August 15, 2011: White Pizza on the Grill Recipe

I’ve always wanted to try my hand at making pizza on the grill. Although I wasn’t confident enough to place it right on the rack (I used my pizza stone), this still has the flavor and crispiness of a crust cooked in a barbecue with an open flame. This version of pizza is perhaps my husband’s favorite so far. I hope you enjoy it, too!

White Pizza

Crust:

1 cup warm water

2 t. yeast

2 T. olive oil

1 t. sugar

1 t. salt

2 ½ cup flour

Dissolve yeast in the warm water. Add remaining ingredients (use a stand mixer for best results) and mix until it forms a smooth ball. Place in a greased bowl, cover and let rise for about 30 minutes or until doubled in size.

Roll out the dough into a circle. Carefully place it on a pizza peel dusted with cornmeal.

Place a pizza peel in your grill heated to as high as it will go (with indirect heating). Carefully slide the pizza dough from the peel to the heated stone. Cook for about 5 minutes, until it is just firm enough to slide back onto the pizza peel without breaking or falling apart.

Toppings:

½ jar store bought Alfredo sauce

1 lb. mild Italian sausage, crumbled and cooked

1 Roma tomato, thinly sliced

½ cup thinly sliced black olives

6 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese

1 ounce shredded Parmesan cheese

Spread Alfredo sauce on the prepared pizza crust (still on the pizza peel). Top with tomato and black olive slices. Sprinkle with cheese, followed by sausage. Slide the topped pizza crust back onto the pizza stone and cook for about 10 minutes. If desired, finish pizza under the broiler for a few minutes to brown cheese.

Makes 8 large slices.

July 27, 2011: Margherita Pizza Recipe

My husband and I love pizza but I get tired of making the same old pepperoni and black olives or white pizza with alfredo sauce. The other night I was watching the Food Network (which I’ve been accused of doing nonstop) and all the show episodes focused on pizza. Ever since then I was craving pizza so I decided to try this one with a thin crust and no sauce.

Note: I have some special tools in my kitchen because I love making pizza; if you don’t have them you can still make this recipe but it won’t turn out quite the same. Using this recipe, you should have a thin, crispy crust on the bottom that's hard to achieve without a pizza stone.

Margherita Pizza

Dough:
¾ cup warm water
1 ½ t. yeast
1 ½ T. olive oil
¾ t. sugar
¾ t. salt
2 – 2 ½ cups flour

Dissolve the yeast in the water. Add olive oil, sugar, salt and about 1 ½ cups of the flour to your stand mixer or food processor. Gradually add remaining flour until mixture forms a ball. Place in a greased bowl and let rest in a warm place until dough is doubled in size. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

On a floured surface, roll out the dough to a thin circle. Fold into quarters and carefully place on a pizza peel dusted with cornmeal. Transfer the dough from the peel to a pizza stone set on the lowest rack of your oven. Bake for about 10 minutes, until the bottom starts to brown and the top bubbles. Remove from oven, using the pizza peel.

Brush the hot dough with 2 T. olive oil mixed with 1 head roasted garlic*, minced, and 6 large basil leaves, cut into thin slices.

Layer on top:
2 tomatoes, thinly sliced
8 ounces mozzarella bocconcini, sliced

Put topped pizza back in the hot oven for 5 minutes. Turn oven to broil and cook for another 5 minutes, until toppings are sizzling. Remove from oven and transfer from pizza stone to cutting surface.

Serves 2 – 3

* To roast garlic: take an unpeeled head of garlic and place in the middle of a piece of foil. Sprinkle it with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Bake in the oven or on a grill at a moderate temperature for about 20 - 30 minutes.

April 16, 2011: Perfect Pizza Dough Recipe

Okay, so pizza isn’t exactly in keeping with this month’s theme(s). But I’ve spent a lot of time perfecting my pizza dough and the truth is, you can top your pie with nearly anything you want – from chicken to seafood to veggies only. I’ve included some suggestions for toppings following the pizza dough recipe.

This pizza dough would be considered somewhere between a thick and a thin crust – kind of a “one size fits all” crust depending on what you and your family prefer!

If you’ve got a stand mixer, you can whip this recipe up in minutes. The dough only has to rise one time, so it really doesn’t take long at all to make your own homemade pizza any night of the week.

Perfect Pizza Dough

1 cup warm water
2 t. yeast
1 t. sugar
1 t. salt
½ t. oregano
2 T. olive oil
2 – 2 ½ cups flour

Dissolve the yeast in the warm water; add the sugar and let sit for a few minutes until it starts to get frothy. Add salt, oregano, oil, and a cup and a half of the flour. If you are using a stand mixer, mix on speed 2 until it starts to form the dough, then add additional flour, half cup at a time until the ball of dough cleans the sides of the bowl. If mixing by hand, knead the additional flour one half cup at a time until you have formed an elastic ball.

Place the dough in a bowl greased with olive oil, turn to coat all sides. Cover with a clean cloth and let rise in a warm place for about half an hour, or until doubled in size.

When the dough has doubled, punch it down. Oil a pizza pan (I used a pizza stone, which is ideal) and stretch the dough to the edges. Use your fingers to form a fluted edge so the sauce doesn’t drip off.

Add your toppings and bake in a 425 degree oven. Now here’s the secret I’ve found to making perfect pizza with a stone: Bake the pizza about 10 minutes, then turn your oven to Broil. Broil for a couple minutes, then return to 425 degree oven for another 5 to 10 minutes. This crisps up the bottom crust but also gets the cheesy top bubbly and browned.

Topping Suggestions

Buffalo Chicken:
Barbecue sauce with Tabasco added
Rotisserie chicken, shredded
Sliced red onions
Blue cheese crumbles

Veggie Pizza:
Hummus
Kalamata olives
Shredded carrots
Thinly sliced white onion
Sunflower seeds
Feta cheese

Mushrooms, Black Olives, and Pepperoni

Everybody’s Favorites:
Homemade tomato sauce
Black olives
Thinly sliced bell pepper
Parmesan cheese
Mozzarella cheese
Pepperoni or crumbled Italian sausage

White Pizza:
1 T. butter + 1 T. olive oil (spread this over the crust instead of sauce)
Sliced garlic
Black olives
Tomatoes, sliced thinly
Bell peppers, thinly sliced
Mushrooms, sauteed
Parmesan cheese
Mozzarella cheese

Spicy Pizza:
Tomato sauce
Black olives
Jalapenos or green chiles
Monterrey Jack cheese
Italian sausage

Southwestern Pizza:
Refried beans
Enchilada sauce
Black olives
Green onions
Jalapenos or green chiles
Monterrey Jack or Cotijo cheese
Ground beef with taco seasoning