as part of our pre-marital agreement), the question of how to use the leftovers is always a big one at our house. I adore a good turkey sandwich on homemade bread, but I hardly ever have fresh bread at Thanksgiving, which probably seems strange to anyone who knows my love for sourdough. Despite my best intentions, I did not even save enough time to make the soft dinner rolls that I thought would be so perfect for miniature turkey sandwiches. But I am working today on a loaf of my favorite sourdough sandwich bread to remedy that situation. And Les is pitching in, too. He has all the ingredients he needs for one of his favorite Thanksgiving leftovers—a turkey shepherd’s pie, which also makes excellent use of our leftover garlic mashed potatoes (another of his recipes, and one that we don’t ever seem to make in small quantity). I intend to use up more of the leftover bird in some spicy turkey enchiladas, using handmade corn tortillas, at some point over the next two days before the leftover police come knocking. Food safety experts recommend using the leftovers within a few days, so time’s a ticking and I’ll be on top of it.
In the meantime, we brainstormed ways to bring all the favored flavors of Thanksgiving to a pizza, and this was our result—a deep-dish crust that tastes like sage and onion dressing, with sausage, turkey, sweet potatoes and green bean casserole, all topped off with a quick drizzle of spiced cranberry mayonnaise. The best thing about this pizza (other than the fact we enjoyed it with friends we haven’t spent quality, sit-down time with since before COVID began), was that prep was minimal. Everything was already done on Thanksgiving itself, so it gave us more time to relax over cocktails and simply enjoy the company.
Whether your favorite thing is the turkey or the sides, it’s in there!
If you are struggling with leftovers, give this a try, even if your leftovers look different from ours. This pizza does not rely on traditional Italian ingredients, so you can skip the mozzarella. We used shredded gouda cheese in the base of the pizza, then arranged the other toppings in a way that afforded us a good, balanced bite in every thick, delicious slice.
The holidays are coming at me fast this year, as Hanukkah began last evening and that can only mean one thing. Latkes! Stay tuned…
Coming soon…
Ingredients
1 batch deep dish pizza dough* (see notes)
8 oz. gouda cheese, shredded
1/2 lb. bulk breakfast sausage, crumbled and cooked just until no longer pink
3 stalks celery, cleaned and chopped
1/2 sweet onion or leek, trimmed and chopped
1 generous cup leftover cooked turkey (we used mostly dark meat)
Combine 1/2 cup leftover cranberry sauce and 3 Tbsp. mayonnaise in a smoothie blender. Or flip the ratio if you want it creamier and less tangy. What you don’t use on the pizza will be fantastic on sandwiches!
I considered putting cranberries on the pizza, but decided a cranberry mayo was a better way to go. Whip it up in a smoothie blender.
*Notes
For the dough this time, I used the basic recipe from my post for Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza, but with a few Thanksgiving flavor additions—I added a teaspoon Bell’s seasoning (similar to poultry seasoning) to the flour ingredients and kneaded in about two tablespoons re-hydrated minced onion. These simple adjustments gave us a crust that had all the flavors of Thanksgiving stuffing, a great base for our pizza.
Some Bell’s seasoning and re-hydrated minced onion gave my deep dish dough a decidedly “Thanksgiving-y” twist.Of course, I also used my beloved mushroom and sage oil in the dough. Never miss a chance to add flavor!
Instructions
Get all your topping ingredients lined up and ready. Shape the dough, using plenty of oil in the deep dish pan.
Cheese goes on the bottom of a deep dish pizza, and Les’s suggestion to use gouda was perfect!
Layer on the flavors, beginning with the dressing and turkey flavors.
Next, layer on bits of your side dish flavors. I used leftover spinach balls, dollops of mashed potato and cubes of roasted sweet potatoes.
Finally, the green bean casserole flavors and a few dots of turkey gravy. Thank goodness it congeals in the fridge for easy placement.
Bake at 450° F for 25 minutes, then add the crispy fried onions and bake 10 more minutes.
It smells like Thanksgiving in here! 🙂
Let the pizza cool in the deep dish pan for about 10 minutes before transferring it. Extra hands are helpful here (thanks, Dave)!
Time for the “side” of cranberry! A quick drizzle of the cranberry mayo puts a finishing touch on our leftover pie.
One slice is more than enough to satisfy.
Preheat oven to 450° F with rack in center position of the oven.
Stretch the risen dough into a 14-inch deep dish pan. If it springs back too much, cover and rest it 15 minutes, then proceed.
Scatter cheese over the entire bottom of the dough, then layer on the sausage, celery and onions. Follow that with a scattering of leftover turkey, sweet potatoes and a few dollops of leftover mashed potatoes. Top it off with the green bean casserole mixture and a few spoons of turkey gravy here and there.
Bake for 25 minutes, then sprinkle the fried onions on top and bake 10 minutes more. Allow the pizza to rest for 10 minutes before transferring to a flat pizza pan and slicing. Drizzle with the cranberry mayonnaise just before serving.
Do you notice how Nilla is never far away when the food is being served? ❤
Every so often, I get a kick out of looking at the National Day calendar, which reminds me of the non-official occasions I can choose to celebrate on a given day. For example, yesterday was Talk Like a Pirate Day, but I didn’t mark the occasion because that felt ridiculous.
Perhaps it is a bit of serendipity, or just coincidence (which my husband, Les, does not believe exists) that I discovered today, Sept. 20, is both National Pepperoni Pizza Day and National String Cheese Day. The two seemingly separate “events” are both going to be recognized with this insanely over-the-top deep-dish pizza that we made at our house a full three months ago. Sometimes, in the rush to get something else posted on the blog, I end up putting some delicious thing on the back burner. In this instance, it worked out, because this pizza, which I dubbed “Go Big or Go Home,” happens to be perfect for this day. The toppings included pepperoni, but also sausage, peppers, onions, mushrooms, tomatoes and a ton of cheese, and the Chicago-style crust had a circle of string cheese strips enclosed all around the edges.
