Pizza! Pizza! Pizza!
By Alice Osborne
I LOVE pizza any old time of the year. Take-out works, but sometimes I want to create my own. What I’ve found is that it's difficult to make pizzeria-style pizzas at home, simply because most of us do not have a wood-fired oven that can reach temperatures of 900 degrees F! But with a few tricks up our sleeve, we can make a very good pizza with the equipment we have. Here’s how:
Make sure the oven is hot. The oven should be at least 425 degrees F. The crust has to bake and brown very quickly. A slow oven will not force the moisture out of the crust, and the toppings will make the crust soggy.
Use a pizza stone if you can. The stone will hold extra heat for a fiery hot surface that will start cooking and crisping the crust the second it touches the stone.
When rolling out the crust, dust the pizza pan or work surface with cornmeal for a crisp finish.
Be judicious with toppings. Many thin crusts simply cannot hold a lot of toppings. For an average 12" pizza, about 1/2 cup of sauce is plenty. A cup of vegetables and meats, and 1 to 1-1/2 cups of cheese will make a good thin crust pizza.
Deep dish pizzas are different. They must bake at a slightly lower temperature for a longer period of time so the pizza bakes evenly throughout.
A homemade crust is better than refrigerated pizza doughs. Those doughs are usually softer and wetter and almost never bake up crisp.
When making your own dough, bread flour produces a superior crust. And be sure to knead (or beat, if the recipe is for a wet dough) the dough for a full 8-10 minutes.
Any doughs are better if you refrigerate them overnight before baking. This is also an excellent way to spread out the work.
Finally, have fun with your toppings. Experiment and listen to your taste buds. And be sure to write down the instructions for your successes.
Knowing my love affair with pizza, a good friend passed me a few pizza recipes that I just have to share with you. This first recipe is not only super easy to make, but healthy as well. Rita didn’t have a name for it, so I’ve dubbed it SMART PIZZA. The idea is to take a typical store-bought pizza and healthify it with added veggies, herbs, etc. I always add more cheese because I think store-bought pizzas are a bit skimpy on the cheese side.
The next is a new twist on an old theme: frozen pizza cooked on the grill. I love how fast the cheese melts and how evenly crisp and brown the crust gets. Lastly, I share a crust-less pizza - trust me on this. It’s not really pizza, but the flavors are there and it’s SO good!
Smart Pizza
1 pkg (23.4 oz) Di Giorno Harvest Wheat Thin Crispy Crust—Supreme Pizza
4 Tbsp chopped cucumber
1/2 C quartered cherry tomatoes
1/4 C finely chopped red onions
1/4 C chopped crook neck squash
2 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
1 C Mozzarella cheese, shredded
Add above ingredients to top of pizza. Bake as directed on package.
Grilled Pizza
1 thin crust store-bought frozen pizza (Di Giorno worked well for us)
Extra anything! We added lots of veggies and more cheese (see SMART PIZZA above)
Preheat grill, setting all burners on low to medium-low (about 400 degrees). Remove wrapper and cardboard from frozen pizza. Place pizza directly on center of grill rack; close lid. Grill 13 to 15 minutes, rotating pizza 1/2 turn with spatula after 8 minutes. Continue grilling, covered, for specified time or until cheese is melted and crust is golden brown. Let stand 2 to 3 minutes before serving. For best results, use a gas grill. Grilling times can vary due to differences in grills and weather conditions.
Crustless Pizza - AKA Grilled Chicken Bruschetta
1/4 C Kraft sun-dried tomato vinaigrette dressing, divided
4 small boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1 tomato, finely chopped
3/4 C Mozarella shredded cheese
1/2 C grated Paremsan cheese
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 C chopped fresh basil (or 1 tsp dried basil leaves)
Place large sheet of heavy-duty foil over half of grill grate; preheat grill to medium heat. Pour 2 Tbsp of the dressing over chicken in re-sealable plastic bag; seal bag. Turn bag over several times to evenly coat chicken with dressing. Refrigerate 10 to 15 minutes to marinate. Remove chicken from marinade (discard bag and marinade).
Grill chicken on uncovered side of grill 6 minutes. Meanwhile, combine tomatoes, cheese, basil and remaining 2 Tbsp of dressing. Turn chicken over; place, cooked-side up, on foil on grill. Combine tomato, cheeses, garlic and basil and top each chicken halve evenly with mixture. Close lid. Grill and additional 8 minutes or until chicken is cooked through (170 degrees).
