St.
Louis-Style Pizza
With its wafer-thin crust; thick, sweet tomato sauce;
gooey Provel cheese; and signature square slices, St.
Louis-style Pizza is unmistakable. Adding cornstarch to the dough absorbed
moisture and allowed the crust to crisp in a conventional oven. Because
cornstarch has no gluten, it also helped to keep the crust tender.
We doctored a simple pizza sauce by adding sugar, tomato
sauce, dried oregano, and fresh basil. The fresh herb wasn’t typical, but it
gave the St. Louis-Style Pizza a flavorful lift. Smoky, melty
Provel cheese was difficult to find outside the
Makes two 12-inch pizzas
We like to use a baking stone (also called a pizza stone),
which heats evenly and helps crisp crusts, but if you don’t have one, bake the
pizzas on an inverted, preheated rimmed baking sheet.
Ingredients SAUCE
1 (8-ounce) can
tomato sauce
3 tablespoons
tomato paste
2 tablespoons
chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon
sugar
2 teaspoons dried oregano
CHEESE
2 cups shredded white American cheese
1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
3 drops liquid smoke
DOUGH
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons
cornstarch
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup plus 2
tablespoons water
2 tablespoons
olive
oil
Instructions
1. MAKE SAUCE Whisk together tomato sauce,
tomato paste, basil, sugar, and oregano in small bowl; set aside. Toss cheeses
with liquid smoke in medium bowl; set aside.
2. MIX DOUGH Combine flour, cornstarch, sugar,
baking powder, and salt in large bowl. Combine water and olive oil in liquid measuring
cup. Stir water mixture into flour mixture until dough starts to come together.
Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and knead 3 or 4 times, until cohesive.
3. ROLL DOUGH Adjust oven rack to lower-middle
position, place pizza stone (or inverted baking sheet) on rack, and heat oven
to 475 degrees. Divide dough into 2 equal pieces. Working with 1 piece of dough
at a time, press into small circle and transfer to parchment paper dusted
lightly with flour. Using rolling pin, roll and stretch dough to form 12-inch
circle, rotating parchment as needed. Lift parchment and pizza off work surface
onto inverted baking sheet.
4. ASSEMBLE PIZZA Top each piece of dough with half
of sauce and half of cheese. Carefully pull parchment paper and pizza off
baking sheet onto hot baking stone. Bake until underside is golden brown and
cheese is completely melted, 9 to 12 minutes. Remove pizza and parchment from
oven. Transfer pizza to cooling rack and let cool few minutes. Assemble and
bake second pizza. Cut into 2-inch squares. Serve.
MAKE AHEAD: The dough can be made in advance.
At the end of step 2, tightly wrap the ball of dough in plastic and refrigerate
for up to 2 days.
Easy
as (Pizza) Pie
St. Louis-Style Pizza has a paper-thin crust. Here's how
we transfer the dough from countertop to oven without tearing.
1. Roll out the dough on parchment
paper, so it doesn't stick and you can move it easily.
2. Place the parchment and dough on
an inverted baking sheet, then top it with sauce and
cheese.
3. To get the pizza into the oven,
slide both parchment and pizza onto the hot baking stone.
Pizza
Toppings
Jazz up your pizza with these toppings. Each recipe tops 1
pizza (and can be doubled to top a full recipe of 2 pizzas).
PEPPERONI
Prepare St. Louis-Style Pizza sauce and dough. Arrange 3
1/2 ounces thinly sliced pepperoni on paper towel-lined plate. Cover with 2
more paper towels and microwave for 2 minutes. Let cool. Proceed with recipe
from step 4 arranging pepperoni on pizza before sprinkling with cheese.
PEPPERS, MUSHROOMS, AND ONIONS
Prepare St. Louis-Style Pizza sauce and dough. Heat 1
tablespoon vegetable oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until
shimmering. Cook 1 medium onion, sliced thin; 1 red pepper, sliced thin; and 8
ounces thinly sliced white button mushrooms until browned, about 10 minutes.
Proceed with recipe from step 4, distributing vegetables over pizza before
sprinkling with cheese.