pastry style pizza dough

[toyman]

I live in Western PA and we have a few restaurants that make their pizza crust a little different.  One that is well known and makes the top 25 pizza's in the Pittsburgh area is Jioio's.  http://www.pittsburghmagazine.com/Pittsburgh-Magazine/November-2012/The-Best-Pizza-in-Pittsburgh/index.php?cparticle=1&siarticle=0#artanc  (Il Pizzaoili - my favorite - made the list and they interview Ron Molinari in the article) It's a family run, simple restaurant and the dough recipe is secret, but there are clone recipes available that include a substantial amount of Crisco/lard.  I enjoy this pizza occasionally as it is very rich.  The crust is "pie-like", thin, sweet, and you know there's a lot of fat in it.  There's another Italian/? restaurant in the area called Vallozzi's.  It has a more upscale menu with a nice wine list and nice atmosphere.  The best pizza I've had has been what they call Sicillian.  It's not the Sicillian that is discussed here, but a pastry/pie-like crust with fresh, perfectly seasoned tomatoes, topped lightly with mozz and romano cheeses.  This crust is thin, flavorful, and just works very well.  Again, I don't eat it all the time, but it is a treat when I do.  So I searched the internet for their recipe and found the following:

White Sicilian Pizza with Flaky, Pastry-Style Crust
Yield: Two 10-inch pizzas
Prep Time: 15 minutes (active), 30 minutes (inactive)
Cook Time: 12 to 15 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
For the crust:
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading and dusting pizza peel (100% - 350g)
1 tablespoon granulated sugar  (3.75% - 12g)
1 teaspoon salt (2% - 7g)
4 ounces (½ cup) unsalted butter, cubed and chilled (32.5% - 114g)
2/3 cup warm water (50% - 175g)
½ teaspoon instant yeast (.5% - 2g)

I put in the bakers % for my recipe.  I put the dough together last evening for tonites bake and will report back on my results.  My wife is cutting the tomatoes and seasoning them this am. 

Anyone had a Valozzi or Jioio pie?  If so what did you think?

[pythonic]

Looks like Chicago thin pizza which is rare on the east coast.

http://slice.seriouseats.com/archives/2013/01/greensburg-pa-finally-getting-sweet-on-jioios-pizza.html

[Chicago Bob]

Looks like Chicago thin pizza which is rare on the east coast.

http://slice.seriouseats.com/archives/2013/01/greensburg-pa-finally-getting-sweet-on-jioios-pizza.html

Please don't use the word Chicago in the same sentence when talking about that pizza. 

I must admit though, I am looking forward to toyman's report. 

[toyman]

Well........it didn't turn out as well as I would have liked.  The pizza was well received, but not similar.  My wife forgot to take the dough out of the fridge so it was a little under proofed. I used fresh mozzarella, which was good, but this pie needed the reg mozzarella.  It all went, but I'll have todo some tweaking. The dough was flavorful and the texture was good, but Ithink i need to thin it out and pre bake it for a few minutes. This may take a try or two, I'll keep u posted.

[pythonic]

Well........it didn't turn out as well as I would have liked.  The pizza was well received, but not similar.  My wife forgot to take the dough out of the fridge so it was a little under proofed. I used fresh mozzarella, which was good, but this pie needed the reg mozzarella.  It all went, but I'll have todo some tweaking. The dough was flavorful and the texture was good, but Ithink i need to thin it out and pre bake it for a few minutes. This may take a try or two, I'll keep u posted.

Keep at in.  It always takes a few bakes to master different styles.  Any pics?

Nate

[Chicago Bob]

If this is a pie crust sort of dough why would you say it seemed a little under proofed?

[toyman]

If this is a pie crust sort of dough why would you say it seemed a little under proofed?

It was in the fridge over night, and I intended to let it come to room temp for a couple hours before baking, but that didn't happen.  The dough was very firm when I stretched it into the pan.  Maybe my terminology is a bit off, but I think letting it go a few more hours at room temp would have helped.

Sorry - no pics.  I'll try and get some of the next - better - pizza!

[Chicago Bob]

10-4...look forward to your pics toyman. 

[pizzabill]

Toyman I had Joios pizza this weekend when I was in Irwin PA. Now I find myself searching the forum for a recipe! Have you made any progress in replicating that crust? 

[toyman]

OK, I know it's been a while (way longer than I remembered!!!), but anyway, I finally had some success.  A few keys to the Valozzi dough:  1)  Needed some Crisco in the recipe  2)  Romano cheese, 3) seasoned tomatoes on top of the mozz, and 4)  needs to be thin. 

Flour  100%
Water   50%
Buttter  30%
Crisco    15%
Salt       1.5%-2%
Sugar    1.5%-2%
Yeast      .5%

Using 300g of flour is good for a cookie sheet (12"x18"?)  I use my food processor to cut in the cold butter and Crisco, then add the balance of the ingredients until it forms a ball.  A few stretch and folds and it's ready for the fridge, or it works well for a same day dough if you make it in the AM. 

I normally cut the tomatoes, season with salt, pepper and penzey's pizza, and let them sit on a drying rack for 8-24 hours.  When the dough is ready, I 'spread' it out in the pan followed by the shredded mozz.  Then the seasoned tomatoes and then the romano cheese on top of everything.  (This really seems to be the key flavor.  Bake at 450* for 20 or so minutes.  (You know the drill, browning bubbly cheese)  I was baking some bread and buns at the time and ran out of rectangular pans, so I used a pizza pan.  The dough was a little too thick for this, but still turned out very good.  Here's the pic: