Make Cast-Iron Pizza Tonight! (It's Faster Than Delivery, BTW)

By Leo Danzig
Matt Armendariz Photography
Matt Armendariz Photography

You really can never go wrong with pizza, and you really can't go wrong with Fabio Viviani's fast-and-easy upgrade from Fabio's 30-Minute Italian: Over 100 Fabulous, Quick and Easy Recipes ($18). The cast-iron skillet will give this dish an unbelievable crunch and chew, perfectly complementing the fresh mozzarella and veggies. Seriously, your Domino's app will just be wasting space after you try this.

Matt Armendariz Photography

Homemade Pizza in a Cast-Iron Skillet

Cook Time45 minutes
YieldServes 6-8

From Fabio's 30-Minute Italian: Over 100 Fabulous, Quick, and Easy Recipes by Fabio Viviani

INGREDIENTS

    • 1 pound store-bought pizza dough, thawed
    • 2 tablespoons olive oil
    • 1 cup tomato sauce
    • 4 ounces fresh mozzarella, torn into pieces
    • 1/4 cup thinly sliced onions
    • 1/4 cup thinly sliced red bell pepper
    • 30 slices pepperoni
    • 2 tablespoons grated Grana Padano cheese

    INSTRUCTIONS

    1. Preheat an oven to 400°F.

    2. Take dough out of the fridge. Let it warm on the counter while you prepare everything else.

    3. Divide the dough in half and roll out on a floured surface to be a little smaller than your 10- or 12-inch skillet.

    4. Heat half the oil in the skillet on medium high heat, then place the dough in the skillet. Cook for 1 minute, then flip the dough and add half the sauce, half the mozzarella, and half of the onions, peppers and pepperoni.

    5. Place in oven and cook for 6-8 minutes, or until cheese has melted and crust is golden brown.

    6. Remove from skillet, sprinkle half the Grana Padano on top, and cut for serving. Repeat the process using remaining ingredients.

    Notes

    Pizza is pizza and cooking it in a cast-iron skillet ensures even, high heat for a good crust. You can have five or six skillets going at once, all with different pizzas and toppings. The frozen dough sold in the supermarket works well; I always have it on hand. It needs only a little stretching to work, no fancy rolling or spinning.