So much Italian flavor in here and soooo much cheese!
We had been dreaming about a cheesy stuffed crust pizza for a while, but I had a hard time imagining how to keep thick mozzarella sticks secured inside the dough without making a square pie. My solution was to tear the string cheese into strips and then overlap the strings in layers all the way around. Why didn’t that occur to me sooner? It resulted in a perfectly cheesy, ooey-gooey pizza experience, and made it one of the most fun versions of a deep dish that we have made (so far 😉).
Ingredients
1 recipe deep dish pizza dough (see my previous post for Chicago Deep Dish or use your own)
3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
5 sticks of mozzarella string cheese, pulled apart into about four strips for each
1 packed cup shredded whole milk mozzarella, divided
1/2 cup cooked Italian sausage (we used a spicy variety)
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped and sauteed
1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped and sauteed
About 20 pieces thinly sliced pepperoni
1/2 can San Marzano tomatoes, drained and squeezed by hand
A few spoonfuls of your favorite prepared pizza sauce
Several shakes of your favorite Italian seasoning blend
Instructions
Stripping the string cheese into thinner pieces makes it more “bendy.”
Press out the dough with corn meal, then shape it to the edges of the deep dish pan.
Lay the string cheese strips around the edges of the crust, overlapping them so that every bite will be nice and cheesy.
Stretch the edges of dough up and over the string cheese, pinching and pressing to seal it to the base of the dough.
Use the shredded cheese to compress the edges for an even better seal on the stuffed crust.
Scatter the cooked Italian sausage all over the cheese base.
Next, layer on sauteed peppers, onions and mushrooms.
Arrange the pepperoni slices all over the pie, then place the crushed tomatoes between and around the pepperoni.
For an extra burst of tomato, spread on a few spoonfuls of your favorite prepared pizza sauce.
Sprinkle the toppings and crust with Italian seasoning, then finish off the pie with the remaining shredded mozzarella and any leftover strips of string cheese.
Bake at 450° for 25 to 30 minutes, until crust is golden brown and cheese is browned and bubbly.
When the moon hits your eye….
Cool the pie in the pan for several minutes before you attempt to transfer it. This job requires two large spatulas.
I promise, we will be making this again.
Preheat oven to 450° F, with oven rack in center position.
Add olive oil to a 14-inch, deep dish pizza pan and swirl it around. Shape the pizza dough, leaving as much extra dough around the edges as possible.
Arrange the strips of string cheese, overlapped so there is plenty of cheese thickness all the way around the edges of the pizza dough. Gently stretch and pull the edges of dough over the string cheese strips and press to seal it to the base of the dough. Portion half of the shredded mozzarella onto the base and use your hands to press it firmly into the base of the pizza and also to cover the stuffed crust seam.
Layer on the cooked Italian sausage, then the peppers, onions and mushrooms. Arrange slices of pepperoni generously all over the pizza. Scatter the crushed canned tomatoes randomly over the pepperoni, and then drop a few spoons of pizza sauce in-between the tomatoes and spread it lightly.
Sprinkle the pizza, including the dough around the edges, with your favorite Italian seasoning blend. Sprinkle the rest of the shredded mozzarella, along with any remaining strips of string cheese, on top of the pizza.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbling. The cheese will be lightly browned and bubbling also. Let the pizza cool in the pan for 8 minutes before transferring it to a pizza tray. We use a large pancake turner and a wide fish spatula to get under the pizza to move it. Alternatively, cut the pizza right in the pan and serve up the wedges.
If this were a normal year, the Greek Orthodox church in our city would not have had a long line of cars snaking around it this past weekend, with drivers waiting to purchase prepared food in white Styrofoam take-out boxes. It would not have been nearly so quiet, and it would not have been the impersonal experience my husband, Les, had when he picked up our Saturday night meal. The string of taillights ahead of him and the line of vehicles in his rear-view mirror were a stark contrast to a “normal” mid-May visit to the church’s annual fundraiser.
The Greek Festival should have been a noisy, three-day celebration for all ages, packed with singing, music, dancing, eating, drinking and intermittent yells of, “Opa!!!!” There would be authentic heritage costumes and colorful art for sale and scheduled history lessons inside the Orthodox Church sanctuary. But this has not been a normal year, nor was it last year, when the Greek Festival was cancelled altogether for safety reasons. This year, at least, the church gave it a go by offering drive-through pickup of its most popular food items—some prepared and some frozen. Sadly, the take-out box did not do my hot meal any favors, but I have higher hopes for the spanakopita we tossed into the freezer.
The food is one of the things I usually love most about the Greek Festival, and you can bet I will be there next year when things (hopefully) look more normal. The flavors of the Greek culture are so bold and fresh, and I cannot resist applying them to foods that don’t necessarily speak Greek, including this inspired pizza.
This pie has all my favorite Greek flavors in one bite!
Les and I enjoyed this one a couple of months ago, and I am finally sharing it here on Comfort du Jour. We have a regular tradition of Friday night pizza at our house, and though we do enjoy a classic Italian sausage or pepperoni pie, you know I also love to twist them up with other flavors. Visit the Pizza Party page for a quick review if you are looking for some new topping ideas.
For this tantalizing “Big Fat Greek Pizza,” I started with my own N.Y.-style pizza dough and a simple tomato sauce base, the same as I would use on a traditional Italian pie. Next, I crisped-up bits of “Greek God” sausage, an offering of one of our local butcher counters. The sausage is full of bright herbal flavors—oregano, basil, garlic and rosemary—and I had been imagining it on a pizza for quite some time, though I’m quite sure this pizza would be just as good with no meat. I piled on spinach, red onions, Kalamatas, fresh cherry tomatoes and a whole bunch of feta, and that should have been “Greek” enough. But my favorite part was the dollops of cool cucumber-garlic tzatziki that went into place after the pizza emerged from the oven. The combination of all these ingredients was like a flavor explosion, giving me my very own Greek festival, all in one delicious bite.
Opa!!!
