Deep-Dish Pizza (Giordano's-style) (Vegan)

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Deep-dish pizza sometimes sounds tempting to me, but I think I like the idea of it more than the product (which I find usually ends up to be a greasy *cough*Uno and Malnati's*cough* or bready and corn-mealy *cough*Little Star*cough* mess). Two exceptions: Giordano's in the Chicago area (and apparently Florida) and Leonardo's (surprisingly good frozen--I've never had it in-store).

Anyway, I thought I'd give it a try at home. I've been mostly disappointed by homemade pizza in the past, as it usually ends up soggy for me, even with the help of a preheated stone. With that it mind, I was fanatical about keeping excess moisture out of the sauce and toppings, and I think it helped a lot as the final product was wonderfully crispy--crispy enough to not need a fork!

Dough

I googled a bit and found a message board, which includes a recipe (some errors in measuring units corrected in subsequent posts) that a few people swear by for a 10" version of Giordano's-style deep-dish pizza. I was a little taken aback by the amount of oil in the recipes that I found (even for the less-greasy, Giordano's-style pies), so I tweaked it a bit as follows:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. active dry yeast
• 3/4 tsp. Kosher salt
• 3/4 tsp. brown sugar
• 5 tsp. canola oil
• 1 tsp. olive oil
• 6 Tbs. warm water

Proof the yeast in the warm water and mix all ingredients just enough to incorporate. Knead only for a minute or two (so as not to end up with bread--apparently the short knead is key to getting the crust right).

Let the dough rise for 4-8 hours (because of the short kneading time, it won't rise much).

When ready, roll the dough out thin and then fold the dough in quarters, letting it rest a bit before rolling it out again (it should be around 14" in diameter).

Once it's rolled thin, immediately put it into a lightly oiled 10" deep dish pan, pressing to make the edges rise to nearly the top of the pan. Immediately fill with cheese, toppings, and sauce and get it into the oven--don't let it rise again in the pan.

Upon the suggestion on the message board, I let the oven preheat at 500 for 15 minutes. Then I put the pizza in, turned the oven to 450, and let it cook for 30 to 35 minutes.

(Note: I used an 8 x 11" glass baking pan since I don't have a 10" deep-dish pizza pan or cake pan, so I rolled the dough to approximately 12 x 15" and it worked fine. Also, I know that this recipe doesn't include the top layer of dough--between the toppings and sauce--of Giordano's, but I never really noticed that layer when I had it before, anyway.)

Sauce

Most of the sauce recipes I saw suggested using 6 IN 1 Ground Tomatoes, but the store where I was shopping doesn't carry them. Instead, I used regular crushed tomatoes in heavy puree.

• 1 28-oz. can, crushed tomatoes (thoroughly drained)
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 1 tsp. dried basil
• 1 tsp. brown sugar
• red pepper flakes (to taste)

I drained the tomatoes through a wire strainer and then let them sit on paper towels to get more moisture out. Then I simply mixed the ingredients.

Toppings

I stayed traditional and used the following:

• 8 oz. of cremini mushrooms, sliced and roasted for about 10 minutes to remove moisture
• 10 oz. of frozen spinach (defrosted and thoroughly drained and squeezed)
• 1 green pepper, sliced into rings
• 5.75 oz. can black olives, sliced

For cheese, I used 8 oz. of shredded soy mozzarella.

Wine: 2005 Clot de l'Oum Côtes du Roussillon Villages Caramany La Compagnie des Papillon

This wine is a screaming value at <$20. The blend is dominated by old-vine Carignan and Grenache (45% each), with a splash of Syrah. Deep purple with hints of red. Red fruits, pencil shavings, raw beef, floral elements and some minerality on the nose. The palate is consistent with the nose, with the addition of black fruits. Intense minerality suggests the Northern Rhone (Hermitage?). Incredibly refined and elegant for the price. Low alcohol. Really opens up with time. Very food-friendly and approachable now with decanting. This was my third bottle, and I would buy more if I could find it. Tremendous wine!