Prep time: 2 hours (includes 1 1/2 hour rise time for dough)
Cook time: 48 min
I got my first taste of the restaurant business at 14, when I worked in a pizzeria in my hometown of Yukon, Oklahoma. I was the waitress and shift supervisor, and believe it or not, none other than Garth Brooks was the assistant manager! To this day, I still love pizza (Garth’s music is pretty good, too). Making your own is really fun, especially with this pizza dough that gets buzzed together in a food processor — no kneading required. If I’m going to the trouble of making my own pizza, I like to top it with something kind of special. Sweet, tender, caramelized onions alongside sweet or spicy Italian sausage is just the ticket to ride.
Dough
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon active dry or instant yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups all-purpose flour + extra for dusting
Pizza
2 tablespoons olive oil + more for greasing the pan
2 yellow onions, halved and thinly sliced
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
8 ounces bulk Italian sausage, crumbled, or sausage links with the meat squeezed from the casings
11⁄2 cups marinara, homemade or store-bought
11⁄2 cups (6 ounces) shredded mozzarella or provolone cheese
1⁄2 cup (2 ounces) shredded Parmesan cheese
Roughly chopped fresh basil leaves, for serving (optional)
Make the dough. Use the oil to grease a large bowl and set aside. Place the yeast, sugar, salt, flour and 1 cup of just-warm-to-the-touch water in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Pulse to combine, scraping down the sides as necessary. Turn the processor on and work the dough until a ball forms, about 1 minute, stopping the processor halfway through to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Lightly flour your work surface and turn the dough out onto it. Give it a few kneads until the dough ball is smooth, and then place it into the oiled bowl, turning it over a couple of times to oil the surface. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm, draft-free spot until doubled in size, about 11⁄2 hours.
Caramelize the onions and brown the sausage. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions, salt, and sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions start to turn brown, about 10 minutes. Add the sausage and cook, stirring often, until the sausage is lightly browned, about 7 minutes. Turn off the heat and set aside to cool slightly.
Bake the pizza. Adjust the oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 400°F. Grease an 18″ x 13″ baking sheet with some olive oil. Pick up the dough and start stretching it into a rectangular shape, and then place it onto the greased baking sheet and stretch the dough to cover the entire pan. Spread the sauce over the dough and sprinkle evenly with the cheeses and onion/sausage mixture. Bake until the cheese is browned and bubbly, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and add basil, if using. Slice into squares and serve hot.
Cook Smart
You can make the dough up to 2 days ahead of time. Just refrigerate the dough in an oiled, resealable gallon-size plastic bag after the dough comes out of the food processor. on the day you plan to make pizza (or calzones or a pizza roll), transfer the dough to an oiled bowl and let it sit out at room temperature for 1 1⁄2 to 2 hours until it has doubled in size. then proceed with the pizza recipe.
D2D
Many pizzerias are happy to sell you balls of raw pizza dough for as little as $1. It’s also available in some Italian bakeries. all you have to do is ask!
