Well it’s not secret that we love pizza in our house, and scrolling through some food magazines recently I found a new twist on our beloved pizza – Pizza Pie! Same great flavours, just a different twist for the base and assembly. Really, I guess it’s just like a deep dish pizza except it uses shortcrust pastry and not our usual easy pizza dough.
We couldn’t wait to try it out, and I must say, it was a triumph. Not a drop or crumb left, in fact my daughter hungrily devoured anything left. I was hoping for some lunch leftovers the next day, but not to be. So if you are a pizza fan, you must try this Pizza Pie recipe. It would be easy to add any of your favourite ingredients and build a custom version, just like we do with pizza.
Pizza Pie
Pizza Pie
Adapted from Delicious, July 2002
Ingredients
Ready rolled shortcrust pastry, sufficient to line a 23cm pan
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 x 400g cans diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon chopped oregano (and/or basil)
50g salami, roughly chopped
100g mozzarella cheese, grated
12 kalamata olives, pitted
How to Build Your Pie
Preheat oven to 190C. Grease a 23cm pan or dish with the pastry sheet. To blind bake the pastry, line it with non-stick baking paper and fill with rice, dried pulses or pastry weights. Bake for 10 minutes, remove paper and return the pan to the oven for a further 5 minutes. The pastry should be dry and crisp, ready to be filled.
Pizza Pie pastry crust
Heat oil in pan and add onion. Cook over a low heat until softened for about 5 minutes, then add garlic and cook for a further 1 minute. Set aside to cool for 10 minutes on paper towel.
Strain tomatoes through a sieve and save the juice for another dish if possible (I used mine in a tomato soup the next night). Combine the tomatoes with the herbs and season well.
Now it’s time to compile the pizza. Spread the onion mixture over the base. Top with a layer of salami, followed by tomato, then cheese and finally the olives. Bake for 25 minutes until the cheese has melted. Great served with a garden salad.
Use whatever fillings take your fancy, but if they have a high moisture content eg mushrooms, cook them first to release the moisture before adding to the pie. Let me know what you try and how it turns out.
This dish is a bit addictive, just ask my daughter. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Enjoy!
