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.
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.
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!!
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Rectangle Cafeteria Pizza | School Lunch Copycat
- Total Time: 30 mins
- Yield: 9 slices 1x
Ingredients
- Approx 1lb pizza dough (see notes)
- Olive oil and cornmeal/semolina flour for preparing the pan
- 1 8oz can tomato sauce
- 2 TBS tomato paste
- 1 TBS Italian seasoning
- ¼ tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp onion powder
- Pinch of black pepper
- ½ tsp sugar
- Toppings: Cooked ground beef or sausage, chopped pepperoni, cooked onions or mushrooms, cooked bell peppers, etc. I used 1lb of cooked ground sausage.
- 1 8oz bag of mozzarella cheese, shredded - more if desired.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F. Brush a 10x15 baking pan with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle with a small amount of cornmeal or semolina flour. Use your fingertips to press the dough into the pan, keeping the dough even in thickness all the way to the edge.
- Brush the top of the dough with more olive oil and use a fork to create pricks all over. Bake for 5-7 minutes. If bubbles begin to form while baking, reach in with a fork and poke them to let the gas escape.
- While crust is pre-baking, mix together the tomato sauce, tomato paste, italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, and sugar. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed - add a bit more sugar if sauce still tastes too acidic.
- Spread sauce over pre-baked crust, going all the way to the edge. Top with meat, veggies, pepperoni, or any other desired toppings. Add a generous layer of mozzarella cheese on top.
- To recreate the look of a school pizza, have the toppings and cheese go all the way to the edge of the crust.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly. Cut into rectangles and serve.
Notes
I used pre-made dough balls from my grocery store (see here)
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.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
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Where can I find that same pizza like from 1998 ? that’s when I graduated grammar school.. I’ve been craving it for a while
Hey Erin! First of all, let me just say how much I enjoyed reading your blog post about the beloved rectangle cafeteria pizza. As I was going through your article, I couldn't help but feel a wave of nostalgia wash over me. I, too, remember those cheesy, thin-crust rectangles of joy that we used to eagerly anticipate every Friday during school lunch. It's amazing how certain foods can bring back such vivid memories!
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Your recipe for recreating the school cafeteria pizza at home is simply genius. Using a premade dough makes it so much more convenient, and I appreciate the tip about avoiding the canned pizza dough if we want a thicker crust. The fact that you can customize the toppings to suit your preferences is a great idea too. Personally, I always went for the plain cheese version, but it's good to know that we have the freedom to load it up with our favorite proteins and veggies.
Oh, and I couldn't agree more about the crust! The lack of visible crust around the edges is definitely a defining feature of the classic school rectangle pizza. It's those little details that make all the difference when we're trying to recreate a cherished childhood dish. Thanks for sharing this delightful recipe and bringing back some fond memories. I can't wait to give it a try and relive those Pizza Friday vibes from back in the day!
Take care and keep those fantastic recipes coming!
★★★★★
Fennel seed seems important from what I remember. Thanks!
Omg I have always remembered the texture of the sausage it was very fine but also thickish like it had a bit of a starch in it, but so genuine that I've never tasted it since but still will NEVER FORGET the taste.???
Hey Erin my name is Tim Shew and I am 56...I remember these pizzas from grade school here in Illinois also in the 70s when I was in grade school and I have always thought about trying to recreate the taste of theses pizzas...the biggest thing for me was the sausage flavor and texture...I was wondering if there was any way to find out if it was a certain brand or just something they concocted themselves...thank you
I did discover an original recipe for cafeteria pizza that didn't include a sausage topping, but it DID include a ground beef topping, which had the cooked ground beef simmered in sauteed onions and garlic powder, a little tomato paste, basil, oregano, marjoram, and thyme. Not exactly an answer to your question, but I hope that helps!
I grew up in Gary, Ind in the 60's and my grandmother was a cook in Gary Public schools. She taught my mother how to make school cafeteria pizza. Back then, they used hamburger in the schools, and so did my mom, and I still do to this day! We season the hamburger with fennel seed to give it that Italian sausage taste. I use my 19" jelly roll pan. One of my favorite recipes from my grandmother!
Hi Tammy, can you please share the recipe for the pizza?
Gonna try this tonight I did find this site that sells to schools and it looks exactly like I remember but its soo expensive so hopefully this works! Here's site link...https://www.webstaurantstore.com/the-max-4-x-6-whole-grain-cheese-pizza-case/878CON712655.html?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=GoogleShopping&gclid=Cj0KCQiAnsqdBhCGARIsAAyjYjQ2s0nLnNs7suMQT3Vo8dOh2GAi9mYMAhO-J0DlhOGsaIXQRUfwS68aAiLTEALw_wcB
Would you share the recipe Tammy?
I'm also very interested in the Recipe, Tammy. I'd love to have the original recipe. While I love Imo's and my homemade pizza I make already, I do miss the cafeteria pizza I ate in school in the mid-80s to late-90s. Tasting it again would be a great big of nostalgia.
Can you share it?
Hi Tammy,
Do you have the pizza dough recipe?
This when my love for "day after" or the cold pizza type pizza. I miss these days.?
I came across this article when I was searching for pizza. You're right. The rectangular pizza must be a common style to serve in various school districts. Being from southern Virginia, our school system served these pizzas during the 80's and 90's. They were served under the name Tony's Pizza.
The schools served either cheese or sausage pizzas. There used to be a store that sold Tony's Pizzas by the sheet (8 frozen slices per sheet) for individual sale. You could buy a box of 12. They were delicious.
Also, they used to serve pizza burgers (2 per student) which was like sauce, cheese and sausage on hamburger buns.
Is the cornmeal absolutely necessary? I’m having a hard time finding it at the store.
I'm so sorry I'm just seeing this! You can dust the pan with flour instead, but you won't get the same texture or extra flavor that the cornmeal adds. The main purpose for it, other than taste, is to keep the dough from sticking to the pan too much when it bakes.
I been looking for something like this!!! Thank you so much! Brings back memories!
Okay this is great!
But...what about the breakfast pizzas? Those were so good! I'd get to school early for those
YAS THANK YOU
I seen a post on Facebook with a picture of the school cafeteria pizza and that was my absolute favorite. I didn't realize how much I missed it.
Where i live i cant get powerded milk can i use regular milk, with the same measurements
Hey there! This pizza recipe actually doesn't call for powdered milk - maybe you accidentally posted this comment on the wrong recipe?