September 2008
I miss home, especially the pizza I grew up with, Lou Malnati's, so I am on an endless quest to emulate as closely as I can the beloved Chicago deep dish pizza here in FL until I can return home for the real thing.

Crust
Stir together 1-1/2 C flour, 1 Tbsp butter or olive oll, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp sugar, 1 tsp yeast, and just enough warm water until it comes together in a ball. Cover and allow to proof for at least 2 hours or double in size. You can allow it to proof for up to 24 hours for a great sourdough crust.

Butter the bottom and sides of a 9" deep dish pizza pan (I got mine straight from Lou Malnati's). A similar cake pan will do. With a buttered rubber spatula, scoop out the dough into the pan, press lightly to flatten, then with floured hands, smooth and press the dough around and up onto the sides of the pan. Press your fingers all around the corner to make a nice squared wall. Spray or brush olive oil very lightly over dough. Sprinkle with granulated garlic. Set on top of stove while it preheats to 450?F.

Toppings
8oz whole milk mozzarella cheese (we use Polly-O ?)
1 can whole peeled tomatoes, or stewed whole tomatoes, drained, and then mashed
1 can artichoke hearts, drained (this is the "Gemalnati's" part)
and whatever toppings you like, like mushrooms, Italian sausage, pepperoni etc
seasonings - basil, oregano, caraway, etc

Slice the cheese a scant 1/8" thick. Spread in a single layer on the crust, overlapping as necessary, cutting into pieces to cover the holes. Add the artichokes and whatever other toppings onto the cheese. Finish with ladeling the chunky tomato sauce on top, pressing into all the gaps and smoothing it out. Sprinkle with seasonings. Bake at 450?F for 30 minutes or until crust is well browned and pizza is bubbly. Allow to cool for 5 minutes and then careful not to eat the whole thing all by yourself. Rememhber to share! :D
  
*The pizza is even better the next day because reheating it in the oven yields a crispier crust. We especially like to have Lou's Fed-Ex'd to the house cuz they too bake up crispy. I actually like it better than going to the restuarant because it's usually quite soggy straight out of the oven.