Gourmet Fast Food Episode 4: Pan Pizza 🍕

It’s pizza time in the Fino kitchen and Chef Stephen La Rosa is packing in his Maltese Twist with a deep pan Maltese sausage pizza topped with caramelized fennel and onions to really pack in those Maltese flavs.

This week we’re celebrating the sausage that we’re proud to call our own: the Maltese Sausage, and with Maltese Sausage Day finally getting its stamp on the calendar, there’s no better way to celebrate than with a slice or 4 of deep pan pizza. 

A hybrid of Italian-American styles given that Maltese flair is exactly how we wanted to close off the savoury portion of Gourmet Fast Food here at FoodBlog Network! There’s always a good reason to eat pizza, it’s a Friday night classic that always seems to be our go-to takeaway order; but with this recipe, it’s a full on homemade delight that you’ll want more and more of!

This recipe requires some prep time so be ready to sort out your dough the night before you want to tuck into this deep pan beauty! Ohhh, and get yourself some 7Up to kick your weekend into gear true Gourmet Fast Food style. Ready? Let’s go!

Recipe

Ingredients

Serves 2

Dough (to be prepared the night before):

• 480g plain flour*
• 12g table salt*
• 5g instant yeast*
• 330g water 
• Olive oil as needed

Sauce:

• 400g canned tomato
• 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 2 bay leaves*
• Salt and chili flakes*

Toppings:

• 1 bulb of fennel, sliced
• 1 onion, sliced
• 2 sausages
• 250g mozzarella
• Parmesan cheese

Garnish:

• Chilli flakes*

* all sealed dried ingredients are sponsored Lamb Brand products, each redeemable on the Cook & Exchange Gift Scheme. 

Equipment

• Saute pan**
• Cast iron pan**
• 2x large mixing bowls
• Small pot*
• Bench scraper
• White spatula
• Microplane



** these select pieces of equipment were kindly sponsored by Crosscraft for Episode 4 of Gourmet Fast Food

Method

For the dough: *

1. Mix warm water and yeast into a large mixing bowl. Allow the active yeast to work its magic. You’ll notice that the bowl will get warmer and begin to see bubbles form on the surface - this means the yeast is alive and working as it’s supposed to.
2. Add the sifted flour and salt into the bowl and stir to combine. Cover the dough.
3. Allow your dough to rest overnight. Leave this on your kitchen bench and watch it grow! It’s alive after all! 
4. Shape and place your dough into a cast iron pan lined with oil and allow to rest for a further 2hrs. 

*If you want to make things that little bit easier, use Lamb Brand's Deep Pan Pizza Mix to replace the entire pizza dough step. The Deep Pan Pizza Mix already contains yeast and other key ingredients, so all you've got to do is simply follow the packet instructions for a fluffy deep-pan dough!

Show your pizza dough some love, it will all pay off, we promise!

For the sauce:

1. Fry off your chopped garlic cloves in a little bit of oil. Add chili and bay leaf 
2. Once lightly browned add the canned tomatoes and season with salt to taste.
3. Set aside to cool slightly.

Nothing like a homemade sauce to amp up that pizza base!

For the topping:

1. Cook down the sausages, skins off, in a sauté pan with a drop of oil. Remove your sausage from the pan once they get a nice colour and are cooked through, but still juicy!
2. Add the sliced fennel into your heated pan, allow to cook slightly and add your sliced onion. Cook both ingredients until they’re caramelized. 
3. Set aside.

Bring out those Maltese sausage flavour profiles with added fennel and onion!

Final Steps:

Now it’s time to build your pizza. Spread your pizza out into the cast iron pan using your fingertips. Layer your sauce onto the dough, leaving a slight edge to form a crust. Add your sausage, fennel and onion flavour bomb. 

Top with mozzarella - generously if you’re a cheese fest kinda pizza lover, or a light sprinkle if you’re keeping it light! Amp up the flavour with a fresh grate of Parm. Cook in a pre-heated oven set at 250C for 15 minutes.

Carefully take your pizza out of the oven and sprinkle a few chilli flakes to taste and dig in with a tall glass of 7Up, loaded with ice and a slice of lemon and lime if you’re feeling fancy!

Glug at your 7Up and bite into that pizza. You’re welcome!

Our next episode of Gourmet fast Food will bring this FoodBlog Network to its knees with a sweet treat that will make your mornings or after-dinner munchies a whole lot better! 

Catch up on the earlier episodes right here on FoodBlog Network or check out FoodBlog’s Instagram and Facebook for a step-by-step recipe for your week’s meal plan! Catch us next week for the last episode of Gourmet Fast Food where Chef Stephen will undoubtedly activate your sweet tooth!