Deep Dish Pizza

[omly]

So all of infinitedomain's talk finally got to me.
Yield 2 9" deep dish pizzas
Significantly adapted from America's Test Kitchen's Family Cookbook (else I wouldn't post it)

• 1 large russet potato, peeled and diced into ~0.75" cubes
  
• 3.5 c flour (plus a bit for kneading)
  
• 1.75 tsp salt
  
• 1.5 tsp instant yeast (This is slightly less than a packet. I buy it in large packages and freeze it.)
  
• 4 tbsp olive oil
  
• 1 cup water warm (for part of this I use the water the potatos cooked in, ~0.5 c)
  
• 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes (Red Pack if you care, but only because it was on sale)
  
• 1.5 c shredded mozzarella
  
• 0.5 c grated pecorino romano and parmesan blend
  
• 1.5 tbsp pesto (I buy this in a jar.)
  
• salt and pepper to taste
  
• pepperoni or toppings of your choice

1. Cover potato with water in small saucepan and simmer until tender (~10 minutes)
   
2. Measure out liquid and fill to 1 cup with water then put into a small bowl. Mash potatoes with a fork in the pan, add in 2 tbsp of olive oil then add to liquid. Let this whole mess cool until it won't scorch the yeast. (Tip add cool/cold water to potato water, but you want this whole thing to be warm.)
   
3. Mix flour, yeast and salt in a large bowl. Add liquid mixture once cool enough (but still warm).
   
4. Stir until dough comes together, then transfer to work on counter top. (I find that I do not need to flour my counter much, but my hands need to be well floured. Try not to user more than 0.25 c flour total.) Knead by hand 10-15 minutes.
   
5. Transfer to lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap/damp dishcloth, and let rise 45-60 minutes someplace warm.
   
6. Divide in half after the dough has doubled. Pat each half into a 9" pan (I used spring form and a pie pan because that was what I had.) Wrap top of pans in plastic wrap/cover with damp dishcloth and let rest 10 minutes.
   
7. Pull the edge of dough up to form a 1" lip. Let rise another 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 425*F.
   
8. Generously prick the dough with a fork. Basically I just let Tab go at it, so imagine how much a 6 year old would do it. Bake 5-10 minutes.
   
9. Drain the tomatoes well. (I used this liquid with some eggs and salsa for migas.) Then toss tomatoes, salt, pepper, and pesto together before dividing the mixture evenly over the 2 pizzas. Sprinkle with the cheeses and and other toppings. Bake until cheese is spotted golden and bottom crust is browned, about 15-20 minutes. (You can check by sticking a spatula under to lift the pizza up.)
   
10. Let cool 5 minutes before prying the pizza out onto a cutting board.

Comments

[omly.livejournal.com]

Yup. Theoretically it adds flavor and keeps the crust from drying out as much while still cooking all the way through. (Potatos being hydrophilic and all that.) You want a starchy potato like a russet though, not a waxy one like whites.