Thick Crust American Pizza

To make the dough, pour 650ml of lukewarm water into a large bowl and use a fork to stir in the yeast, sugar and 1 level teaspoon of fine sea salt. Add the flour bit by bit until it comes together into a smooth, springy dough, adding a little more flour if needed. Knead on a floured surface, then place in a flour-dusted bowl, cover with a damp cloth and leave in a warm room until doubled in size.

Meanwhile, drizzle a little olive oil into a large pan on a medium heat. Add the sliced onions and thyme leaves and cook for 15 minutes, or until softened and golden. Set aside. Put the chopped tomatoes, garlic, dried oregano and white wine vinegar into a food processor with a good pinch of salt and black pepper, blitz to a puree, then taste and season.

Slit the sausages open and squeeze the meat into a bowl. Bash the dried chilli and fennel seeds in a pestle and mortar, add to the meat and mix well with a fork.

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Divide the dough in half and oil 2 trays (about 25 x 35cm). Flatten and stretch the dough to fill each tray, pushing it into the corners so you get a chubby crust and a base about 1cm thick.

Divide the tomato sauce between the pizzas and spread around. Scatter over the caramelised onions and dot small pinches of the sausage mixture across each pizza. Tear up the mozzarella and dot the pieces over the sausage, then sprinkle over the fresh basil leaves, sliced chilli, a good pinch of salt and pepper and the grated Parmesan. Let the bacon slices fall onto the pizzas so they curl and crisp as they cook. Bake at the bottom of the oven for about 20 minutes so the base gets crispy while the top cooks. Serve right away with a green salad.