The tasty side to life: Zachary's Pizza- A religious experience?

Zagat says- “If God were to order a pizza” it would be one of the “zantastic” pies at this East Bay “legend” claim converts who call the trio’s deep-dish “gut-busters” a “religious experience” thanks to the “buttery, rich crust”, “wonderful chunky-tomato sauce” and “fresh” toppings “heaped high”; since it’s “always mobbed”, mere mortals may want to “call ahead for takeout” or “pick up a half-baked” pie.

I'm going to go ahead and say this pizza almost is like a religious experience because its that good. My sis and I are 100% obsessed with Zachary's pizza from Oakland, California. I mean Chicago style deep dish filled with spinach or ham or cheese topped with yummy chunky roasted tomatoes? It’s hard to pass up. My mom’s on her way out to Paris for Thanksgiving and we’re secretly hoping she brings back a frozen pie in her luggage... Hmm how could that work? Frozen pizza and a yummy Kara’s cupcake would be an awesome missing SF treat. Both of these spots are must in the SF bay and Zachary's has actually won over 100 best Pizza awards.

So how do they make this great little treat? Zachary's is made in a deep dish pan, filled with cheese and a combo of other ingredients (I love the spinach mushrooms). Then they go ahead and add another layer of dough which covers the filling. They then top the pizza with french tomato chucks and a somewhat spicy tomato sauce and cook it in the oven. The top layer of the dough actually ooey goeey melts into the cheese and apparently "seals" in the flavor. I love their motto that "great food can't be rushed" so you need to freaking wait for your pizza!

ZACHARY'S OAKLAND

5801 College Ave.

Oakland CA 94618

Phone: (510) 655-6385

HOURS

Sunday-Thursday 11AM-10PM

Friday-Saturday 11AM-10:30PM

Map & more - Zachary's Oakland

Here is the recipe if you want to try and recreate at home. I can't wait to give this one a try!! Recipe courtious of Epicurious

ZACHARY'S DEEP DISH INCREDIBLE RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

 16 oz. flour 8 oz. warm water

1.5 teaspoons instant dry yeast 

2 teaspoons sugar

 2 teaspoons salt 

2 teaspoons olive oil 

1 16-oz. can crushed tomatoes 

2 large basil leaves, finely chopped 

1 clove minced fresh garlic 

1/4 teaspoon yellow cornmeal 

Ground sweet Italian sausage 

1 fresh bell pepper, sliced into thin strips 

1 sweet onion, sliced into thin strips

 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms 

Sliced provolone cheese

 Shredded whole-milk mozzarella cheese 

Grated fresh Parmesan

MAKING THE DOUGH - Dissolve sugar and salt in the water. Add water mixture into a planetary mixer (Kitchen Aid, etc.). Add oil to the bowl and mix well. Add flour and yeast. Mix on low speed 3-5 minutes, until dough has formed into a ball around the dough hook. (If the dough is very sticky to the touch, you may need to reduce the amount of water in the mixture. If the dough is extremely dry and did not form into a ball, increase the water amount. Unfortunately, all flour is a bit different, and the perfect dough is usually a result of trial and error!)

Place dough in a bowl and cover with a dish towel. Allow dough to rise until doubled in size. Once dough has risen, divide the dough into two pieces: One piece should be larger than the other (roughly 2/3 of the dough can be formed into one dough ball, and 1/3 formed into another). Place dough balls in covered containers and refrigerate overnight (remember to use large enough containers to allow for the dough to double in volume!).

Remove dough from the refrigerator and allow to warm for an hour or so.

MAKING THE SAUCE- Combine the crushed tomatoes, garlic and herbs in a bowl and mix well. (To thicken sauce, feel free to add tomato paste or whole canned Italian tomatoes, drained and chopped.)

PIZZA ASSEMBLY Pre-heat your oven with a pizza stone inside on the middle shelf to 475 degrees Fahrenheit.

Using a roller pin, roll the larger of the two dough balls into a circle until the dough is about 1/8" in thickness. (You may need to use a little flour on the rolling surface and rolling pin to prevent sticking.) For a 10" pizza, you will need to roll the dough at least 14" in diameter.

Coat your deep-dish pizza pan with a thin layer of butter or margarine. Sprinkle a small amount of yellow cornmeal into the pan ... just a light dusting. Tuck the rolled-out pizza dough so it lines the pan. Excess dough can hang over the edge of the pan for now.

It is time for the toppings!

Spread the Italian sausage in a thin layer on the pizza crust in the pan.

Cover the sausage with the provolone. Press the provolone down to flatten the sausage further.

Add vegetables to your liking.

Cover the vegetables with the mozzarella until the pan is about 1/2 full.

Roll the second dough ball very thin, until the sheet is almost translucent. You may need to stretch the dough with your hands to make it as thin as possible. The adventurous can try their hand at pizza tossing to thin out the dough. Be careful not to tear the dough when stretching!

Place the thin sheet of dough over the cheese and toppings over the pizza pan. Poke several holes into the thin layer of dough, each about the size of a penny. Tuck the sides of the top layer of dough into the bottom layer of dough, pinching the dough together in the bottom corner of the pan, then pressing the layers of dough together on the sides of the inside of the pan. The pizza should now look something like an unbaked pie. Once the top layer of dough has been tucked properly, trim the dough 1/8" below the inside rim of the pan with a pizza cutter. Top with enough pizza sauce to cover. Dust the top of the pizza with grated Parmesan. Bake on the pizza stone until golden brown (25-30 minutes).

Carefully remove pizza from pan by sliding a long, flexible metal spatula between the pizza and the pan, lifting the pizza out onto a cutting board. Cut the pizza using a large knife or large pizza wheel. Serve immediately and enjoy!

http://www.epicurious.com/articlesguides/blogs/editor/2008/03/secrets-of-zach.html

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