Grilled Pizza

photo by Emily Hale

This post is for my brother Chris who just moved to a new house with a Weber. The grill I have is the cheapest gas grill made, but it works dandy, and it was a perfect gift from my parents. We've used it a lot lately since our power has been out twice in the past month. I used it to boil water for mac n cheese the other day. Soon I hope to try grilled french toast, a tip from the Hale's.

So here's grilled pizza. At first you think you're failing because the dough won't be symmetrical no matter how delicately you try to put it down. And holes will tear through and inevitably start to burn around the edges. But all this adds to the rustic tastiness, trust me.

Dough makes four 10" pizzas for four 5' people
1 C warm water

1 tsp sugar
1 packet yeast
2 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 C flour


Soften the yeast and sugar in water. When foamy, whisk in oil and salt. Stir in flour until combined and turn out onto floured work surface. With oiled hands, knead until dough comes together in an elastic ball, two minutes. Add more flour as needed. Let rise until double in an oiled, covered bowl, about 30 min. Punch down and let double again, although I have skipped the second rise and it worked fine, maybe due to the humidity here...?

To make generous single serving pizzas, divide dough into fourths, or make smaller pizzas to help maintain your sanity. Stretch the dough and brush with herb oil (this is simple yet essential, recipe below) before placing on the grill.

Cook dough on one side until done to your liking, flip over and add tomato sauce (the simpler the better, recipe below) toppings (our favorites are prosciutto or pesto shrimp and black or kalamata olives) and cheese. The best cheese is a mixture of torn fresh mozzarella, shredded part skim mozzarella and diced fontina. Cover the grill to let the cheese melt and remove just before the bottom burns.

Herb oil is olive oil heated for two minutes with minced fresh rosemary and sliced garlic.


Simple Tomato Sauce

Saute one or two garlic gloves, diced or pressed, add a large can of peeled tomatoes, a basil leaf, oregano and salt. Let simmer while smashing the tomatoes and then cover and simmer for 15 minutes.

Merry Merry Mac n Dairy

Here's a mac and cheese recipe that doesn't need a white sauce. I got it from allrecipes.com and it's called Chuck's Favorite I think. I like my name better. Sour cream, cottage cheese, and cheddar... mmmm. Pretty easy and definitely satisfyingly comfortable. You could add ham, peas, or whatever other cheeses you might like. Sharp cheddar would really make this yummier, but all I had was mild cheddar and it worked out just fine.


Merry Merry Mac n Dairy

1 (8 ounce) package elbow macaroni
1 (8 ounce) package shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (I used 3 C shredded mild cheddar)
1 (12 ounce) container small curd cottage cheese
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
1/2 C milk
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese plus more for topping (canned works fine)
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9x13 glass pan, or a little smaller is even better (keeps from excess drying). Bring large pot of salted water to boil. Cook pasta until done. Combine cheddar, cottage cheese, sour cream, milk, Parmesan and salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add hot noodles and combine. Pour into prepared pan, and sprinkle with bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese. Bake for 30 min or until top is golden.

"A Few of My Favorite Things" Bagel Pizzas

Here's a recipe from my sister-in-law Lisa. I sure miss having Einstein's around, but we've got some OK bagels we can use. I love the idea of pizza on a bagel. Thanks Lisa!

“A Few of My Favorite Things” Bagel Pizzas

Easy-to-make; easy-to-accommodate-a-whole-lot-of-different-tastes

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees (you can go lower or higher, if you like)

2. Slice your favorite “plain” bagel in half (e.g., an Einstein’s wheat bagel; a sesame seed bagel)

3. Spread with your favorite bottled spaghetti sauce (e.g., Ragu Seven Herb) or another spread (e.g., pesto)

4. Top with your favorite toppings—pepperoni, Canadian bacon, hamburger (browned and drained), pineapple, green peppers, tomato slices, onion slices, black olives, mushrooms, hamburger—and grated mozzarella cheese

5. Bake on 400 degrees for 10 – 12 minutes, or until the toppings are heated through and the cheese is melted

6. Enjoy!

Serving size: Each bagel makes two pizzas

Extras: Consider serving with a great salad and watching the Sound Of Music

Lasagna-Pizza Bagels

Sometimes deciding what to have for lunch is harder than thinking of a dinner menu. Abby and I had this for lunch last week, bagels made into pizzas. I know it's nothing new, but I wanted to add protein to our lunch without nasty pepperoni, so I put some cottage cheese on it. It reminded me of lasagna, and I thought I was pretty clever. You could add any toppings you want, but I like them with just cheese and a little dried basil.



Lasagna-Pizza Bagels

plain bagels (if they are thick, slice halves in half)
spaghetti sauce or tomato sauce
cottage cheese
shredded mozzarella
Parmesan in a can
dried basil or Italian seasoning (optional)


Layer bagels with sauce and a little cottage cheese. Top with mozzarella and sprinkle Parmesan and a little basil on top. Place on cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for ten minutes or until cheese is melted.