A deep dish Chicago-style pizza made low carb and gluten-free. This is the low carb pizza recipe you’ve been looking for! This post is sponsored by Jones Dairy Farm.
Now, I’ve made some really great pizza alternatives, as have other low carb and paleo food bloggers, and I have been pleased with my efforts heretofore. But this low carb deep dish pizza takes the cake. Or rather, it takes the pie. This is truly a “pizza pie”, with a tender-crisp crust and filled to the brim with goodies. It’s Chicago-style, of sorts, because of course I didn’t even attempt to make a flour-and-yeast based crust – that would be breaking the low carb code of ethics. But it’s definitely Chicago-Style deep dish pizza in spirit and I think you will love it. And what I loved about it is the way the toppings take precedence over the crust, because there’s just so much of them, but the crust still has great flavour and plays its part in keeping the whole thing together. You can eat this with a knife and fork, certainly, but if you let it cool a bit before serving, you can also pick it up with your hands.
I made this delightful thing because the folks at Jones Dairy Farm reached out and asked if I wanted to partner with them and showcase some of their pork products. I’ve started noticing their white and green packaging in some of my local grocery stores, giving other brands of sausage and bacon a little competition. And good competition it is too, because Jones Dairy Farm is made without many the icky additives of other brands. Their all-natural pork sausage roll, which I featured in this recipe, contains 4 ingredients: pork, water, salt and spices. No high-fructose corn syrup, no MSG, and many of their products are certified Gluten-Free, making it a much healthier choice.
I’ve had this recipe in my head for a while now, so armed with a few rolls of Jones Dairy Farm sausage, I got to work. Originally I thought it might be fun to use my Cheesy Drop Biscuits as the crust. But the more I thought about it, the more I wanted the sausage, mozzarella and other fillings to take center stage. So I opted for an adaptation of the crust from my Mini Brie and Bacon Tartlets and I am so glad I did. With a little pre-baking, it crisped up nicely and it held up admirably to the fillings. Unlike flat pizza, the trick to deep dish is to layer your cheese and meat at the bottom, so the sauce doesn’t make your crust a soggy mess. And sliced mozzarella instead of shredded helps you create a good barrier between sauce and crust. I decided to throw a few slices of pepperoni on ours, to appeal to my kids, but another layer of sausage would be great too!
This post was sponsored by Jones Dairy Farm. All thoughts, opinions, recipes, photography, random tangents and incoherent ramblings are my own.
Deep Dish Skillet Sausage Pizza
Ingredients
Crust:
- 2 cups almond flour
- 3 tablespoon unflavored whey protein powder
- 2 tablespoon coconut flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon xanthan gum
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten
- ¼ cup butter melted
Filling:
- 12 oz Jones Dairy Farm Sausage Roll
- ¾ lb mozzarella thinly sliced (not shredded)
- 1 ½ cups marinara or pizza sauce no sugar added - try my 15-Minute Tomato Sauce if you want to make your own
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 ounces sliced pepperoni or additional sausage optional
- ¾ cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese
Instructions
Crust:
- Preheat oven to 325F and lightly grease a 12 inch oven-proof skillet (preferably cast iron but regular skillets will work well too).
- In a large bowl, whisk together almond flour, whey protein, coconut flour, baking powder, garlic powder, salt and xanthan gum.
- Stir in eggs and butter until dough comes together. It will be quite sticky.
- Turn out dough onto a large piece of parchment, and then pat into a rough circle.
- Top with another piece of parchment and roll out to a large circle about 14 inches in diameter and ¼ inch thickness. Peel off top piece of parchment paper.
- Carefully flip crust with bottom parchment still attached into prepared skillet. Gently peel parchment off (don't worry if it cracks or breaks a little, it's easy to patch back together).
- Press crust into pan evenly and push down the edges of crust to below the edges of the skillet. Crimp edges of crust a bit.
- Bake for 10 minutes, then remove and set aside while preparing the filling.
Filling:
- Increase oven temperature to 400F.
- In another large skillet over medium heat, brown sausage until cooked through, breaking up clumps with the back of a wooden spoon.
- Lay half of the mozzarella slices over the bottom of the crust, making sure to cover it well. Top with cooked sausage.
- Spread sauce over sausage, sprinkle with garlic and oregano and layer remaining mozzarella slices over sauce. Top with additional cooked sausage or sliced pepperoni, if desired. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
- Cover the edges of the crust with strips of tin foil and bake pizza 30 minutes, until cheese is bubbly and browned.
- Let cool 5 to 10 minutes before serving.
Guinan says
Hi Carolyn!
I’ll be starting (another) low carb diet soon and this sounds absolutely fab!!
But help me out here, I live in Holland and the pizza’s we buy in the supermarket are about 350-450 grams (3/4 – 1 pound) and to me that’s a MEAL! I can’t work out the total weight of your recipe cause you don’t use weights, but is 1/10th of this pizza a snack, or is the thing so humongous that it constitutes 10 meals?
I know you guys (Americans) can put away some serious food, but in this case it seems to be the other way ’round 😉
Just love, love, love your blog, keep up the good work!!
