Margherita Pan Pizza

The September Issue of Cooking Light has a super yummy looking pizza on the front. The pizza shown was a Deep Dish Mushroom and Onion Pizza but the photo made me think of pan pizzas I used to love as a kid. So I decided to try to make my own in my cast iron pan but give it a more “grown up” twist by making a Margherita Pan Pizza.

The result was a nice thick and chewy crust with the perfect amount of tangy tomato sauce, creamy melted mozzarella, and fresh basil! The dough is so simple to make but it does need to rise overnight so prepare ahead.

Ingredients: For the dough:

• 2 cups flour
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh active yeast
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

For the tomato sauce:

• 1 15 oz can tomato puree
• 1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 bay leaf
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 garlic clove, minced

Toppings:

• 8 oz mozzarella cheese, sliced
• 3 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped or julienned

To make the dough, add all of the ingredients (flour, yeast, salt, water, olive oil) to a large bowl. Mix to combine until it forms a sticky ball of dough.

Cover with a cloth and let sit at room temperature for 12 hours, or overnight. (I made this at night and before heading to work, I moved the bowl to the fridge. I took it out 1 hour before I planned on making the pizza so it could reach room temperature before making the pizza.)

after 12 hours

When you’re ready to make the pizza, preheat your oven to 500 degrees. While waiting for the oven to preheat, add the ingredients for the sauce (tomato puree, basil, oregano, onion powder, bay leaf, salt, pepper, garlic) into a small pot. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook for 10 minutes.

Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to your cast iron pan, coating the pan evenly using a brush. Add the dough to the pan, pushing it out into a disk so that it evenly fills the bottom of the pan. (It’s ok if it doesn’t actually touch the sides, it will rise and fill the pan when baking).

When the pizza sauce is finished, top the dough with the sauce. (I use the whole thing, if you prefer less sauce, add as much or as little as you like). You can add ingredients all the way to the edges. There will be plenty of crust underneath!

Top the sauce with the mozzarella slices and the basil.

Add to the oven and cook for 20 minutes.

The pizza crust is SO good. It crisps up on the edges and bottom in the olive oil but stays light and doughy in the middle. This simple tomato sauce has nice flavor without the sugar that store bought tomato sauces add in. (This is a huge pet peeve of mine. There should be no sugar in my sauce!) The mozzarella melts perfectly into the sauce and the basil adds some freshness to the pizza. I’ve already made this twice and I think it is going to be a staple in our house!

You can easily customize this pizza to fit your tastes. Add some veggies, pepperoni, different cheeses — go crazy!

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Margherita Pan Pizza

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

Dough:
• 2 cups flour
• ¼ teaspoon fresh active yeast
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
Tomato sauce:
• 1 15 oz can tomato puree
• 1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• ½ teaspoon onion powder
• 1 bay leaf
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 garlic clove, minced
Toppings:
• 8 oz mozzarella cheese, sliced
• 3 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped or julienned

Instructions

1. To make the dough, add all of the ingredients (flour, yeast, salt, water, olive oil) to a large bowl. Mix to combine until it forms a sticky ball of dough.
2. Cover with a cloth and let sit at room temperature for 12 hours, or overnight. (I made this at night and before heading to work, I moved the bowl to the fridge. I took it out 1 hour before I planned on making the pizza so it could reach room temperature before making the pizza.)
3. When you’re ready to make the pizza, preheat your oven to 500 degrees. While waiting for the oven to preheat, add the ingredients for the sauce (tomato puree, basil, oregano, onion powder, bay leaf, salt, pepper, garlic) into a small pot. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook for 10 minutes.
4. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to your cast iron pan, coating the pan evenly using a brush. Add the dough to the pan, pushing it out into a disk so that it evenly fills the bottom of the pan. (It’s ok if it doesn't actually touch the sides, it will rise and fill the pan when baking).
5. When the pizza sauce is finished, top the dough with the sauce. (I use the whole thing, if you prefer less sauce, add as much or as little as you like). You can add ingredients all the way to the edges. There will be plenty of crust underneath!
6. Top the sauce with the mozzarella slices and the basil.
7. Add to the oven and cook for 20 minutes.

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