Ingredients
Tzatziki:
1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt, stirred
2 Tbsp. half and half
1/4 cup diced cucumber, seeded and patted dry
1 or 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 Tbsp. fresh dill leaves, chopped (chop some extra for sprinkling over the finished pizza)
Combine ingredients and keep refrigerated until ready to serve pizza.
I usually do not add half and half or cream to my tzatziki, but I wanted it a bit thinner for this recipe.
A little chopped dill adds another layer of flavor to the tzatziki. Fresh is always best, but dried will be fine in a pinch.
1 link cooked and sliced Greek God sausage* or similar product (see notes)
1/2 medium red onion, sliced
1 fat handful baby spinach leaves
Handful of pitted Kalamata olives*, roughly chopped
6 or 7 cherry or grape tomatoes, washed and halved
3/4 cup fresh feta, crumbled*
Additional chopped fresh dill, for serving
*Notes
If you decide to try my version of N.Y. pizza dough, note that it takes a few days’ time in the fridge, so plan accordingly. This recipe is intended for a thin-crust pizza, and my heating and bake time instructions are specific to baking on a pizza steel or stone. If you prefer to bake on a pan or at lower temperature, adjust your baking time to your preferred method.
The “Greek God” sausage I used for this pizza is a specialty product from a specific local grocery. It is a fresh pork sausage, seasoned with basil, oregano, garlic and rosemary, and we cooked (actually, smoked) it prior to using it. Any mild pork, chicken or turkey sausage would make a fine substitute, or you could easily omit the sausage altogether. The other flavors on this pizza are more than enough to elevate your happy.
Kalamata olives are specifically grown in the Kalamata region of Greece, and they are not the same as inexpensive, canned “black” olives. They are more oblong than round, and they are usually packed in a briny liquid with wine or olive oil. It’s easy to find them in jars or on specialty olive bars, if your supermarket has one. They can be a little pricey, but as far as I’m concerned, they are worth their weight in gold. Be sure to select pitted olives for this recipe, unless you find it exciting to crack a tooth.
I prefer to use fresh blocks of feta, as it has better flavor and texture than most crumbled feta. If the feta block is packed in brine, be sure to pat it dry with paper towels before crumbling, to minimize excess moisture.
Instructions
We had a couple of links of this Greek-seasoned sausage leftover from a recent batch we had smoked. I sliced and crisped it for texture.
Saute the onion just until it begins to soften.
Saute the baby spinach just until leaves are wilted.
Use sauce sparingly for best results. For a standard 14-inch pizza, about 4 tablespoons will do it. You should be able to see the dough through the sauce.
Sprinkle on a few shakes of grated parm-romano, then scatter the shredded mozzarella evenly over the sauce base.
Layer on the cooked ingredients first.
Next comes the briny, juicy Kalamata olives. I could eat these things for breakfast, I like them so much!
Arrange the cherry tomatoes face-up, so they don’t lose their moisture into the pizza. Then scatter the crumbled feta over the whole pie. Slide it into the oven until the crust is golden brown.
Looks darn delicious, right? But I’m about to elevate these Greek flavors one more time.
Distribute dollops of the cool, fresh tzatziki over the pie. Make sure each slice will have its fair share.
Finally, a sprinkling of more fresh dill. This flavor livens up a dish in a hurry!
Cue the bouzouki player! Time to get this personal Greek Festival started!
Preheat pizza steel for one hour at 550° F, or the recommended temperature for your pizza stone, with oven rack about 8 inches from the top heat element. If using a metal pan, place rack in lower third of oven.
Prepare toppings: sauté red onion just until softened, then sauté spinach until wilted. Transfer both to a dish to cool.
Shape pizza dough into a 14-inch round and transfer to a floured pizza peel that is dusted with cornmeal (or place on a greased pizza pan). Brush or spray dough with olive oil, and season with kosher salt and a few twists of black pepper.
Spread tomato sauce evenly over the dough, all but 1 inch around edge.
Distribute the shredded mozzarella, then the cut-up, cooked sausage pieces (if using), onions and spinach, Kalamatas, tomatoes and feta cheese.
Transfer pizza to preheated steel or stone, and bake for about 7 minutes, until crust is golden brown and toppings are bubbling.
Arrange small dollops of tzatziki sauce over pizza, sprinkle with remaining dill leaves.
In our early months of getting to know each as slightly more than “just friends,” my husband, Les, and I took a road trip into southern Virginia for an afternoon of antiquing. He had been working on redecorating his living room and was on the search for an interesting accent table or other cool décor item. And mostly, we were both looking for new ways to hang out together.
Along the way, we found this funky table with an adjustable wooden top that screwed down into the base. It was not very practical, given that the three legs are not properly spaced out and it tipped over if you set something on it. But it was fun and different, and with a fresh coat of paint, it livened up his living space. We also stopped at a few roadside stands, browsing through fresh peaches, honey, jams and preserves, along with all varieties of handmade crafts.
The most fun thing about that day, though, was our visit to a Mexican restaurant called Chile Rojo, just inside the N.C. state line. The music and décor were lively, the food was delish and the company of this guy who once seemed so serious to me was just about the best thing going. Les and I met in a pool hall, where we both played in a 9-ball league, and our first impressions of each other (as is often the case with married couples) were not particularly positive. He thought I was flirty (for sure, I was) and a bit on the flighty side. I thought he was intense and without much sense of humor. I couldn’t have been more wrong about that second part, and it was interactions such as this road trip that really helped me see the relaxed, authentic side of this man who would, nearly two years later, become my husband.
It didn’t hurt that we both have a passion for great food and adventurous palates that make us open to trying each other’s favorite things. On this visit to Chile Rojo, his eyes scanned the menu, landing on their choriqueso dip, which he called “queso fundido.” It was a typical Mexican queso dip—creamy, melty and salty—but this one had spicy, crispy bits of chorizo sausage floating around in it, causing a flavor explosion in every bite. Truth be told, I had probably experienced this stuff at some point in my past, and maybe I had just never heard the name of it. But in the heat of that July evening, as Les and I sipped our Mexican lagers and enjoyed dragging our crispy warm tortilla chips through this queso fundido dip, everything seemed new and delicious.
