Chicago Town Hot Dog Deep Dish Pizza Review

There are certain words in our house that make people's ears prick up.  For Daddy, they include Eurovision and Curry. For me it's more likely to be Snooker & Gin.  For Squeaky, once we take the obvious TV programmes out of the equation, the two words/phrases most likely to get a reaction are Pizza and Hot Dog.  So you can imagine my response when we were asked to review Chicago Town's Deep Dish Pizzas, especially their new, limited edition Hot Dog Pizza!

It was like Christmas had come early.  I know I talk a lot about Squeaky's fussy eating habits (and it's officially recorded on her Health Visitor records, I saw them yesterday), but it's the truth. She is a real finicky creature, but her two favourite foods that aren't chocolate or ice cream are Hot Dogs & Pizza.  When I'm at my wits' end with her, they're our fall-back staples.

So, yeah.  I was sent some vouchers & off I popped to my local supermarket.  The Deep Dish pizzas are only small, they're just the right size for a Squeaky meal, but for an adult, I'd want some garlic bread or chips to go with them.  As a snack, they're great, but I'm greedy when it comes to pizza.  But it's Squeaky's dinner, and for her, they're just right.

I've had other pizzas from the Chicago Town range before, but never the Deep Dish.  I was really surprised to find that you could oven cook them, or microwave, with equally good results.  I was going to give you two photos to compare the two, but despite living in this house, with this oven, for nearly a year now, I still have my moments, and haven't quite got to grips with the fact that it's actually at the temperature it claims to be, and I slightly charred the oven cooked one.  The picture here is the second pizza, which I microwaved.

Squeaky honestly couldn't tell the difference between the two, and the fact that I can microwave them means I can have a dinner ready in a few minutes, or a replacement dinner on those joyous days where she decides she doesn't like whatever I've slaved over for her.

The reaction to the pizza, well, I will give you her honest and genuine quote "The pizza is OK to eat mummy!"  This, I believe means that the temperature was right, and that she was enjoying it.  As there weren't even crusts left to give to the birds, I suspect she really liked it.  I did have to pick off a couple of obvious bits of onion (which she decided were ham), because she didn't approve of them, but hey, that happens to us all some days.

The Hot Dog Pizza is a limited edition addition to the Deep Dish range (and I'm going to be stocking up).  The range also includes Pepperoni - my favourite, Ham and Pineapple - Daddy's favourite, Four Cheeses, Chicken Melt and Meat Combo.  Chicago Town Pizzas are available at all major supermarkets, for around £2.00 for a two pack (though you may find special offers)

Disclosure: I was provided with vouchers free of charge to purchase Deep Dish pizzas for the purposes of this review. I was not told what to write and all opinions are my own. I am not a member of any affiliate scheme, links are provided for convenience only, I will not receive reward for their use.

Chicago Town Takeaway Review

Big gap in the freezer, must be popular

I don't need to tell you I'm a pizza addict, do I?  It's pretty much common knowledge nowadays.  If you went on Pointless & the question was "Foods Lorraine Eats", Pizza would score you at least 85 points, and unless someone said "sprouts", which would score 100 for being WRONG, you wouldn't be through to the next round & wouldn't win the coveted Pointless Trophy.

Well, you can guess my reaction when I was asked to sample Chicago Town's Takeaway range.  I hadn't actually tried these pizzas before, as I tend to buy fresh, because I prefer bases that haven't been pre-cooked.  So I was really pleased to find that these are frozen fresh, so the dough bakes & rises in the oven.  You'd be surprised how much difference it makes to the taste.  Or would you?  Chicago Town's Takeaway range recently beat both Domino's & Pizza Hut to be voted the UK's number 1 pizza on description, price & taste.

I wanted this one SO much!

We rushed out to see which of the range they had in our local store.  Chicago Town have introduced a new Limited Edition Sloppy Joe, which I was really excited to try, but was foiled by our shops not stocking it.  They had a big gap where the New Yorker was meant to be as well, which was previously a limited edition, but has now taken its place as part of the full range.  Not to be disheartened, we selected the Pepperoni  and Cheese pizzas from the range, and rushed home to get them in the oven.

And we had to get them in the oven.  I didn't realise how big they were, in comparison to the majority of other pizzas on the market.  We've only got a fairly small fridge-freezer, and I couldn't fit them in the freezer.  Not to worry, as we couldn't wait another minute anyway, but if you're buying in advance and don't have much space, it's worth bearing in mind.

