My husband never cooks. When I say never, I really mean “Never!” He has cooked one time since I've known him and burned the frozen hamburger patties on the BBQ. I think it may have been intentional. I do love cooking so I don’t mind that he doesn't cook. He actually came up with this idea of grilling our own pizzas. With him having Italian in his blood, I was very anxious to see how this was going to go. To my surprise, he jumped right in and got his hands in the dough. We borrowed the pizza stone from Mom and used all the ingredients we had in the fridge. 4th of July 2013 was spent grilling pizzas and drinking some delicious red wines from Paso Robles. Our first bottle was Twisted Spur a red wine from NINER Winery. Our second bottle was the Reserve Seventeen Forty a delicious blend of Cabernet Franc and Merlot from one of my favorite wineries in Paso Robles, called DAOU Vineyards. We had the best time and the pizzas were better than any pizza place around.
Ingredients:
3 1/2 to 4 cups bread flour, plus more for rolling (Chef's Note: Using bread flour will give you a much crisper crust. If you can't find bread flour, you can substitute it with all-purpose flour which will give you a chewier crust.)
1 teaspoon sugar
1 envelope instant dry yeast or 7 gram envelope / ¼ ounce of Red Star Active Dry Yeast
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 cups water, 110 degrees F
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus 2 teaspoons
Optional Toppings: Culinary Circle Spicy Italian Sausage Pasta Sauce from Albertson’s, Claro’s spicy Italian sausages, Claro’s pepperoni stick, Mozzarella shredded cheese, Parmesan shredded cheese, freshly grated Claro’s Romano cheese, Artichoke hearts, red onion, red bell pepper, minced garlic, Olive Oil, lactose free mozzarella cheese from Trader Joe’s, fresh sliced basil, sea salt, cracked black pepper, and red pepper flakes
Directions:
Combine the bread flour, sugar, yeast and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and combine. While the mixer is running, add the water and 2 tablespoons of the oil and beat until the dough forms into a ball. If the dough is sticky, add additional flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough comes together in a solid ball. If the dough is too dry, add additional water, 1 tablespoon at a time. Scrape the dough onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead into a smooth, firm ball.
Grease a large bowl with the remaining 2 teaspoons olive oil, add the dough, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and put it in a warm area to let it double in size, about 1 hour.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide it into 2, 3, or 4 equal pieces. Cover each with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let them rest for an additional 10 minutes. We separated ours into 4 individual pizzas. My husband made Claro’s spicy Italian sausage and pepperoni pizzas.
Get your grill ready! Add the charcoal to the bottom of your BBQ, get it nice and hot. We had ours to about 300 degrees.
Lay the pizza stone on the BBQ and drizzle olive oil on it evenly.
Slide your pizza slowly so that you don’t lose the shape, onto the pizza stone. Close the lid and time it for about 5 minutes. Rotate the pizza stone clockwise and set the timer for another 10-15 minutes depending on how crispy you like your crust.
Pull your pizza off the stone and let it sit for a few minutes before slicing into it.
This was so much fun. My husband and I made these while enjoying some wine on 4th of July.
His Pizza: All meat and cheese
Work the dough into a pizza round as flat and round as possible.
In a small pan, remove sausage from casing and cook until browned. Slice thin slices of pepperoni off the stick for meat toppings.
Smear your favorite marinara, Alfredo, or pesto sauce all over the dough, leaving about one inch from the sides bare.
Sprinkle your favorite cheeses such as mozzarella, Parmesan, and Romano all over the sauce.
Evenly add your meats, pepperoni and sausage and sprinkle a little more cheese if you would like. You can even add some red pepper flakes, parsley, salt, and pepper if you like a little seasoning.
Her Pizza: All Vegetable
Work the dough into a pizza round as flat and round as possible.
Smear your favorite marinara, Alfredo, or pesto sauce all over the dough, leaving about one inch from the sides bare.
In a cast iron skillet I grilled up thin slices of red onion, garlic, and red bell peppers.
Sprinkle your favorite cheeses such as mozzarella, Parmesan, and Romano all over the sauce. I used a lactose free mozzarella cut into cubes that I found at Trader Joe’s.
Evenly add your vegetables. I added blacked onions, garlic, bell peppers, artichokes, cubes of mozzarella, shiitake mushrooms, and fresh chopped up basil. You can even add some red pepper flakes, kosher salt, and cracked pepper if you like a little seasoning.
Another Favorite Vegetable Pizza: Classico brand Pesto sauce, light amount of mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, and Romano cheese, in a pan saute a teaspoon of olive oil, chopped up garlic, diced red onion, diced green tomatillos, diced jalapenos minus the seeds and put them on top of your pizza. Add fresh pieces of cilantro, slices of avocado, sprinkle red pepper flakes, sea salt, and cracked pepper.
Another Favorite Vegetable Pizza: Classico brand Pesto sauce, light amount of mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, and Romano cheese, in a pan saute a teaspoon of olive oil, chopped up garlic, diced red onion, diced green tomatillos, diced jalapenos minus the seeds and put them on top of your pizza. Add fresh pieces of cilantro, slices of avocado, sprinkle red pepper flakes, sea salt, and cracked pepper.
Serve with your favorite ranch dressing!
Homemade Ranch recipe:
Inspired by: Bobby Flay
Pizza Stones, you can find at Bed Bath & Beyond or Amazon:
Italian Sauces, meats, homemade pizza dough, and cheeses:
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