Pesto Chicken Pizza
Wednesday February 1, 2012
Pizza may be one of my favourite comfort foods of all time. Unfortunately every time I order pizza there are so many different toppings that I want to put on - totally not economical. This is the reason you should make your own pizza at home. It's delicious...AND its healthier - BONUS.
Nothing beats homemade pizza dough, however if you don't have time to whip up a batch, you can always use flatbreads or pizza dough from the grocery store. Or pitas. So you really have no excuse not to make your own pizzas.
I also have been using my pizza stone recently. It makes a super chewy yet crispy crust. But never fear- you can still make pizza using a baking sheet- like I said, no excuses. Go make some pizza.
Since not everyone in my house likes pesto, I also made a traditional tomato sauce pizza... picky picky (just swap the pesto for tomato sauce and use any toppings you want). Its also great to use sausage instead of chicken or really any toppings you like to make your own super combination.
Recipe: Pesto Chicken Pizza
Makes 2 pizzasAdapted from Pioneer Women
Ingredients:Pizza Dough
1 tsp active dry yeast
2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp salt
1/3 cup olive oil
1 1/2 cups warm water
Ingredients:Topping (for 2 pesto pizzas)
1/2-3/4 cup pesto (recipe here or store bought)
2 cooked chicken breasts
1/4 onion sliced thinly
1-2 tomatoes sliced thinly
1/2 a pepper chopped
5 cremini mushrooms sliced thinly
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese (optional)
1/2-3/4 cup grated parmesan
1/2 cup grated mozarella cheese (if you like a cheesier pizza)
Alternative Toppings:
sausage
spinach
caramelized onions
prosciutto
pear or fig
goats cheese
zuchinni
... the list goes on and on...
Method:
In a large bowl, add the yeast to the warm water and let sit for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, with a mixer using the paddle attachment, combine the flour and salt. Add the oil while the mixer is running on medium speed. Next add the yeasty water and mix until combined. You want to make sure that the dough stays quite wet.
Place the dough in a separate oiled bowl, roll to coat the dough and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Let the dough sit in the fridge for 1-4 days OR let it rise for 1.5-2 hours until it is approximately doubled in size.
Preheat the oven as hot as it can go (~525 degrees F). Sprinkle a round pan with cornmeal (if not using a pizza stone) or a pizza paddle if using a baking stone. --If using a stone, place it in the oven and let it preheat with the oven.
Take the dough out of the fridge and turn the dough onto a lightly floured counter. Deflate it gently. Form 2 equal balls and roll the dough out into a circular pizza shape fairly thin and transfer to the baking sheet or pizza paddle.
Spread the pesto (or tomato sauce) on the pizza and top with the chicken and veggies. Layer some cheese on top of the toppings. Slide onto the stone or place the baking sheet in the oven. Bake for 8-10 min. Slice and serve hot.
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2 cooked chicken breasts
1/4 onion sliced thinly
1-2 tomatoes sliced thinly
1/2 a pepper chopped
5 cremini mushrooms sliced thinly
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese (optional)
1/2-3/4 cup grated parmesan
1/2 cup grated mozarella cheese (if you like a cheesier pizza)
Alternative Toppings:
sausage
spinach
caramelized onions
prosciutto
pear or fig
goats cheese
zuchinni
... the list goes on and on...
Place the dough in a separate oiled bowl, roll to coat the dough and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Let the dough sit in the fridge for 1-4 days OR let it rise for 1.5-2 hours until it is approximately doubled in size.
Preheat the oven as hot as it can go (~525 degrees F). Sprinkle a round pan with cornmeal (if not using a pizza stone) or a pizza paddle if using a baking stone. --If using a stone, place it in the oven and let it preheat with the oven.
Take the dough out of the fridge and turn the dough onto a lightly floured counter. Deflate it gently. Form 2 equal balls and roll the dough out into a circular pizza shape fairly thin and transfer to the baking sheet or pizza paddle.
Spread the pesto (or tomato sauce) on the pizza and top with the chicken and veggies. Layer some cheese on top of the toppings. Slide onto the stone or place the baking sheet in the oven. Bake for 8-10 min. Slice and serve hot.
