Deep Dish Sausage & Bacon Pizza

, , , , , , , 4 Comments

There are some great food blogs out there, and with a mere 39 food blogs in my Feedly I know that I haven’t even scratched the surface.  I keep discovering new ones and it’s so much fun to see the yummy and creative things people come up with and the amazing photos people take of their food!  It’s both inspiring…and a little frustrating!  Where do you find the time to make a meal in the middle of the day and photograph it so it looks beautiful?!

I came across Seasons and Suppers a few months ago and it never disappoints.  The recipes always look and sound delicious.  While some are totally approachable, others are those I plan to just drool over from afar rather than attempt myself.  But this recipe for deep dish pizza was something I knew I had to try.

deepdishpizza8

This pizza crust is crazy delicious and has a terrific chew thanks to the cornmeal.  I didn’t make the pizza sauce from the original recipe, but plan to sometime!  It seems simple and delicious.  I used the sausage and bacon called for in the original recipe, but you could use any toppings (I guess they’re more like fillings in a pizza like this) that you like.  Jennifer says to add a layer of pepperoni for a meatier pizza…genius.

I wouldn’t bake this ahead of time, it’s best right out of the oven, bu there are some things you can do to make dinnertime less stressful.  Cook the bacon and the sausage and slice the cheese (if you need to) earlier in the day and store in the refrigerator.  You can also do those things while the dough is rising.

deepdishpizza6 deepdishpizza5 deepdishpizza4

I topped our slices of pizza with some fresh basil and a little extra parmesan.  Paired with a green salad you have a dinner that won’t disappoint.  Unless someone you’re serving doesn’t like pizza, in which case I’d reconsider your friendship…but not really…but maybe.

deepdishpizza9

Check out Seasons and Suppers, you will not regret it.  Thanks for the recipe, Jennifer!

Deep Dish Sausage & Bacon Pizza

From Seasons and Suppers

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

Dough

  • 3/4 cup warm water (about 100°F)
  • 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
  • 1/4 cup cornmeal
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon sugar

Pizza

  • 12 ounces Italian sausage, cooked and drained
  • 4-5 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
  • 8 ounces mozzarella cheese, sliced
  • 14 ounce jar of pizza sauce (or make your own)
  • Freshly grated Parmesan for topping, at least 1/2 cup, plus a little extra
  • Freshly chopped basil for garnish

Directions

Dough

  1. Combine warm water, yeast and a pinch of sugar in a small bowl.  Mix together then let sit for 5 minutes until it’s foamy.
  2. Fit your stand mixer with the dough hook.  Combine 1 cup of the flour with the cornmeal and sugar in the bowl of the mixer.  Add in the yeast mixture and stir on low to combine.  Stir in the oil.  Add in remaining flour, 1/4 cup at a time, until dough holds together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
  3. Oil a large bowl, then transfer the pizza dough to the bowl, cover with a clean towel and allow to rise for about an hour.

Pizza

  1. Preheat your oven to 425°F.
  2. Grease a cast iron skillet with olive oil, then lightly dust with cornmeal.
  3. Flour a clean work surface and dump out the pizza dough.  Knead a little to bring it together in a nice ball.  Then roll it out in a circle just larger than your skillet.  Fit the dough into the bottom and up the sides of the skillet.  Tuck excess dough underneath or trim it off.
  4. Cover the bottom of the pizza with a layer of mozzarella cheese, but don’t use it all.
  5. Layer the sausage and bacon next, followed by the rest of the mozzarella.
  6. Pour the pizza sauce on top, then sprinkle with the parmesan cheese.
  7. Bake the pizza, uncovered, for 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes check the crust, if it is getting too dark, then cover the pizza with foil and bake for 5-10 minutes more.
  8. Let cool for 10 minutes before slicing or removing from the skillet to a cutting board to slice.
  9. Serve sprinkled with some fresh basil and extra parmesan.

Daring Bakers: Almond Nougat, a Candy Castastrophe

, , , , , 8 Comments

The March 2014 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Rebecca of BakeNQuilt. She challenged us to learn to make classic nougat and to make it our own with our choice of flavors and add-ins.

Every Daring Bakers challenge is revealed at the beginning of the month.  I saw that the challenge was nougat back at the beginning of March, yet I let March 27th sneak up on me and the 25th was the day I remembered that I needed to complete the challenge!  Thankfully I had everything I needed for this delectable almond nougat and was able to get it done in time.  Whew!

nougat2

I used a recipe from Martha Stewart for French Almond Nougat.  The recipe included with the challenge called for cocoa butter, which I did not have, and Martha’s called for butter, which I always have in abundance.

This is something I probably would never have made without the push from Daring Bakers.  I know I’ve said the same thing before.  Candy can be hard, messy and often not worth the time and effort.  But sometimes it can be amazing!  Unfortunately I bombed this candy challenge and ended up with some sweet and delicious puddles of nougat instead of the lovely bars I was hoping for.

nougat1

My problem could’ve been one of two things.  Either I didn’t cook the sugar to the correct stage (although the thermometer said the temp was right, maybe my thermometer is off), or I didn’t let it harden enough before taking it out of the pan.  After taking it out and as I began to cut the nougat into strips I could tell it was going to start oozing.  I tried to form the long strips back into bars, occasionally going into the kitchen and pressing them back together from their puddling state, but after a while I admitted failure and let them ooze.  They never actually hardened anymore which leads me to believe that my temperatures must have been off when cooking the sugar.  Anyone have a great recommendation for a candy thermometer?  The one I have I bought at the grocery store and cost be $2…

This is another view of what my cubes of nougat turned into as time passed.  It’s really pretty humorous.  They did taste good, but the texture was way off.

nougat3

I refuse to count this challenge as a total loss since I did try something new, and am already planning to try it again and redeem myself.  Thanks for getting me to try my hand at nougat, Rebecca!