Eric & I grew up in the same hometown and met in high school. (It’s possible we first met in kindergarten, as Eric was bused to my elementary school when enrollment was full at his neighborhood school, but neither of us have proof of that.) Growing up in the same area, we like many of the same regional foods. The best of the food to come out of the Philadelphia area is Philly Cheesesteaks, in our opinion. Outside of the metropolitan area, Pudge’s was always Eric’s go-to place for a cheesesteak.
When we travel back to our hometown where some of our family still lives, the visit has to include a lunch or dinner at Vito’s for a mushroom & fried onion cheesesteak with sauce. We used to split one due to the size, but recently, we’ve each been getting our own and saving half of it for another meal since we don’t get back to King of Prussia as often now that the trip is a plane flight instead of a long car drive.
The interpretation of a Philly cheesesteak in Chicago does not live up to our expectations. We don’t even try them in restaurants out here. Nothing really compares to what we get back home. And yet, I was very tempted to try out the Food Networks version of a cheesesteak pizza. And we loved it! No, it is not exactly the steak sandwich of our formative years, but that is to be expected since this is in pizza form. I hope to hear that friends & relatives from the Philly area try this pizza and also like it!
Philly Cheesesteak Pizza
Philly Cheesesteak Pizza (adapted from foodnetwork.com) Total Time Required: 35 minutes, Prep Time: 15 minutes, Cook: 10-15 minutes, Rest Time: 5 minutes, Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients:
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 small onion, halved and thinly sliced
- 1 mild Italian frying pepper, thinly sliced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 9 ounces Steak-umm Sliced Steaks, broken into pieces
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 cup pizza sauce
- 4 ounces shredded mozzarella
- 4 ounces shredded or chopped provolone cheese
- 2 ounces grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup pickled sliced sweet or hot cherry peppers, optional
- 1 pound pizza dough
Directions:
Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and frying pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly softened, about 5 minutes.
Saute the onion & pepper.
Add the garlic and beef and cook, stirring occasionally, until the beef begins to brown, about 3 minutes.
Add the steak slices and garlic to the veggies.
Cook the topping until the meat is no longer pink.
Add the parsley, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring, for 1 more minute.
Add the parsley to the pan when the topping has finished cooking.
Preheat the grill to 500ºF or the oven to 450º F. (If using a pizza stone, place it on the grill or in the oven while they preheat.) Roll out the pizza dough and place it on a pizza pan or a cornmeal coated pizza peel. Spread the sauce on the pizza.
Spread the sauce on the pizza.
Layer the mozzarella & provolone cheeses over the sauce.
Top with the mozzarella & provolone cheeses.
Spread the beef mixture evenly over the cheeses, add the cherry peppers, if using, then sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over the top.
Add the onion, peppers & meat to the pizza, then grate the Parmesan over top of it all.
Grill or bake the pizza for 10-15 minutes, to the desired doneness. Remove it from the grill or oven and allow it to rest for 5 minutes before cutting it into slices and serving.
This satisfies those cheesesteak cravings!
Some goodness from home! ~Linda
Philly Cheesesteak Pizza (adapted from foodnetwork.com) Total Time Required: 35 minutes, Prep Time: 15 minutes, Cook: 10-15 minutes, Rest Time: 5 minutes, Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients:
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 small onion, halved and thinly sliced
- 1 mild Italian frying pepper, thinly sliced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 9 ounces Steak-umm Sliced Steaks, broken into pieces
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 cup pizza sauce
- 4 ounces shredded mozzarella
- 4 ounces shredded or chopped provolone cheese
- 2 ounces grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup pickled sliced sweet or hot cherry peppers, optional
- 1 pound pizza dough
Directions:
Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and frying pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and beef and cook, stirring occasionally, until the beef begins to brown, about 3 minutes. Add the parsley, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring, for 1 more minute.
Preheat the grill to 500ºF or the oven to 450º F. (If using a pizza stone, place it on the grill or in the oven while they preheat.) Roll out the pizza dough and place it on a pizza pan or a cornmeal coated pizza peel. Spread the sauce on the pizza, then layer the mozzarella & provolone cheeses over the sauce. Spread the beef mixture evenly over the cheeses, add the cherry peppers, if using, then sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over the top. Grill or bake the pizza for 10-15 minutes, to the desired doneness. Remove it from the grill or oven and allow it to rest for 5 minutes before cutting it into slices and serving.