Chicago-Style Deep Dish “Muffaletta” Pizzas | Emeril Lagasse

Leave it to Emeril to come up with a dish that melds New Orlean’s famous Muffaletta sandwich with Chicago’s Deep Dish Pizza. The result is a decadent pie rich with the flavors of Italian cured meats and olive salad. It wowed our Chicago Bears superfan “Bear Misterio” on a recent episode of Emeril Tailgates, so be sure to give it a try yourself! It’s a great recipe to share in celebration of National Pizza Day this week.

Chicago-Style Deep Dish “Muffaletta” Pizzas

Chicago-Style Deep Dish Pizza
For the sauce:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh garlic
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 (28-ounce) can plum tomatoes, coarsely crushed
1 tablespoon dry red wine
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano
For the pizzas:
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 ¼ pounds mozzarella cheese, sliced
1 pound Genoa salami, thinly sliced
8 ounces mortadella, thinly sliced
8 ounces smoked ham, thinly sliced
2 cups New Orleans Style Italian Olive Salad, well-drained (recipe follows)
1 pound sliced Provolone
1 cup grated Parmesan
½ cup grated Pecorino Romano
2 tablespoons untoasted sesame seeds

Make the dough and, while it is rising, make the pizza sauce: In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add the salt and red pepper, and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes, wine and sugar, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until very thick, 40 to 45 minutes. The sauce needs to be very thick, with no visible liquid, otherwise your pizzas will be wet. Remove from the heat and stir in the fresh herbs; let cool completely before using.

Preheat a grill on the high setting to about 500 degrees F.

Oil 2 seasoned 12-inch round deep-dish pizza pans (we used cast iron skillets) generously with the vegetable oil. Press 1 piece of dough into each pan, using your fingers to press the dough in an even layer all along the bottom and coming as far up the sides of the pan as possible. Let rest for 5 minutes.

Layer the sliced mozzarella cheese all over the bottom of the pies. Top each with half of the salami, mortadella, ham and olive salad. Ladle the sauce evenly over each pizza and top with the Provolone, Parmesan, and Pecorino. Using your fingertips, gently fold the top of the dough over the edges of the filling all around the pizza and sprinkle the exposed dough edges with sesame seeds.

Place the pizza pans on the rack of the grill so that they’re only getting indirect heat. Close the grill cover and reduce the grill settings so that the temperature hovers between 450 to 475 degrees F. Cook until the top of the pizzas are golden, the cheese is bubbly, and the crust is golden brown, usually 22 to 24 minutes. Remove from the grill and set aside to rest for at least 10 minutes before serving. Slice and serve hot.

Yield: Two 12-inch deep dish pizzas, 8 to 12 servings

New Orleans-Style Italian Olive Salad

1 quart large pimento-stuffed green olives, drained and coarsely chopped
1 ½ cups large Greek black olives, pitted and halved
1 ½ cups extra-virgin olive oil
1 ½ cups vegetable oil
1 cup pickled cauliflower, drained
3 to 4 ribs celery, thinly sliced on the diagonal
2 medium carrots, thinly sliced on the diagonal
½ cup pepperoncini, drained and halved
1/3 cup cocktail onions, drained
¼ cup nonpareil capers, drained
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 teaspoons Emeril’s Original Essence or Creole seasoning
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon celery seeds
2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano leaves

Combine all the ingredients in a large nonreactive bowl and mix well. Place in a large nonreactive jar (preferably glass) and store, tightly covered, in the refrigerator. The salad should be made at least 24 hours before using and only improves with age. You can keep it for up to 2 months in the refrigerator.

Makes about 2 quarts


Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse, copyright Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, LP., all rights reserved.

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