My early school years took place primarily in the 90's, and I remember the cafeteria serving up super cheesy rectangles of pizza on a thin crust every Friday. Everyone looked forward to Pizza Friday! As I grew older, I realized that rectangle pizza was a more widespread thing that existed in many schools other than my small lil' educational establishment in East Tennessee.
While I'm sure school cafeterias had their own standardized way of preparing these pizzas on endless, massive sheet pans to be sold to hungry kiddos, you can create a very close substitute of school cafeteria pizza at home to help relive some childhood memories.
To keep things easy, I used a ball of premade dough that I found at my regular grocery store (Kroger). I recommend you do the same if you don't want to make a homemade dough. You technically could use the canned pizza dough, but because this pizza is made in a large 10x15 baking sheet, the dough from the cans will be very, very thin when pressed into the pan.
Original School Pizza Recipe
As far as toppings, I remember my school mostly serving the plain cheese variety, though on some days there were meat varieties offered. You can stick to those basic options for your homemade school lunch pizza, but you can also load it up with any of your favorite protein or veggie toppings.
To me, one key feature of classic school rectangle pizza is the fact that there is very little visible crust around the outside. To achieve an authentic look, spread the sauce and toppings allll the way to the edge of the crust.
Want to make things a little healthier? Consider a whole wheat crust to increase the fiber and complex carbohydrate content. Use a part-skim mozzarella and use a lean protein such as cooked chicken or lean ground turkey.
Rectangular Cafeteria Pizza
Even if you're not seeking a hit of nostalgia with this meal, it's also just an easy way to make a big and simple pizza for the family for your own at-home Pizza Fridays. Enjoy this school pizza recipe!!
You can also use a canned pizza dough if you want, but your crust will be quite a bit thinner as those cans are usually 10-12oz.
Do you like this recipe and want to save it for later? Consider pinning the image below to your Pinterest boards or sharing on social media! Thanks for visiting!
Copycat Lunch Lady Pizza
Erin is a mom of two human babies and a sweet kitty named Biscuit Fingers. She loves comfy clothes, eats too much peanut butter, and watches excessive amounts of Netflix. Make her day and toss her a like on Facebook or follow her on Instagram. Post may contain affiliate links including those via the Amazon Associates programThis Old School Pizza recipe capturesthe essence of all that was good in the school cafeterias of our youth. (Cafeteria ladies not included.)
In the day, our Cafeteria Ladies served us up savory squares of school lunch pizza made with three distinct elements: a pourable crust, meat sauce topping, and government cheese. This old school pizza recipe perfectly recreates the memory; tender crust, meaty sauce, copycat cheese blend and all.
I was one of those kids who got hot lunch almost every day. Both my parents worked outside our home and mom wasn't the lunch-packing sort, so until I got old enough to where my mom would let me pack my own lunch, I was most often in the hot lunch line. From first through eighth grade, I figure I ate about 1000 hot lunches in our basement cafeteria.
Vegan School Lunch Pan Pizza(no Yeast!)
Most days, the actual food served for hot lunch wasn't all that awesome, but ever so often, it was great. I mean, truly Good. My favorite was Chili & Maple Bar Day (I'll get to that here on the blog someday - you're gonna love it!), and my second favorite was Pizza Day.
Oh sure, by the time I hit my tweens, my mom had finally decided that she'd give the pizza at Amalfi's a try, and from then on we had it at least once a month. But even though I have had countless amazing, hand-tossed, artisan-created, wood-fired, rustic pizzas since those long-ago days, a slice of old school cafeteria pizza now and again is a comfortable, reassuring memory.
To recreate the unique flavor memory that is School Cafeteria Pizza, you need three basic elements: a pourable crust, a meaty topping, and copycat government cheese.
Homemade] Cafeteria Pizza
The pourable crust is arguably the most critical piece of the cafeteria pizza puzzle, because it gives school pizza its unique texture and bite. Every source I could find for pourable pizza crust made enough dough for at least eight full-size sheet pans. After some serious tinkering, however, I was able to adjust the recipe down so that it is just right for a single half-sheet pan.