Inspired by the best choriqueso dip ever, we created a pizza that displays all the fiesta-fresh flavors of queso fundido!
That first of many road trips for us as a couple is still on my mind whenever we order queso fundido, and in honor of Cinco de Mayo this week, Les and I decided to put those fabulous flavors onto a pizza. My Real N.Y. Pizza Dough went south of the border for the occasion, as I subbed in a portion of corn flour for the usual amount of whole wheat flour, a subtle nod to the tortilla chips we like so much. Shredded pepperjack cheese provided a base for the toppings. The chorizo sausage was browned up with chopped onions, and accompanied by fire-roasted corn, pickled jalapeno and fresh slices of fresno chiles. The hot oven transformed the dollops of melty queso dip into blistered patches of ooey-gooey deliciousness, and when we pulled the pizza from the hot steel, we topped it with cool cubes of avocado and fresh cilantro leaves. Like all of our adventures, this pizza was awesome.
Oh, and it turns out Les isn’t always so serious. Thank goodness, because neither am I. ❤
Me, being loco in love at Chile Rojo, 2015.
Ingredients
2 chorizo sausage links, casings removed
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 cup cream, half and half or whole milk* (see notes)
3 oz. white American cheese, cubed*
2 oz. cheddar and pepperjack cheese combination
A few shakes Flatiron Pepper Co. hatch valley green chiles (optional, but wow)
1/2 cup fire-roasted corn (fresh or frozen)
Small handful pickled jalapenos, patted dry on paper towels
1 cup shredded pepper jack cheese (or Monterey Jack for less heat)
For serving:
1/2 avocado, cubed
Handful fresh cilantro, washed and chopped
Fresh squeeze of lime
*Notes
Depending on the type of dairy you use (cream, half and half or milk), you may need to adjust the ratio a bit. Cream, of course, has the highest fat content and whole milk has the lowest. I do not recommend 2% or skim milk for queso, as they don’t have the fat content to support the melted cheese. For readers abroad, “half and half” is a popular product in the U.S. that is essentially a 50/50 mix of cream and milk, and it amounts to about 12% milkfat.
I always use American cheese for its incredible meltability. I’m not sure if that is a word, but I think you understand my point! Regular cheddar has great flavor on its own, but without the special enzymes that exist in American cheese, a sauce made with only cheddar will break in the heat of the oven. I purchase American cheese in chunks at the deli counter of my supermarket, rather than the dairy aisle.
Our pizzas are baked on a steel, preheated at 550°F for an hour before baking. If you bake at a lower temperature, you will need to adjust baking time, and consider turning on the broiler for a brief minute at the end, to put a nice blister on the queso topping.
Note also that this pizza is par-baked before the queso dip is added, then returned to the oven for final browning. Do not add the queso at the start of the baking time, as it will burn and may prevent even cooking of the dough.
The queso is beautifully browned and creamy, and the chorizo crisped up a bit in the oven.
Instructions
First, the queso dip, which we love on its own, so we made more than we needed for this pizza. Without question, we will enjoy the rest on homemade nachos or just snacking with tortilla chips. If you make the queso ahead of time, note that it will become solid in the fridge. No worries, just warm on low heat to creamy consistency again, and cool to room temp for topping the pizza.
I usually use some amount of American cheese when I make a cheese sauce, because the special enzymes and salts make it super melty.
Whisk the American cheese and cream together until it is smooth and silky.
For color and added flavor, I tossed in a broken up slice of cheddar and a few chunks of spicy pepperjack, and whisked until this was smooth and melted.
And just for kicks, I sprinkled in a few quick shakes of this hatch valley green chile pepper. This company does not compensate me for my recommendation, but as much as we love and use their products, they should!
This is the right consistency; thick and creamy, but also smooth enough to ooze off my whisk. It will chill up solid in the fridge, so if you are working ahead, warm it up again before making the pizza.
When you are ready to make the pizza, preheat the oven to 550°F if using a steel, or the recommended temperature for your pizza stone. Your oven rack should be about 8 inches from the top of the oven. If you are using a pizza pan, place the rack in the lower third of the oven to ensure thorough baking of the crust, and plan to adjust your baking time.
And now, the rest of the pizza!
Never use a rolling pin on your pizza dough. Try to keep some of the air bubbles in the dough for a lighter, crispier crust texture. See my previous post for N.Y. Pizza Dough for more shaping tips.
Spray or brush the crust with oil, then season with salt and pepper before adding a layer of pepperjack down as the base for other toppings.
The onions and chorizo are next. You can see how much of the chorizo flavor was cooked into those onions!
Add roasted corn, if you wish. Mine was frozen but thawed first.
We love spicy stuff at our house, but if you prefer, top the pizza with sliced sweet peppers. We used fresh Fresno chiles and pickled hot jalapenos.
Par-bake the pizza for about four minutes, then pull it out to apply dollops of the queso dip. When cooled to room temp, you should expect it to be somewhat clumpy. Then, back into the oven for three more minutes!
Queso fundido, indeed-o!
The pizza would have been delicious as it was, but we could not resist adding a sprinkle of fresh chopped cilantro and cool cubes of avocado for serving.
And a quick squeeze of fresh lime makes this pizza a fiesta on a plate!
This was one of our best-ever unconventional pizzas!
“Riders up!” will be the exclamation this Saturday evening, when the jockeys rev up their adrenaline to compete in the Kentucky Derby, which has long been called “the greatest two minutes in sports.” I cannot claim to know much about the horses or the race, but I do enjoy the culinary traditions that accompany this annual event. The signature drink, of course, is the mint julep, which I have globalized this year by swapping in a mint relative to create a Thai Basil Julep. The signature dish of the Derby is an open-faced beauty of a sandwich known as the Kentucky Hot Brown, created in the 1920s by chefs in the Brown Hotel in Louisville, which is also home to the Derby. The Hot Brown is an all-American spin on a Welsh rarebit, served warm with slices of turkey breast and fresh tomato, draped in Mornay sauce and topped with criss-crossed slices of bacon—all of that lusciousness is piled high on a thick slice of buttery, toasted brioche points. It’s a tradition so beloved in Kentucky, the Brown Hotel’s website has a special page dedicated to the Hot Brown.