Eight slices! EIGHT!

Do you want to know what I mean by big?  8 slices.  8 generous, pick up and bite, slices.  A regular shop bought pizza will normally only achieve six before they get too skinny to handle.  8 slices means we can share a pizza between Squeaky, Daddy & I, with some garlic bread, and the adults don't feel robbed by a pizza-addicted 2 year old.  So we did share with Daddy, though not the pepperoni, that one belongs strictly to us girls!

What you can't quite see on the picture to the right, is something very clever.  It took me many years to be convinced by pizza cooking instructions that said to place the pizza directly onto the shelf in the oven, but when I did, it was a revelation, as the base cooks more crisp and evenly.  You don't do that with the Chicago Town Takeaway range though.  The pizza comes with a disposable cooking base, made of cardboard, with a black, reflective top to it.  I don't know how it works, but it keeps that soft uncooked base flat, and helps the pizza cook to an even, crisp finish.  And stops bits of cheese dripping onto the base of my oven, which is a very welcome development.

My pizza!

Did we enjoy the pizzas?  It's a resounding yes!  The only criticism I have is that the sauce in the stuffed crust gets, and stays, very very hot.  Hot enough to burn my tongue when the main body of the pizza has cooled down.  That'll teach me to slow down a bit, I guess.  We actually did a taste test between the Chicago Town Takeaway and another frozen cheese & tomato pizza, and the difference was clear.  The base tastes fresh, the toppings are really generous, and it actually tastes just as good cold (a very important consideration)

For those who don't like the stuffed crust, or are worried about incurring the sort of injuries I risk in the name of blogging (a slightly singed tongue, fine in five minutes), Chicago Town have also launched a new Classic Thin version of their Takeawy range, without the stuffed crust.

Chicago Town Takeaway Pizzas are available in major supermarkets, RRP £3.79.

Disclosure: I was provided with vouchers to purchase pizzas for the purpose of this review. I was not told what to write, and all opinions are my own.  Links are provided for your convenience, I am not a member of any affiliate scheme and will not receive reward for their use.

Domino's Gourmet Four Seasons Pizza Review

There are few things in life I like more than pizza.  I might have mentioned this in the past.  Maybe. Just once or twice.  So when the opportunity to sample Domino's new Gourmet Four Seasons pizza came my way, well, you just know I'm going to enjoy myself!

It's a hard, hard life, blogging!

I wouldn't normally have chosen the Four Seasons, but in reality, I'm not sure why.  Squeaky Daddy & I have different taste in pizzas, which normally leads to a very expensive order, as we get a different one each. The daft thing is, the Four Seasons is a great compromise, and the only quarter he doesn't like is the one that Squeaky & I claim as our absolute favourite.  The Gourmet range are on a special fresh thin crust base, with sundried tomato & garlic sauce, rather than the standard tomato.  This gives the pizza a lovely rich flavour, a little hint of luxury, and the overwhelming taste is of the toppings, not the base.  It was good to try a different pizza to my normal choices, and it's one I'll be including on my list of favourites from now on.

Let me talk you through the pizza above.  Clockwise from top left we have Rustica with chicken strips, bacon rashers, baby spinach & sunblush baby plum tomatoes, Florentine with baby spinach, sunblush baby plum tomatoes & feta cheese, Firenze with Ventricina salami, pepperoni & roquito peppers, and an un-named 4th quarter with just cheese & sunblush baby plum tomatoes.  So 2 for the veggies, and two for the meat-eaters.

Inspecting the pepperoni.

I ordered by phone, and was pleased to find that I was given an estimated delivery time.  The store took my phone number in case of any problems (they know where I am now, but I have had their delivery drivers call me in the past to identify my house as the numbers are all kinds of confusing on our street), and the driver arrived with a piping hot pizza well within the time quoted.  Great when you've got a hungry two year old & even hungrier Daddy in the house.

The Firenze quarter was pounced on by Squeaky & I straight away. I'm not going to risk losing all my pepperoni to her, and vice versa.  My biggest pregnancy craving was pepperoni pizza, and I think it must have passed through the placenta, as she's as much of an addict as I am.  The Roquito peppers gave it a nice twist, though Squeaky did insist on removing them as they look suspiciously like vegetables, and we all know that they're not acceptable in the diet of a two year old!  I tucked in as well, and enjoyed the different taste of the salami as well as the traditional pepperoni.  Very tasty.

Action shot!