Carolyn says
For me, it was a meal. I am small, mind you, but my husband is very tall and typically eats 2x what most people eat. He could barely finish two slices. Round out your meal with some low carb veggies and you will be all set.
Dina says
It depends on what you eat if it’s filling or not.
This pizza has a lot of protein and healthy fats, so it’s more filling then the carb-loaded pizza’s we used to buy 🙂
Vicki says
THANK YOU, this may be the pizza recipe I’ve been searching for!
Linda quinn says
I live in Hong Kong so not able to buy the sausage. Can you suggest an alternative?
Carolyn says
Whatever meat or other fillings you want! 🙂 Ground beef would be good, maybe seasoned a little with some hot pepper.
Dawn Miller says
Yikes! It’s in the oven now….I am a huge pizza fan and am so excited to try this! In 30 minutes I hope to be in a little “slice” of heaven! 🙂
Carolyn says
I hope you will report back!
Cecelia says
How was the pizza?
Dawn Miller says
Lol! Guess I forgot to to give an update! It was pretty good, a bit of work, though. As with any pizza “substitute”, it isn’t exactly the same as a “real” pizza but this was pretty darn close. One piece makes a meal because it is so dense. I haven’t made it again but I plan too very soon. Thanks Carolyn for this and all your other fabulous recipes!
Cecelia says
I did make this pizza and it was very good. There was to much for me so I cut it into slices and put it in the freezers. Really good.
ando says
how is it that, still, people seem to think gluten-free means “healthier?” It doesn’t….it’s a better option for people with celiacs that cant digest gluten, but for the rest of us…it doesn’t harm you.
Carolyn says
Actually, it does harm you. A lot. A great deal of research is leading many people to this conclusion. And as someone with diabetes, it certainly harms me, sending my blood sugar soaring. Please think about your statement a little, because it’s off-track.
Kate @ Diethood says
I want that whole pie!!! This pizza looks amaaaaze!
Terry Schultz says
I’d also love a clarification on serving size. 10 or 12 servings, as both are stated.
Carolyn says
10! Are they still both stated? I thought I’d fixed that. The nutritional info was run on 10 servings.
Travis Irle says
This little 12 in pizza serves 10 people…at almost 7 g carbs each? Hopefully it’s filling or I’m breaking my carb limit just to get my fill. Looks delicious though.
Cyndi says
This is a most excellent excellent idea. Although – living in Chicago – maybe it’s just easier to order one up! Thanks for the post!
Carolyn says
I am doubtful you can order a low carb, gluten-fee pizza in Chicago or ANY city!
lisa waltz says
I am new to using cast iron pans…how do you prep it for this recipe? Thanks!!
Jan says
This looks amazing, Carolyn, but I have a question. Can you taste the coconut flour in this at all? I absolutely cannot stand the taste of it, even though I like coconut.
Or could I just leave it out? I love your recipes, you do a fantastic job and I always enjoy your posts…
Carolyn says
No, don’t leave it out and no, you can’t taste it. It helps stiffen the dough and make it more workable in this recipe.
Eric says
Looks wonderful, and I’m not a pizza junkie. But I’m confused: At the top of the recipe, it says Yield: 10 Servings, but in the Nutritional Information it is based on 12 servings.
Lorraine says
This looks good. I’m not the pizza fan most people are because I worked in the industry for about 5 years as a young adult. Just ate too much of it. For me, pizza is what you have when you don’t feel like cooking and want something fast and easy. That said, I do like pizza-like casseroles so this really appeals.
mellissa @ ibreatheimhungry says
Big fan of pizza and also Jones Dairy Farm products so this is a win win for me! That crust looks as close to the real thing as you can get and still be low carb – can’t wait to try this out!!!
Joshua Hampton says
I can’t resist the smell of good pizza either. Pizza is a staple in our house. I can’t wait to try your recipe. It’s mouthwatering.
Nadine says
This looks amazing!! 🙂
Do you have any suggestions for a replacement of the whey protein powder?
Carolyn says
You can use hemp protein or powdered egg whites.
Candace @ Cabot says
Perfect Friday post, ’cause Friday is Pizza Day at my house. This looks amazing!
Lin says
Jones sausage sounds wonderful,with just natural,ingredients and no fillers. I will look for it at the market. I saved your recipe and am looking forward to having pizza again!
Pam says
Oh, my…must try! 🙂
Julie says
That looks delicious. I was wondering if you know, though, if their pigs are pastured. I couldn’t find anything about it on their website.
Carolyn says
I don’t believe so, no. In a perfect world, all the meat I buy would be pastured but that’s not always within my budget
Linda says
This looks wonderful! Do you think this would work baked in a glass pie pan? I don’t have an iron skillet although I do have stainless steel. So which would produce better results, glass or stainless steel?
Linette says
I make pies in a Corning Ware pie pan and the crust crisps up and just about slides around. Much better than a metal pan.
Charla says
This looks great! Can you tell me, on the sausage is it just breakfast sausage or is it like Italian sausage or something else?
Carolyn says
It’s similar to the Jimmy Dean bulk sausage (I guess that’s breakfast sausage?) but without all the junk.