That’s the tradition, anyway. But in case you haven’t noticed, I’m not prone to follow tradition to the letter. I am all about twisting up the classics, and I’m doing it again, moving all the Kentucky Hot Brown ingredients off the thick brioche and onto a thin crust pizza. All the proper flavors are in attendance, but in a slightly different order and a more casual presentation. You’re welcome.
I have taken one major shortcut, using low-sodium, deli turkey breast slices. The turkey, in my opinion, is not the star of a Kentucky hot brown, so I don’t need to roast my own. The smoky bacon is par-cooked, but still soft, because I know that it will take on more crispiness under the intense heat of my oven. The tomatoes are simple—just thin slices of fresh Roma, a low-moisture variety that won’t make my pizza soggy, and it will provide some freshness to cut through the richness. That leaves only one component—the Mornay—and that is where I put most of my energy for this pizza interpretation of a Kentucky hot brown. Mornay is the special sauce that elevates all the other flavors, transforming a turkey and bacon sandwich into something rich and special. And it’s easy to make, beginning with a simple bechamel.
If the idea of bechamel seems intimidating, I suppose you can blame it on the French name. Thankfully, when my Gram taught me to make it so many years ago, she just called it “white sauce,” and she made it so often that it never occurred to me to be nervous about it. Take away the fancy name and bechamel is nothing more than small amounts of butter and flour, cooked until bubbly and whisked up with milk, then accented with freshly grated nutmeg. There’s nothing fancy about it, and it is terrifically versatile. A quick stir-in of gruyere cheese and a little white pepper makes it a Mornay and transforms this turkey and bacon pizza into a Kentucky hot brown pie.
Do yourself a favor and prep all the ingredients ahead of time. Once this pizza party begins, things move quickly. Kind of like the Kentucky Derby.
Ingredients
1 1/2 Tbsp. salted butter
2 Tbsp. finely diced onion
2 tsp. all-purpose flour
1 cup whole milk
About 1/8 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1 oz. white American cheese*
2 oz. cubed smoked Gruyere cheese*
2 Tbsp. shredded white cheddar*
A pinch of ground white pepper
4 slices thin-cut smoked bacon, stretched and cut into two-inch pieces
This particular Gruyere is a processed cheese. I would not recommend this for a charcuterie board, but it is great for melting.
Low-sodium is the way to go, because there are already a lot of salty flavors on this pie.
I’ve chosen Roma tomatoes for their meaty texture and low moisture. You could also use cherry tomatoes, cut in half and face-up.
*Notes
American cheese is usually some form of cheddar, processed with a special enzyme and salts that make it ultra-melty. This is a go-to ingredient for any creamy cheese sauce I make. If you are skittish about using “processed” cheese, you can use regular block cheese, but the sauce will not be as creamy and is likely to separate and become oily during baking of the pizza.
The Boar’s Head brand of smoked Gruyere that I used here is also a processed cheese, but a regular Gruyere will work fine in combination with the white American cheese. In the original Brown Hotel recipe, a good Parmesan would be in order. I selected this cheese for the smoke flavor, to play up the smoky bacon.
I recommend using a low-sodium version of turkey breast, or fresh, home-roasted if you wish. Typical deli turkey is very salty, and it may be too much, given that the bacon and cheese sauce already have a fair amount of sodium.
For this pie, I did something a little different with my N.Y. pizza dough. I subbed in a small portion of corn flour, as a subtle nod to the bourbon in our accompanying Derby drinks. It was terrific! Never stop experimenting, friends. If you choose to use my pizza dough recipe, please note that it should be made a couple of days ahead, so plan accordingly.
I bake my N.Y.-style pizzas on a pizza steel at 550° F. If you use a stone, follow manufacturer’s instructions. If you use a pan, do yourself a big favor and buy a stone or a steel. 😉 We use a steel made by Dough-Joe, and it has been an absolute game changer for our pizzas at home.
Instructions
Melt the butter over medium-low heat. Gently saute the diced onion until they are soft and translucent.
Add the flour to the sizzling butter and whisk until smooth.
Allow this roux to cook for a few minutes, to soften the flavors. If you move too quickly through a roux, your sauce will have a pasty, flour taste.
Add the milk to the bubbly flour mixture, and whisk until smooth. Stir frequently to prevent burning on the bottom. It will take several minutes for the mixture to thicken.
When sauce has thickened, grate a bit of fresh nutmeg into it. I recently bought new nutmeg, and WOW! The flavor is so big, I didn’t realize how stale my previous nutmeg had become.
Add the American cheese cubes to the sauce and whisk until melted and smooth.
Add the Gruyere cubes to the sauce and whisk until melted. The smoked edges of this cheese will not melt smooth, but it’s OK.
For a little bit of “real” cheese flavor, I also whisked in a small amount of shredded white cheddar.
The finished sauce is smooth, except for bits of onion and some remaining smoked edges of the Gruyere. It’s going to be so good with the hot brown flavors!
Cook the bacon pieces until the fat is somewhat rendered, and bacon is cooked but not crisp.
Cut the turkey slices into strips, then shreds. It will be easier to scatter it evenly over the bottom of the pizza.
Lay the tomatoes onto a paper towel to absorb excess moisture, and give them a quick pinch of salt and pepper. Strip the thyme leaves from the stems for topping the pie.
For pizza dough shaping tips, see my post for N.Y. Pizza Dough. I’ve used semolina flour on the counter here to prevent sticking.
It should be stretched out into a circle, about 14 inches across.
