An Ode to Stuffed Pizza

Please understand. Stuffed pizza is incredibly difficult to get right. There's a thick crust on the bottom and side of the pan, a much thinner top dough that holds an abundance of toppings and cheese, and then a hefty helping of sauce on top. All of which create serious baking challenges that, if not addressed, make an unpleasant pizza.

With the cheese and toppings between two layers of dough, all of that trapped moisture makes it incredibly difficult to avoid sogginess and get a crisp bottom crust. And with the top layer of dough sandwiched between sauce and cheese it has no exposure to hot air or a hot deck. This layer is so often undercooked, and I‘ve had so many stuffed pizzas with a raw top dough.

When all those obstacles are overcome the bottom and sides are crisp, the top dough is cooked through, the sauce is singing, the cheese is pulling, and there is no soggy mess. It's then a really beautiful pizza. Angelo’s Stuffed Pizza (📷) is a really beautiful pizza.

I hope you can respect all this and find a good stuffed pizza near you. And if you do let me know. But if you want to keep calling it a casserole go ahead. It helps me weed you out.

#ForzaChicago 💪🍕