Caramelized Onion and Goat Cheese Pizza

This one is really simple. The ingredients are all in the title. This is actually an adaptation of a savory tart that is essentially the same, but uses puff pastry as the crust.

Although the ingredients are very simple, it still requires some work. Caramelizing onions isn't hard, but require some patience. I used vidalia and red onions because they are naturally sweeter so they caramelize well. I also put just a little bit of balsamic vinegar on them. When they were done, I piled them on the crust (whole wheat thin crust) and crumbled some rosemary goat cheese over it and let the cheese get melty on the grill. It wasn't covered with cheese like the average pizza, just enough to add a little contrasting flavor and texture. Because the cheese had herbs on it, I didn't really need to add much else.

*Quick note about the cheese - The cheese I used is called "Rosey Goat" and came from Costco. I have yet to find it anywhere else. It is a harder goat cheese, so it doesn't crumble like you would expect (you can shred it if you like) but it also has a milder flavor. The closest thing to this cheese I have been able to find elsewhere was an herbed goat cheese at Whole Foods. It is the softer, more crumbly goat cheese so I imagine has a bit stronger flavor. Nothing wrong with that if that's your preference, just a friendly heads up that not all herbed goat cheeses are created equal!

Holy Mother of Goodness! I really wish I didn't have to share it. Apparently I wasn't the only one! My brother said this was his favorite of all the pizzas we made. This would make a wonderful (and relatively simple) appetizer if you were to put everything into the little puff pastry cups you can find in the frozen foods section.

If you try this (or come up with improvements) let me know about it!

Cilantro Lime Steak Pizza

I'm sorry I don't have any pictures of this. It didn't last very long once I got it off the grill! Try it and I think you will understand why!

This pizza is a cross between a recipe provided by Boboli and a great pizza I have had at California Pizza Kitchen.

I did make my salsa to be used as the sauce. It was basically the same, but I refined it a little (and made a smaller batch) - 2 small cans tomatoes, 1/4 tsp. cumin, about 1 tsp chipotle pepper in adobo, juice of 1 lime, 1/2 onion (diced), about 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, and salt to taste. It must have been pretty good because I used about 1/2 cup on the pizza and the rest got eaten with chips while we waited.

I used some basic fajita steak strips, but a flank steak would be fantastic here. I marinated it in lime juice, a little olive oil, and some fresh cilantro the night before. Then I sauteed it quickly in a pan and cut it into chunks for the pizza.

The pizza was topped with the salsa, steak, onions, green chiles, and pepper jack cheese on a "regular" crust and grilled just until the cheese got all melty and beautiful. Then if that's not fantastic enough, top it with sour cream. One bite, and you will understand why this was such a hit! Even the folks who aren't normally a fan of "exotic" pizza really enjoyed it.

I suppose if you used bell peppers and onions that had been sauteed you could call it Fajita Pizza. In fact, I think that is exactly what I am going to do from now on...

How to Grill Pizza

The whole point of our House Party was to try something new - grilled pizza. I have heard of grilled pizza, but had never tried it. I must say, it was quite an adventure. It wasn't that hard, but it was different and we weren't quite sure what to think!

It was actually quite simple, but we had one key issue taken care of for us already - the crust was already baked. We didn't have to worry about it getting baked through or sticking. I know it's possible to really bake a pizza from scratch on a grill, but we're not that daring yet.

We started with the grill. We used our gas grill, but you could also use charcoal, whatever you have or feel like using. The grate had been cleaned really well and, after we let it heat up for a while, we turned off two of the three burners and just left the one on the far side on. This is important because it doesn't risk catching your pizza on fire or having a very blackened bottom to it! We gave a little spray to the grate with cooking spray (no pans or foil here!) and put two crusts on. You grill each side for about three to four minutes, just enough to get it warm and just a little crispy on the outside. Then, after it's warmed on both sides, pull it off and dress up your pizza. (You can see some coming recipes for suggestions on how to do this!)

After the pizzas are all dressed just the way you like them, pop them back on the grill until the cheese gets all nice and melty. The crust is pre-cooked, so that's not an issue and the toppings that need to be cooked are already done, so it's really just warming everything up and melting the cheese. The directions we had said 8-10 minutes, but it took us a little longer, probably about 12-15 (but again, we were doing two at a time, it would probably go quicker if you only had one)

Once it's all melty, pull it off, slice it up, and enjoy!

For me the best part of the grilled pizza was the combination of the soft and crispy crust. Even the thin crust wasn't like eating cardboard, but it wasn't too "bready" either. It was still pretty soft and chewy like you expect good bread to be, but it did have a nice crunch on the bottom from the grill. I guess if you put your pizza straight on the rack in the oven it would have a similar result, but the grill was actually a really easy way of doing it and didn't heat up the whole house!

Fire up the grill and give it a shot! Then let me know what you think!

Boboli "Beat BBQ Boredom" House Party

We had our house party on Saturday. The rain put a bit of a damper on everything. We were able to grill, but had to do it inside the screened porch. Because of this, everyone else was inside, and we were running back and forth so it was a little awkward. Plus, the grill was only big enough for two pizzas at a time, but it ended up working out because by the time we got the next two done, the first two had been eaten up! For this reason, I don't have any pictures to share. I know, I'm slacking! But on to the important part, the verdict on the pizzas ...

Veggie on Whole Wheat Thin Crust - We used red bell pepper, mushroom, red onion, banana pepper, and olives. The peppers came from our garden and we used the Boboli red sauce. Everyone really enjoyed it and it was gobbled up pretty quickly. Mamaw admitted that she didn't expect to like it but was pleasantly surprised.

Caramelized Onion on Regular Thin Crust - This one was really well received. I wish I'd put a little more cheese on it, and maybe had some sort of sauce, but it tasted really good. I'd do this again as an appetizer or something!