Smear dollops of the room temperature Mornay across the surface of the dough. It does not have to cover every inch of the dough. Remember that it will melt and spread a bit on the hot steel.
Turkey goes on first, to prevent it from drying out. Then, scatter the bacon pieces, making sure every slice will have enough.
Arrange the tomato slices over the top, leaving gaps between.
Time for the rest of the Mornay! Strategically place small dollops between and around the toppings. Don’t try to bury anything, and keep it away from the edges.
Finally, “a pinch of thyme.” This is an excellent finishing touch, and I will have much more to say about this in the very near future.
The camera does not quite capture the drama of the Mornay sauce, bubbling up as the hot brown pizza bakes.
Kentucky Hot Brown pizza, anyone?
Prepare the bechamel by melting butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the diced onion. When butter begins to brown, add flour and whisk until smooth. Continue cooking, whisking occasionally, until flour begins to brown and is very bubbly.
Add milk and whisk until blended and thickened. Continue to cook a few minutes to soften the flavor. Stir in the freshly grated nutmeg and the skinniest pinch of kosher salt.
Add the cubes of American cheese and whisk until melted. Repeat with smoked Gruyere and then with cheddar. Stir in the white pepper. Remove from heat and cover the pan so that the sauce does not form a skin. If you work ahead and refrigerate this, warm it to smooth, spreadable consistency before making the pizza.
In a cast-iron skillet, cook the bacon pieces over medium-low heat, long enough to render the fat and brown the meat, but not long enough to crisp it. Transfer bacon pieces to a paper towel to drain excess fat.
Cut the deli turkey slices into thin strips, then chop cross-wise into bits.
Spread the tomato slices onto a paper towel and season with kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper. Rinse the thyme sprigs, then pat dry and strip the leaves from the tough stems.
Shape the pizza dough into a 14-inch round and place it on a floured, cornmeal-dusted peel for easy transfer to the oven.
Spoon small dollops of the cooled Mornay sauce onto the dough, and gently even it across the dough with the back of your spoon.
Arrange the turkey all over the sauce, then the bacon and tomato slices.
Add more small dollops of Mornay, between and around the other ingredients. It’s OK to overlap the other toppings, but try not to “bury” them, and keep the dollops away from the edges of the pie.
Sprinkle all over with the fresh thyme leaves, and slide the pizza onto the hot steel. Bake for about 7 minutes, until crust is golden and crispy and Mornay is browned and bubbly.
I didn’t have much notice to plan for it or I would have announced to all of you that this past Friday was “National Make a Ruckus Day.” My husband, Les, and I have been planning various improvement projects this spring, and we had no sooner made a final decision on the color of architectural shingles we liked for a roof revamp when his phone rang just after dinner Thursday night. The shingles were in stock and the weather was right, so the crew would arrive at the crack of dawn!
The crew arrived early, and there were either six or seven of them—it was hard to tell because they didn’t stand still long enough for a headcount, and I am still in a bit of shock that their work was completed in one day. The noise was non-stop, from the stomping overhead, to the ripping and peeling sounds of the old shingles coming off, to the banging of hammers and air nailers installing the new roofing materials, to the construction-grade boombox that was blasting lively mariachi music just outside my home office window. All day Friday, both entrances to our home were blocked, and tarps stretched out across the yard to catch the refuse that was being flung from above. Les was working from home that day, so we were sequestered into our own “zones” of the house. The dog, who is terrified of any noise she cannot see, spent most of the day crammed against my knees underneath my work desk, the cat was just plain pissed that she couldn’t go outside (she didn’t understand that her life might have been at risk), and I was so frazzled about all of the above that I started contemplating tequila shots at about 2 in the afternoon.
I’m just gonna stay under here today, OK, mom?
Leave. Me. Alone. (the cat)
On top of what was happening at our address, the neighbors across the cul-de-sac had a contractor show up to replace flooring in their master bedroom, and our yard crew was running a day behind on mowing and trimming, so they showed up on Friday to pretty up the common spaces.
There were trucks and trailers and service vans everywhere, and full-on RUCKUS.
No way I was getting out the front door.
Look out below! Shingles were flying off the roof outside the back door, too.
There was no way I could escape the house, even to take my daily walk, let alone to make a grocery run, and so I was thankful that dinner was already planned. The whole experience of chaos, Les said, was good practice for the excitement we will experience if we follow through on remodeling our kitchen later this year. I’ve been griping about our kitchen since I moved into the house with him a few years ago, and we are finally ready to apply solutions for our lack of counter space, poor traffic flow and shortage of pantry storage. But committing to the project is scary, not only for the cost, but the time involved. Each contractor we have spoken to has said, “plan for at least six weeks without your kitchen.” And it is true—no matter what Chip and JoJo seem to accomplish in one houron HGTV—new kitchens take time, and that will be a big challenge. We will figure out how to eat, but how will I be able to sustain the blog?
There might be a lot of grilling recipes coming your way, or it could be a good time for me to catch up on the vast backlog of recipes I have made but not yet transformed into posts. Or I may turn my attention to other ideas I have had for Comfort du Jour, including fun furniture projects and artistic ventures. I’ve gotten pretty good over the years at upcycling tables and worn out chairs. Of course, I may also spend six weeks sharing nothing but cocktail recipes, which—given my low tolerance for ruckus—will probably be in hot rotation.
Anyway, we relaxed under our new roof Friday night with this pizza, our interpretation of one of our favorite take-out sandwiches. We have long enjoyed the “big kahuna” sandwich from Jersey Mike’s, which is a variation of a Philly cheesesteak, but with mushrooms and jalapenos thrown into the mix, and plenty of gooey white cheese. The sandwich is awesome (especially when we ask for extra jalapenos), but it’s so packed with ingredients that we knew that our usual N.Y. thin crust could not hold it all in pizza form.
This beautifully browned pie emerged from the oven with the most pleasing aroma.
