Deep-Dish Pizza with Sausage and Mushrooms
NOTE: If you
want to use link sausage, see figures 24 and 25, for information about
removing the meat from the casings.
1 recipe Deep-Dish Pizza (see chapter four)
3/4 pound bulk sweet or hot Italian sausage, broken into bite-size pieces
11/2 tablespoons olive oil (approximately), plus extra for brushing on pan and dough and coating hands
1 pound white button mushrooms, trimmed and sliced thin
Salt and ground black pepper
2 cups Thick Tomato Sauce (see chapter two)
6 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 11/2 cups)
INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Fit dough into pan as directed in master recipe through step 2.
2. While preparing dough, put sausage and 1/4 cup water in large skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until water evaporates and sausage cooks through and browns, about 10 minutes. Remove sausage with slotted spoon and set aside. Add enough oil so that amount in skillet equals 2 tablespoons. Add mushrooms and sauté until golden brown and juices they release have evaporated, about 7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set mushrooms aside.
3. Prick dough all over with fork and bake without toppings in preheated oven until set, about 4 minutes. Remove pan from oven. Brush crust with 1 tablespoon oil. Spread tomato sauce evenly over crust up to edge of lip. Arrange sausage and then mushrooms over sauce.
4. Return pizza to oven and bake until crust is lightly browned around edges, about 30 minutes.
5. Remove pan from oven and sprinkle cheese over toppings. Return pizza to oven and bake until cheese is melted and bottom of crust is lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Remove pizza from oven, cut into wedges, and serve immediately.