Homemade Pizza - Dough and All (Part 2) Mini Chicago Deep Dish Pizzas

I love me some deep dish pizza and wanted to play with an appetizer size to lower the guilt factor and up the cute factor.

 

Ingredients

• Fresh pizza dough (homemade or store bought) - See Part 1 of Post
• Mozzarella cheese
• Sweet sausage, removed from casing, cooked and crumbled
• Marinara sauce
• Muffin tin for forming the dough

Directions

1. Pre-heat oven and inverted muffin pan to 500-degrees for at least 10 minutes.
2. Roll out dough to 1/4 inch thick, 1/2 inch larger than the bottom of muffin tin around all sides. Prick with fork to minimize puffing.
3. Remove heated pan from oven, apply small amount of oil to the inverted tin, and drape the dough over the tin. Repeat with remaining rounds. Place dough on every other spot to allow room for even baking.
4. Bake in 500 degree oven for 10 minutes until set and starting to brown.

 

Dough Rounds After 10 Minutes Pre-Baking

 

5.  Layer thinly sliced mozzarella on the bottom of crust.

 

Crust with Mozarella

 

 6. Add layer of sausage (if using), marinara sauce, parmesan cheese. If you'd like, add another layer of mozzarella to the top.

 

Mini Pizzas Ready for Baking

 7. Brush olive oil on edge of crust. Reduce oven heat to 400 degrees and bake 15 minutes until cheese is melted and crust is browned.

 

Here are the final pies along with an assortment of other tasty appetizers.

 

The Final Spread: Smoked Wings, Mini Chicago Pies, Buffalo Wings, Mini Potato Skins