We went with a deep-dish pie this time, beginning with the crust, adapted from a King Arthur Baking recipe. I followed the recipe nearly to the letter except for a partial sub-in of white whole wheat flour. You know I’m always going to share my honest opinion, and frankly, I did not love this crust. It was easy enough to make, and instructions were clear and complete, but the recipe called for oil and also quite a bit of melted butter, which I haven’t really seen before as an ingredient for pizza dough. It rose on schedule and baked up beautifully, but the end result, for me, was too similar to pie crust or biscuits, and not quite right for pizza. I would consider it again for some kind of vegetable tart, but for pizza I will stick with the formula offered by Jeff Mauro from Food Network. His recipe with all olive oil makes a wonderful, crunchy-but-soft crust that is so, so good on a deep-dish pizza.
As with most near-misses in our kitchen, this pizza was still delicious. And it was extra yummy after such an unexpectedly noisy Friday.
It’s helpful to have ingredients prepped and ready before you begin cooking.
Just for grins, and an extra kick of pepper flavor, I added a few shakes of this blend to my cheese sauce. We have loved every flavor we have tried from this company!
This type of ultra-thin steak is not always in stock at the markets where I shop, but when I find it, I cannot resist making something resembling a Philly cheesesteak.
Let’s walk through it together:
I love the smell of peppers and onions together! Saute these until the veggies are soft, then transfer to a dish so the skillet is ready for its next job.
Saute the mushrooms and garlic in the same skillet, and transfer these to the toppings dish.
The shaved steak browns very quickly. Don’t crowd the pan, or the meat will steam rather than brown. Cook it in batches until all is cooked.
Sprinkle flour into the melted butter to create a base for the white cheese sauce.
Add milk to the roux after it is golden and bubbly.
Whisk the mixture constantly to smooth out lumps. When it thickens, add more milk. Repeat until sauce is desired consistency.
Add the American cheese chunks to the sauce and whisk until they are melted and the sauce is smooth.
Just for grins, and an extra kick of pepper flavor, I added a few shakes of this blend to my cheese sauce. We have loved every flavor we have tried from this company!
My sauce was a little on the thick side, so I whisked in a few tablespoons of cream (because I ran out of milk).
The cheese sauce should be thin enough to drizzle on top of the pizza after the toppings are loaded.
Add plenty of olive oil to the deep dish before shaping the dough. This contributes to the signature texture of the crust.
The cheese goes on the bottom of a deep-dish pizza, and seems to protect the crust from getting soggy during baking. Here, I am using the cheese to press the dough into shape.
Arrange all the toppings next: steak, peppers, onions, mushrooms and garlic.
When we order a Big Kahuna sandwich from Jersey Mike’s, we always ask for extra jalapenos. Use as many as you like, or skip them if they don’t agree with your palate.
Pour the entire batch of white cheese sauce all over the pizza toppings. Ideally, you want it to seep under and around to fill in the gaps.
I had to use a spatula to “help” the sauce find its way. Next time, I will stir the toppings together with the cheese sauce and load it all at once.
One final twist of freshly cracked pepper, then this pie is headed into the oven!
This beautifully browned pie emerged from the oven with the most pleasing aroma. Let the pizza rest about 15 minutes before transferring to a sheet pan for serving.
Instructions
Prepare the dough for your deep-dish pizza. This will take some time, depending on the recipe you choose.
Place a cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Add a couple swirls of olive oil and saute the onions, bell peppers, mushrooms and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Onions should be soft and translucent and mushrooms should be browned on both sides. Transfer vegetables to a dish and set aside.
In the same skillet, over medium-high heat, swirl in olive oil to cover the bottom of the pan. When oil is shimmering, add the shaved steak, a few pieces at a time, and toss around to brown it all over. Don’t overcrowd the pan, or the meat will steam rather than brown. Transfer cooked steak to a dish and continue until all the steak is cooked. You may not use all of it on the pizza.
Make the white cheese sauce, beginning with a butter and flour roux in a medium saucepan. Heat the butter until bubbly, then add the flour and whisk together until it appears foamy and the butter is browned. Add the milk all at once and whisk constantly until mixture is smooth, thickened and lightly bubbling. Add cubed American cheese and stir or whisk until melted. Reduce heat to very low to keep sauce slightly warm and pourable while you prep the pizza crust.
Preheat oven to 450° F, with oven rack in the center of the oven.
Place your prepared deep-dish dough into a 14-inch pan (or two 9-inch cake pans), and press gently to spread the dough out to the edges and up the sides about an inch. If the dough is very springy, cover the pan for 15 minutes, allowing the gluten to relax before proceeding.
Scatter the shredded pepperjack cheese evenly over the pizza dough, and press down firmly to ensure good coverage.
Load up your toppings, including the steak, vegetables and jalapeno peppers.
Drizzle the white cheese sauce all over the top. If the sauce does not readily flow into the nooks and crannies, give it an assist with a spatula or spoon.
Bake for about 25 minutes, until the cheese sauce is browned and bubbling, and crust is a deep golden brown. Check on it at the halfway point, and tent loosely with foil, if necessary, to prevent over-browning of the cheese. Rest finished pizza about 15 minutes before using large spatulas to transfer it to a cutting board or round pizza sheet.
Les is so good at this part! He uses a large spatula and a fish turner to move the whole pie.
In case you are curious about the outcome… Wow, what a difference a day can make!
For such a short month, February has a lot going on, holiday- and event-wise. There’s Super Bowl, which is traditionally the first Sunday of the month; Valentine’s Day, which is fixed on the 14th; and Mardi Gras, which floats on the lunar calendar in tandem with Ash Wednesday. It’s enough to make even the most adept party planner a little dizzy, and for the average person at home, it isn’t easy to celebrate all three (at least, not when you’re hosting others). I’ve wanted to do some kind of Mardi Gras dish for a while, and with Super Bowl and Valentine’s Day behind us, here’s what I’ve come up with for our small celebration—all the exciting flavors of jambalaya piled into a deep-dish pizza.
The only thing missing from this jambalaya-inspired pizza is the rice, and guess what? We didn’t miss it!
