Meat Lovers Deep Dish Pizza

By kimvess

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 pound ground beef
• 1/2 pound sweet or hot Italian pork sausage
• 1/2 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
• 1 pound pizza dough, at room temperature, or one batch Basic Pizza Dough (see below)
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 green pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
• 1 cup marinara sauce
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Details

Servings 1
Adapted from familycircle.com

Preparation

Step 1

1. Heat oven to 450 degrees F. Lightly coat a 10-inch deep dish pizza pan with olive oil.

2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Crumble in the ground beef and sausage; season with the Italian seasoning and cook for 4 to 5 minutes or until meat is no longer pink. Set aside.

3. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to form a circle slightly larger than the pan. Place dough in prepared pan, pressing excess dough to the sides.

4. Layer 1-1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, reserved meat mixture, pepper and sauce onto dough. Bake at 450 degrees F for 15 minutes. Top with the remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Bake an additional 15 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly.

5. Use a sharp knife to cut into 8 slices, then remove with pie server or spatula.

Basic Pizza Dough:

Ingredients
1 cup warm water (about 110 degrees F)

1 package (.25 ounce) dry active yeast

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons olive oil


Directions

1. Place water in a small bowl and stir in yeast. Let stand 5 minutes.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together 2-1/2 cups of the flour, sugar and salt. Make well in the center and add the yeast mixture and olive oil. Stir until dough comes together and forms a ball. Turn out onto a well-floured surface and knead for 5 minutes, adding as much of the remaining 1/4 cup flour as needed. Form into a disk and place in a bowl that has been lightly coated with olive oil. Turn disk over and cover bowl with plastic wrap. Allow to rise in a warm place for 2 hours.

3. Remove dough from bowl and punch down. Roll out into desired diameter.