Just like other kinds of pizza, Chicago-style pizzas can have a wide variety of toppings, such as peppers and onions, pepperoni or salami, Italian sausage, spinach, or really anything you like. The recipe below is just a blueprint. The key is to use plenty of cheese and put the sauce on top.

Prepare:

Adding to the dough along with the olive oil:

Let the dough rise as directed. Meanwhile, prepare:

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Grease a 12-inch cast-iron skillet, a deep 12-inch cake pan, or 2 deep 9-inch cake pans with:

Dust the pan(s) with:

Shake out any excess cornmeal.

Once the dough has doubled in bulk, transfer it to a lightly floured work surface and stretch it out into a 14-inch round if using a 12-inch skillet or cake pan. If using 9-inch cake pans, divide the dough in half, shape each half into a ball, and stretch out the dough into 11-inch rounds. Take care not to stretch the crust too thin. Transfer the dough to the pan(s), pressing it gently into the corners and up the sides of the pan(s). Top the dough with:

Top the filling with the marinara sauce. Sprinkle on top of the sauce:

Cut off any overhanging dough where it meets the pan rim, or fold it over and pinch it at the edge to form a thicker crust. Drizzle the top of the pizza(s) with:

Bake the pizza(s) until the crust is a deep golden brown, about 35 minutes. Sprinkle with:

Let cool for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.