As with the other two February events, it is just the two of us celebrating, and that makes it less intimidating for me. Les and I both love Cajun and Creole flavors, and he brought home some authentic spice blends from a work-related trip to “N’awlins” a couple of years ago, so I already have the right accent. We have some fabulous jazzy blues music to help us get in the mood, and I’m sure we have some beads around here somewhere. Weeknights are always great for a casual meal, and pizza has become one of my “blank canvas” foods, begging for interesting flavor twists. I’m going deep dish on this one because you cannot skimp on Mardi Gras (which translates from French to “fat Tuesday”), and I’m not sure that our usual N.Y.-style crust can handle all this excitement.
Most of the fillings are obviously traditional, from the zesty smoked andouille sausage, through the holy trinity aromatic vegetables and spices, and the plump and juicy Gulf shrimp. I omitted rice because we have quite enough carbs in my part-cornmeal deep dish pizza dough. Creole foods have tomato, so that’s an easy crossover ingredient for pizza. But what about cheese? I wracked my brain and could not think of a single regional dish that includes cheese, but on a deep-dish pie, the cheese on the bottom seems to shield the tender crust from wet filling ingredients, so I didn’t feel right skipping it.
In the end, I opted for the mildest firm cheese I could think of—one that would not clash with all these great Louisiana flavors. Monterey Jack is sturdy enough to line the pizza dough, but it melts well, and it kept my deep-dish dinner from singing the soggy-bottom blues.
Speaking of the blues, we can’t celebrate Mardi Gras without music, so go put on your favorite New Orleans jazz, or enjoy what I listened to while making this pizza:
Ingredients
Any of these spices will help me give a Louisiana flair to my deep dish pizza. And, of course, the holy trinity!
I’ve chosen andouille, chicken thigh and gulf shrimp, but not so much to overload the pizza.
2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil (mine was infused with cayenne)
2 links smoked andouille sausage, sliced or chopped (I used Aidell’s)
1 boneless chicken thigh, cut into bite-sized bits
2 ribs celery, finely chopped
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1/2 cup each red and green bell pepper, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
Cajun or Creole seasoning (as much as you can stand)
3 sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves removed
1 1/2 cups canned diced tomatoes, divided (see instructions)
Handful of fresh okra, sliced (or about 3/4 cup frozen sliced okra)
2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
Splash of veggie or chicken broth (optional, for deglazing the skillet)
4 large gulf shrimp (about 1/4 pound), peeled and deveined)
4 oz. shredded or sliced Monterey jack cheese
Instructions
Let’s run through it together in pictures while you enjoy the Bluesiana Triangle, then keep scrolling for written instructions and a downloadable PDF for your recipe files.
The andouille was already cooked, but I wanted to put a crispy edge on it, so I sauteed it in cayenne-infused olive oil.
The chicken was only cooked a couple of minutes, until it was no longer pink.
The Cajun garlic seasoning was my pick for seasoning up the trinity. I cooked the vegetables until they were nice and soft.
Half of the tomatoes went into the pan with the trinity, a nod to the Creole culture, and perfect for a pizza.
Fresh okra would have been great, but I tossed in a handful of frozen okra slices, and cooked only until they were heated through.
A splash of red wine vinegar (or just red wine) wakes up the flavors even more.
I quick-cooked the shrimp pieces in a bit of veggie stock that I was using to deglaze the pan, but I probably could have added them directly to cook in the oven.
I put all of these toppings into the fridge until baking time. Working ahead gives me a chance to clean up the mess in the kitchen in between! 🙂
I chose Monterey jack for its mild flavor, and on a deep-dish pizza, the cheese goes on the bottom. After arranging it, I pressed it down onto the dough.
Layer the sausage, chicken and veggies over the cheese.
The shrimp pieces really make it feel like jambalaya and I wanted them to shine, so they went on top of the other fillings.
The remaining canned tomatoes were scattered on top, along with the last shreds of Monterey jack and a generous shake of the Cajun garlic seasoning.
Let the good times roll!
Look at that thick, golden crust! Let the pizza cool in the pan about five minutes, then transfer to a sheet pan for slicing.
Every bite had all the flavors you’d expect in a jambalaya. This was a fun twist on a Cajun classic!
Place a large non-stick skillet over medium heat and swirl in olive oil. When oil is hot enough to shimmer, add cut up andouille sausage and toss until edges are crispy. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the sausage to a bowl and set aside.
Add the chicken pieces to the remaining oil and toss them about until no longer pink. Transfer chicken to the bowl with the sausage.
Add trinity plus garlic to the skillet and toss in the hot oil. Shake on Cajun or creole seasoning to suit your spicy preferences. Grind some black pepper into the pan and sauté vegetables until they are soft and translucent. Scatter the fresh thyme leaves over the vegetables.
Add diced tomatoes, okra and red wine vinegar. Toss and cook until okra is heated through, about five minutes. Turn off heat and allow vegetables to rest a few minutes, then transfer to a bowl and set aside.
If your skillet has any browned bits on the bottom, swirl in a splash of veggie broth and heat to a simmer. Cut the shrimp into bite-sized pieces and toss them into the simmering broth. Cook only long enough for the shrimp to be barely done, which may only be about two minutes. Transfer the shrimp to the bowl with sausage and chicken and set aside.
At this point, if you’re working ahead, you can refrigerate all cooked ingredients, and then bring them to near-room temperature when you are ready to assemble the pizza.
Ready to bake:
Preheat oven to 450° F, with rack in center of oven.
Spread prepared dough into pan, with edges creeping up the side a bit.
Layer ingredients in the following order: Monterey jack, most of the andouille sausage, chicken, vegetables, shrimp, remaining sausage, additional diced tomatoes. Sprinkle with Cajun seasoning.
Bake 25 minutes, rotating pizza halfway through baking time. Rest pizza 5 minutes, then carefully lift and transfer pizza to a flat pizza pan or serving platter. Cut into wedges.