Daddy started on the Rustica, and said that the chicken & bacon were a great combination.  He even braved a piece of the Florentine, after I denied knowledge of the feta cheese on top.  He doesn't like feta, whereas I love it.  Fortunately for him, when cooked it loses the distinctive salty taste, which kind of defeats the point of it being feta (this isn't a criticism of the pizza, I've experienced the same with cooked feta in other dishes).  And the two slices of the cheese and tomato turned into a battle between three of us. All in all, we didn't find a single quarter we didn't enjoy.  It was possibly a little bit too nice to share with Squeaky on a regular basis, she's quite happy with whatever pizza she's given, but as a treat I'm prepared to let her join in.

At £14.49 for a medium (11.5") or £16.49 for a large (13.5"), Domino's isn't the cheapest.  But it is convenient, and very very tasty.  And there's plenty of deals available. We get regular menus through our door with vouchers for money off, free side orders etc, and there's further deals online, all of which bring the prices right down.  I mean, yes, you could buy a frozen pizza for less, but you can really taste the difference between a shop-bought frozen pizza, and one that's been made fresh for your order.  Delivery pizza isn't really meant for everyday, in our house it's for special occasions, and for special occasions I don't mind paying a bit extra to get something I really enjoy.

Would I order again?  See you on Two-For-Tuesday!

Disclosure: I was provided with a voucher for a free Gourmet Four Seasons pizza for the purposes of this review.  I was not told what to write and all opinions are my own (and Squeaky's).  Links are provided for your convenience, I am not a member of any affiliate scheme and will not receive reward for their use.

Dr Oetker Pizza Review

I've mentioned before that in the dim & distant past of my student days, I used to work in an Italian restaurant, and spent three years of my life when I was supposed to be learning serving pizza to the great and good of Ilkley. Seriously, I served pizza to Richard Whiteley, and assorted people off Emmerdale & Heartbeat.

Despite spending three years around more pizza than is really healthy, nothing's put me off.  That would be impossible.  If anything, I like pizza even more, and I never thought that was possible.  So when those kind people at Dr Oetker asked me to review their Ristorante pizzas, well, I was almost as fast as Usain Bolt!  Nothing was going to get in my way.

I actually sent SqueakyDaddy to the supermarket to pick my pizza up, we've just moved house and I was in the middle of some very important rearranging of the kitchen cupboards.  Back he came with the pizza you can see over there to the right.  Out of the whole Dr Oetker range, this is my number 2 favourite, only beaten by the sheer level of garlic in the Funghi.  This one though, has garlic, mushrooms, ham & at least 2 different sorts of pepperoni.  That's a list that makes me, and Squeaky, very happy indeed.

I cracked open the box, popped the pizza into the oven from frozen, went away for a few minutes, and came back to a beautiful sight (and smell).  I'm still getting used to our new oven, so it was more of a miracle than you'd expect that I didn't burn it.  Straight onto the shelf, so the pizza cooks from top & bottom, and it came out beautifully crisp, with the most intense pepperoni smell imaginable.

I tucked in, and if the smell was good, the taste was better.  Some pepperoni pizzas can be kind of bland, the pepperoni just greasy discs not tasting of much.  That's definitely not the case with this one!  Not overwhelmingly hot, but enough of a kick to know it's there, a nice little tingle on the lips, and a smoky peppery flavour.  The mushrooms & ham add some balance, and there's plenty of cheese and tomato as well.  A really generously topped pizza, and as you can see, pretty evenly distributed topping, it wasn't all over the one side leaving big bald patches.

Pepperoni pizza was one of my biggest cravings while I was pregnant with Squeaky, and I think something must have crossed the placenta, because pizza, and pepperoni pizza in particular, is pretty much her favourite food.  Sadly that means I have to share.  But as you can see, she loved it just as much as me.  It's not the greatest photo in the world, but just look at that cheese!  If nothing else, you know there's a generous cheese topping!

I've never met a Dr Oetker pizza I didn't like, and at around £2.70, depending on your supermarket, they seem good value for money.  The Ristorante range are thin & crispy bases, and the newer Casa Di Mama have dough that rises from frozen for a deeper base.

Dr Oetker pizzas are available in the frozen food section of most major supermarkets.  And right now they're on special offer in at least 2 of the big supermarkets.

Disclosure: I was provided with a voucher to purchase a pizza for the purposes of this review.  I was not told what to write and all opinions are my own.  Links are provided for your convenience, I am not a member of any affiliate scheme and will not receive payment for their use.