School pizza in 1970s Portland always came topped with a thick, meaty, tomato-based sauce; almost like a Bolognese sauce. (There were no
As usual, the topping sauce in this recipe is presented as a Ia jumping-off point. If you want to use your own topping sauce, or make it vegetarian, or add a stew of other ingredients to it, by all means - go for it!
Discover The School Pizza Recipe
*Original school pizza was usually made with only ground beef, but we really like to add Italian sausage to the meat blend. For a pure, authentic sauce, omit the sausage and just use ground beef.
. Government cheese was ubiquitous in the cafeteria of my youth; it was found in grilled cheese sandwiches, lasagna, mac-n-cheese, and of course, pizza.
If you have never experienced government cheese in all its glorious goldenness, you don't know what you are missing. Rumored to have been created from the tears of Midwest dairy farmers, this “pasteurized process American cheese product” wedges in on the dubious side of the cheese wheel, somewhere between Velveeta and Kraft Singles.
School Pizza (sheet Pan Pizza)
I don't have access to government cheese these days; however, I've created a blend that comes pretty close. It is this copycat government cheese that gives this cafeteria pizza recipe its authentic, old school flavor.
Use a textured baking pan if you have one. The texture allows air to flow under the pizza dough as it bakes on the parchment, making for a more evenly baked crust.
Combine oil and warm water in a large measuring cup or mixing bowl, and then pour the liquid into flour mixture and stir thoroughly for about 5 minutes. The dough will be thick, loose, and
Cafeteria Style Pizza Burgers
Pour the dough mixture from bowl onto prepared pan and spread evenly using a spatula. Set dough in pan aside in a warm spot to rest for 30 minutes.
In a large, heavy skillet, combine the chopped onion, mild Italian sausage, and ground beef. Cook over medium-high heat until meat is thoroughly browned and onion is soft and translucent.
Hint: Processed American cheese usually comes in slices. To grate the American cheese easily, first stack the slices, then cut them in half and stack them again before grating.
Finally Made The Lunch Lady Pizza Recipe Posted By Butterybiscuits43 A Year Ago!
Return pizza to hot 475°F (245°C) oven and bake for 8-10 minutes; until the cheese is melted and the topping is heated.
Pizza, just leave out the meat and double the tomato sauce and spices to create the sauce. It really is as simple as that.
Toppings: Like any pizza, the choices are practically limitless when it comes to topping a school lunch pizza. You can go traditional and add pepperoni or peppers; or zhuzh it up with caramelized onions or a sprinkling of roasted Brussels sprouts. One of our favorite additions is homemade meatballs!
Southern Mom Loves: School Lunch Pizza Recipe!
The important thing is to incorporate whatever you use into the sauce, because that saucy center is what makes it old school pizza.
Sheet Pan: I recommend using a textured half sheet baking pan (20 x 14 x 1) for this recipe. It also bakes up nicely in two quarter sheet pans (9x13). A pizza cutter is also helpful, but not necessary.
Meat Masher: This inexpensive little kitchen tool makes the job of breaking up ground meat 10x easier, and saves your wrists, too.
Lunch Lady' School Pizza
Refrigerator: Homemade school pizza stores like any other pizza. According to the USDA, leftover pizza will last in the fridge forup to 4 days. Wrap and refrigerate within 2 hours of taking it out of the oven.
Freezer: This cafeteria pizza recipe can also be frozen. To do this, prebake the crust as directed, and then add the toppings and cheese. Allow the pizza to cool completely, and then cover with plastic wrap. Wrap a second time in aluminum foil, and put in the freezer.
When ready to eat, bake as directed, adjusting the time as needed. The pizza is done when the cheese is fully melted and the crust is warm and golden brown.
Easy Homemade School Cafeteria Pizza
Store-bought crust: If you don't want to make the pourable dough, you can use refrigerated pizza dough. You can find this in the freezer section, or at the grocery store deli or pizza counter. (If you have a Winco, the pizza section there sells raw dough.)
Air-fryer Reheating: We find that the best way to reheat school pizza (or any pizza for that matter) is
0 Response to "Cafeteria Pizza Recipe"
Posting Komentar