Pepperoni on Regular Crust - This was the most basic because it was the Boboli tomato sauce, pepperoni, and cheese. I didn't get to try it, but it got gobbled up pretty quickly too.

Cilantro Lime Steak on Regular Crust - This was everyone's favorite. I used my homemade salsa in place of pizza sauce, pepper jack cheese. lime marinated steak, with red onion and green chiles on half and sour cream as a topping after it was done. I may seriously have to make more of this!

Honey Mustard Chicken on Whole Wheat Thin Crust - This was the only pizza that had any left. It wasn't really bad, but it was just sort of ok. That, combined with the fact that it was one of the last ones we made, was probably the reason it had some left. It had honey mustard in place of regular pizza sauce along with mozzarella cheese, grilled chicken, and red onion. I think it was a little on the bland side. I don't know that I would make it again.

Rosemary Chicken and Potato on Regular Thin Crust - Everyone seemed to be both a little bit scared and very intrigued by the idea of putting potatoes on a pizza, But I love it and it was gobbled up! This was a recipe I found online (and tweaked a little) that was supposed to be like the California Pizza Kitchen creation that has since been discontinued. I'd make this one again, but I don't know if anyone else would really love it like I do. The sauce itself was a big hit, so maybe without the potatoes (or put the sauce on some pasta!)

Stay tuned! Over the next couple of weeks I will be posting some more specific tips on grilling pizzas and the recipes for these pizzas as well! As always, let me know if you have any questions or comments!

House Party 1.3

It's almost party time! Who's excited? I am! I'm really having to fight the urge to "test" one of the pizzas now!

I went to the grocery store yesterday to get all the stuff for Saturday. I used my host coupons and got six pizza crusts at Publix. Two were the regular crust, two were thin crust, and two were whole wheat thin crust. I really wanted to get some of the personal size so people could make their own if they wanted, but sadly Publix didn't have any of the personal size so we'll just have six big pizzas. The crusts were $4.39 each for the regular and $4.59 for the whole wheat. Not bad at all!

I had planned to make my own tomato sauce, but I decided to use one of my coupons for the Boboli sauce instead. It was only $2.39 for 3 packets (that are so conveniently the right size for the pizza crust!) I'll use the red sauce for the veggie and pepperoni and have one left for whatever. The others will have other (or no) sauce, but you'll have to wait until later to get the actual recipes for those!

I had a few things already that I didn't have to buy, but when everything was said and done, I spent less than $45 for all the stuff to make six large pizzas and I'm anticipating having some left overs! Not a bad deal at all! Stay tuned for pictures and recipes of the blessed event!

House Party 1.2

I got my party pack from House Party Thursday for our "Beat BBQ Boredom" party on Saturday, August 14th. Who's excited? I know I am! Look at all my goodies!

I got recipe cards, tip cards, coupons for Boboli pizza crusts, game ideas, and a food tent!

And what's a good party without party favors? I'm guessing I'm not the only person who likes free stuff! So we have recipe cards, tip cards, coupons, magnets, and reusable shopping bags for everyone! I'll probably be throwing in a few other little goodies, but I'm not going to tell you about those just yet! You know you want to come try some pizza and have some fun.

Right now my pizza list includes Honey Mustard Chicken, Lime Steak & Cilantro, Caramelized Onion & Goat Cheese, Rosemary Chicken & Potato, Pepperoni, and Veggie. I'm going to use as much produce from our garden as I can and make some things from scratch that I normally might not. I'm going to try to avoid going overboard, but I'm excited about doing some things I don't normally get to do!

Have you ever hosted a house party? No? Would you like to? You'll get all kinds of cool stuff to try and share with your lovely friends and family members. There are lots of applications for parties like "My Thai Kitchen" and "Kraft Homestyle Comfort Food" (both schedules for September 25th). And if those aren't your style, keep your eyes on the "Tombstone Pizza Haunted House Party" scheduled for October 19th or the "Sabra 'Share the World' House Party" scheduled for November 13th. Neither of these are currently taking applications, but will probably begin soon, so if you're interested keep your eyes out!

House Party #1

I first found out about House Parties because some of Jeff's friends hosted one last year. I checked out the website, got interested, and started applying for all kinds of parties. I REALLY wanted to do the Ball canning party, but sadly it didn't work out. The good news is I finally got approved for one!

I will be hosting my first House Party on Saturday, August 14th. This one is sponsored by Boboli pizza crust and is all about grilling pizza! I've heard about grilled pizzas and seen it done but have never tried it myself, so I'm really excited.

There will be plenty of pictures and recipes when it's all said and done, but for now you get to read all about my preparations! The timing on it is pretty great since it's the weekend of my birthday, so we can just have everyone over and have one big get together around the pool and eat and drink and have fun. If you're going to be in the Birmingham area and want to come party with us for real, let me know and I'll get you all the information.

Part of the party pack I will be getting as a host is coupons for like 8 pizza crusts, so I need to come up with a bunch of different kinds of pizzas.

The obvious ones are pepperoni and veggie

The three suggested by Boboli are lime chicken and cilantro, grilled pork and apple, and honey mustard chicken. I don't think I (or anyone in my family) would like the pork and apple one

My other thoughts are to do the lime chicken one with flank steak and caramelized onions, a taco pizza with ground beef, and some sort of chicken and green pepper (because this is Jeff's new favorite). I would really love to try to recreate my favorite CPK pizza (which as been discontinued for quite a while) which is rosemary chicken and potato. I may try something with a thai flair using spicy peanut sauce. I'd also like to do something with goat cheese, but I don't quite know what!

Of course I'm definitely open to suggestions, so if you have a personal favorite, let me know! Also, go check out my party page here.