BBQ Chicken Pizza

My buddy M helped with this picture, she's an artsy-fartsy geek like me!

I remember I used to go to Schlotzsky's Deli and they has the most amazing little BBQ Chicken pizzas...now the closest one is like 20 miles away and I am sad. But I remembered loving those pizzas and I started making my own BBQ Chicken pizza from then on. I liked the idea of non-traditional toppers on pizzas. Why just stick with boring pepperoni and sausage, or mushrooms? There are plenty of delicious toppings that can be used and tons of different sauces!

I start with my Go-to Pizza Dough, which I have been playing around with the measurements to get the right consistency and elasticity to stretch it into my huge retangular cookie sheet. While the dough is rising I cook up the chicken.

Really Easy, Really Delicious Chicken Breasts
*see recipe here as well.

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt and pepper
Sprinkle of garlic powder
Sprinkle of chili powder

• Preheat oven to 400.
• Heat olive oil in a non-stick skillet, have handle covered in foil, unless your skillet's handle is oven-safe. Season chicken on "skin-side" with the seasonings, just needs sprinkles, not too much. Place chicken seasoned-side down and let brown for 5 minutes.
  
• Turn over and let brown for a minute or so and transfer skillet to the oven. Let cook for 10-15 minutes depending on size of chicken breasts.
  
• In this case, if the chicken is a little under-cooked its ok cause it will go on top of the pizza that is going in the oven as well, it will finish cooking.
• Once chicken comes out, let sit and then slice it up into thin slices.

By now the dough should be nice and puffy and ready to be made into a yummy, delicious pizza. I use a large rectangular cookie sheet, only because my only round pizza pan is weird and I don't like using it...don't ask.

So I stretch and smoosh the dough onto the pan, using flour on my hands so I don't stick, and it doesn't stick to me. Spread as much Bbq sauce as you like on to the dough leave room for a crust. Cover sauce with cheddar cheese, or sometimes I use a Colby-Jack blend that is really nice. Add your sliced chicken on top and then I dab the top of the pizza with more Bbq sauce, just little pockets of yumminess! I add a little more cheese on top, so it melts on teh chicken and then it goes in teh same preheated oven for 15 minutes until brown and bubbly good.

I have also added some sliced bell peppers on this and it's delicious as well. I liked using the orange bell peppers for color. And I know most times there are onions on BBQ Chicken pizzas but I don't like onions, so I don't use them. But adding the peppers is really good. This pizza always turns out really well and I love it!! Hope you make it too, and enjoy it!!

Eat, Drink and Be Merry...and try a new topping on your pizza!!

-BellaRosa

Pepperoni Rolls - Reinventing the Pepperoni Bread

So I didn't know what to do with myself today so I decided what not bake something! I took the idea of cinnamon rolls and took pepperoni bread and cut up the dough into pepperoni rolls! They are really cute and delicious and I think would be really fun for parties!

I made my Go-To Pizza dough and after it rose I dumped it out on to a floured surface and stretch it out over the surface into a large rectangle. I cover the dough with mozzarella cheese and tons of pepperoni and a light dusting of garlic powder. I start at the long end and start rolling, rolling, rolling. Making sure that is it tight and everything is tucked in. I tuck in the ends so the pepperoni and cheese don't fall out and normally I would just bake this as the long log but I took the idea from cinnamon rolls and cut them into about 1 to 1.5 inch think piece and stood them on end on a baking sheet.

Before the bake

I put them in a preheated 400 degree oven for 13-15 minutes until golden brown and the bottoms were nice and brown. Next time I think I will brush them with some egg wash to make them browner and beautiful.

Hot out of the oven

They are so good!! And so cute, and I think you could even make them smaller some how and use at parties for a little munchie. I thought this was a great idea and I am glad I came up with it!!

Eat, Drink and Be Merry...and reinvent a recipe!

-BellaRosa

Mini Calzones

Tonight I decided to make some calzones, because I had some leftover sauce with hunks of Italian sausage in it. Plus it has been a while since I made calzones or pizza, so it sounded like a good idea. But I thought it would be fun to make them smaller and more "hand-held friendly". Here is my recipe for pizza dough. It works well for me, sometimes I have a problem with getting the bottom nice and brown and crispy, but that could be a problem with my oven too.

Go-To Pizza Dough

1 tsp. honey
3/4 cup warm water
1 packet dry yeast
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 (or more) all-purpose flour

• In a large bowl put honey and pour warm water over and mix with a fork until honey is dissolved in water. Add the yeast packet and mix thoroughly with hand, cleaning up sides of bowl, make sure all is incorporated. Let sit for 5 minutes until it is foamy
• Once the yeast is foamy add in your Parmesan cheese and 1 cup flour. Using a fork combine the cheese and flour into the yeast mixture until combined, will still be sticky and kinda wet at this point. Add in about a 1/2 cup more flour and start my mixing with fork, after a bit it gets less sticky and you can use your hands to finish kneading the dough.
• At this point, you'll know by the way the dough feels if you should add more flour or not. If it's still sticky you should add more until it feel uniform and smooth.
• Place bowl on top of the preheating oven covered with a towel and let rise for 30 minutes. Then you are ready to make pizza or calzones!

Normally I divide the dough in half and use each half to make one calzone, they are usually pretty huge. So I decided to divide the dough into fourths and made 4 smaller calzones.

I am sure you know how to make calzones but here's what I did. I put a small amount of sauce down and then a piece or two of the Italian sausage and some pepperoni topped it all with cheese and then folded over the top and pinched and folded the edges some nothing would ooze out. I make slits in the top with a knife to let steam escape and I bake them at 400 degrees for 15-17 minutes. I think I could have baked my longer tonight, they weren't as brown and I was hoping, but they were still delicious!


Eat, Drink and Be Merry!

-BellaRosa