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Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza With Ham, Gruyere and White Sauce

Chicago-style pizza is prepared according to several different styles developed in Chicago—deep-dish style or stuffed. Toppings are assembled “upside-down” from their usual order to avoid burning, as the bake time is longer. A 9 x 2-inch cake pan works well for this recipe or a cast-iron pan would work as well.

Recipe by Nancy Smith, FoodE Expert Lunds & Byerlys Uptown

Servings 4
Prep Time 10 minutes

Ingredients

  • 12 ounces L&B Pizza Dough
  • ¼ cup flour
  • 5 tablespoons softened butter
  • 1-2 tablespoons Extra virgin olive oil
  • ⅓ cup whole milk ricotta cheese
  • 1 tablespoon L&B French Garden Blend Seasoning
  • 1 tablespoon whole grain Dijon mustard can sub regular Dijon
  • 6 ounces Gruyere cheese shredded-about 1½ cups
  • 2 cups ham 1/2- inch dice
  • ½ – ¾ cup chopped frozen thawed spinach squeezed dry
  • 1½ -2 cups white sauce homemade or store-bought
  • 1 cup French’s Crispy Fried Onions
  • to taste salt and pepper

Instructions

  1. Heat oven to 425 F. Allow dough to come to room temperature.
  2. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface; spread 3 tablespoons of softened butter onto dough then fold the dough into thirds over itself. Repeat with remaining 2 tablespoons of butter. Grease a 9-inch round cake pan with olive oil. Roll out dough into a 10-inch circle on a floured surface and press evenly into bottom and sides of pan, ¾ of the way up the sides of the pan. Brush olive oil onto dough. Pierce bottom of dough with a fork, as crust will puff while baking. Bake crust for 15 minutes and allow to cool for about 15 minutes. Pierce crust with a fork again, if necessary.
  3. Combine ricotta cheese, French Garden Blend Seasoning and Dijon mustard. Spread evenly onto crust. Top with gruyere cheese, ham and spinach. Spread white sauce evenly over top of pizza. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Check after 10 minutes and cover crust edges with foil if needed, to avoid burning. Remove from oven and allow to rest in pan for 10 minutes. Sprinkle lightly with salt, pepper and a shake of French Garden Blend Seasoning. Top with French’s Crispy Fried Onions.
  4. Amount: Serves 4