In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together flour, yeast, and sugar. Do not add the salt yet. Turn mixer on medium-low with dough hook attached and stream in water just until dough forms, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Once dough is formed, about 3-4 minutes, turn off mixer and cover dough with plastic wrap. Let dough sit for 10 minutes, giving yeast time to develop.

Turn mixer to medium speed and add salt to dough, letting mixer knead dough for about 8 minutes, or until a soft ball of dough forms. Dough will be wet but should just clear sides of bowl.

Spray sheet pan with non-stick cooking spray, then add olive oil to sheet pan. Use your hands to coat sheet pan with olive oil, then use oiled hands to transfer pizza dough to sheet pan. Use oiled hands to spread dough into large rectangle shape as shown in pictures. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for one hour, until doubled in size and soft and puffy.

While the dough is rising, preheat oven and prepare pizza sauce.

Place cast-iron pan upside down on lowest rack of oven and preheat oven to 450℉. Let cast iron pan and oven heat for an hour while the pizza dough is rising, so that the oven and pan are as hot as possible.

Combine all sauce ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. This makes about 3 cups of pizza sauce, enough for the pizza plus extra.

After the pizza dough has risen for one hour, use slightly oiled hands to press and stretch dough all the way to edges of pan. Recover with plastic wrap and let rise again for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes, use slightly oiled fingers to pinch a crust against the lip of the baking sheet.

Spread an even thin layer of pizza sauce over pizza dough. Use 1 ½ cups to 2 cups of sauce, depending on preference.

Sprinkle Parmesan over sauce, followed by mozzarella cheese. Top with pepperoni. Pepperoni will shrink, so make sure to place them close together. I use about fifty-four pepperoni. Six across the short edge and nine down the long edge.

Carefully place sheet pan onto preheated upside-down cast iron pan on oven rack. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until cheese is melted, spotted brown, and bubbly.

Remove pizza from oven and slide onto wire rack to cool for about five minutes before slicing. Top with fresh basil.