Spring is in the air and can we all agree: it’s about time! After a cold and snowy winter being cooped up in our houses, venturing outside only to shovel snow-laden driveways, we are ready to bask in warm(ish) sunlight. Post-dinner walks will resume, Saturday afternoons will be spent over picnics at the park and, best of all, hibernating grills will be unearthed for cooking.
I’ve always been a fan of grilling. Whether it’s chicken, beef, pork or vegetables, food just tastes better when it is grilled. Our first grill was a rickety charcoal grill. Although charcoal has its merits, we eventually got frustrated by the ‘Inconvenience Factor.’ Using a charcoal grill involves planning. I can’t tell you how many times we decided to grill only to find we were out of charcoal briquettes or lighter fluid. Charcoal grills also take a long time to light and heat up.
So when my friend offered to sell us her (uber nice) gas grill when she moved, we didn’t even blink an eye before saying yes. Having a gas grill has opened up a new world of grilling to me. I can decide to grill on the spur-of-the-moment. Gas grills heat almost instantaneously. No longer do I over-winter my grill: I grill all. year. long. And best of all, I can try new cooking techniques that I would have never before attempted when I had a charcoal grill.
Like pizza.
Yes, friends: You can grill pizza.
And no, I do not mean “take a frozen pizza out of the freezer and plop it on your grill.” I mean partaking in the art of creating an Italian masterpiece out of raw dough, sauce, cheese and any assortment of toppings. Last year was the first time I’d ever heard of the notion of grilling pizza and I’ll be honest: I was dubious at first.
Then I tried it.
And it blew my mind.
Once you try grilling pizza, you’ll never be able to buy frozen pizza again.
Heck, you may even stop ordering take out. Because grilling pizza is as close as you can get to making brick-oven pizza without actually having a brick oven. Ever since this amazing discovery, we’ve been making grilled pizza weekly. My husband and I try to come up with a new gourmet grilled-pizza recipe each week, and we’ve created some true pieces of pizza art.
It’s amazingly simple to grill pizza. Here’s how to do it (Note: 1 lb of dough can either yield 1 regular pizza or two thin crust pizzas. It’s your choice):
Recipe: Grilled Pizza
Ingredients:
-
1 lb. raw pizza dough
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1/2 cup of pizza sauce (jarred or homemade)
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1 1/2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese
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1/2 cup of shredded parmesan cheese
Directions:
- Preheat your grill on medium heat and spray grill grate with non-stick cooking spray.
- Divide the raw dough into 2 dough balls. Roll each ball out until 1/8 inch thick. Note: If your grill is large enough, you can cook both at the same time. If it is smaller, cook each pizza separately.
- Place rolled dough onto the prepared grill and close the lid. Let grill for 1 minute. Once the top of the dough begins to bubble and the bottom starts to get crisp (don’t let it get brown–just the beginning of a crispness), flip the pizza crust.
- While the bottom crust is cooking, spread pizza sauce over the top of the cooked crust. Sprinkle with cheese. Let the pizza cook until bottom crust is set and all the cheese is melted.
Topping tip: Toppings can be as simple as raw vegetables or pepperoni. Don’t be afraid, though, to get creative! Toss shredded cooked chicken with hot sauce, and put it on your pizza along with blue cheese crumbles. Leftover pork roast from dinner the night before can be shredded as a topping paired with fig preserves for a sweet-yet-savory flavor.
If you are feeling extra inspired, visit my recipes for Beef and Caramelized Onion with Horseradish Sour Cream Sauce Grilled Pizza, Bacon Apple Gorgonzola Grilled Pizza and Greek Grilled Pizza.
Now get thee to the grill!
