Step 1

Make dough: Stir all ingredients together in a bowl or stand mixer. Knead for several minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Step 2

First rise: Place in a well-greased bowl, turning once in the bowl to coat in oil, then cover and allow to rise for 2 hours. (Don't skimp on the rise times!)

Step 3

Press into pan: Oil the bottom and sides of a pizza pan*. Stretch dough into a rectangle and lay into pan(s). Cover and rest for 15 minutes, to allow the gluten to relax. Without handling the dough too much, gently spread the dough all the way to the edges of the pan, poking it into the corners, in a flat even layer (there’s no “crust” edge in Detroit pizza).

Step 4

Second rise: Rise again for 2 hours, or until the dough has risen about 1/3 way up the pan.

Step 5

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. I recommend baking the pizza on a pizza stone, or if you don't have a pizza stone, use a baking sheet, and allow it to preheat in the oven.

Step 6

Add cheese: sprinkle cheese all over the dough, making sure it covers all the way to the edges.

Step 7

Add sauce: spoon pizza sauce into 2-3 lines/stripes going down the pan, over cheese—you don’t want to cover all the cheese in sauce.

Step 8

Add pepperoni, laying it in a single layer over the top. Lightly sprinkle parmesan on top.

Step 9

Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until cheese is golden and bubbly. Cool for a few minutes in the pan before slicing into squares.