Friday Night Pizza: Good Ole Pepperoni Pizza

So we've been trying some new-fangled pizza creations over the last few weeks.  I was in the mood for a good ole fashioned pepperoni pizza.  I'm sure you all have your favorite way of making it.  But if you haven't viewed my VLOG about making homemade pizza dough, you might have missed my shopping tip.

Next time you are at the grocery store, stop by the deli counter to see if they carry the large sandwich size pepperoni.  If they do, have them slice you about 20 slices.  That's enough for two large pizzas.  Mine usually cost anywhere from $1.25- $1.85 depending on the thickness.  Remember the price per pound is going to be pretty high, as much as $8.99 for Boar's Head.  But when you are only buying a few ounces, you can splurge and get the good stuff and still not break the bank.

So that's my tip for the day on pizza.  Here's how we make ours:

Pepperoni Pizza

Pizza Dough or Pizza Dough II

1/2 cup spaghetti sauce

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

pepperoni slices

Parmesan cheese

Italian seasoning

Prepare the pizza dough as directed.  Spread sauce within 1" of edge of dough.  Sprinkle mozzarella cheese over the sauce.  Layer pepperoni slices over the cheese and then sprinkle a little more cheese over pepperoni, finally shaking a little Parmesan cheese over the top.  Bake as directed.  When it comes out of the oven, sprinkle with Italian seasoning and enjoy!

I hope y'all have a great Friday Night Pizza Night, and have a great weekend with your family!

Friday Night Pizza: Pizza Margherita

We have a ton of tomatoes from our garden and we've been eating them in sandwiches, in pasta salad, sliced with supper and now we're eating it on our pizza.  Here's another pizza using fresh tomatoes.  This is an adaption from a Kraft recipe I saw on the back of a package of Mozzarella cheese.  

Pizza Margherita

Pizza Dough or Pizza Dough II

1/2 cup spaghetti sauce

2 tomatoes, thinly sliced

sprinkle of salt and pepper

1-1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

fresh basil, torn in small pieces

Prepare pizza dough per directions.  Spread spaghetti sauce over unbaked dough to within 1" of edge.  Layer tomato slices over the sauce.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Evenly spread mozzarella over the tomatoes.  Bake as directed.  Serve with torn basil leaves.  

This was so good.  My friend Donna shared some basil from her little vegetable garden.  She started them from seeds!!!  I can't wait to try again next year.  

Enjoy!

This post has been linked to:

• Friday Favorites at Simply Sweet Home
• Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum
• Food on Fridays at Ann Kroeker
• Vegetarian Foodie Fridays at Breastfeeding Moms Unite

Friday Night Pizza: Veggie Delite

A couple of weeks ago my husband went overnight to pick up our son.  That means I got to eat a pizza he'd never touch with a 10' pole....Veggie Delite.

The best part about this pizza?  I used homegrown veggies. 

Veggie Delite Pizza

Pizza Dough or Pizza Dough II

1/2 to 1 cup pasta sauce

4 Roma tomatoes, sliced thin

1 zucchini, sliced thin

1/4 of a yellow bell pepper, chopped

few black olives, sliced

salt to taste

pinch of dried basil

1-1/2 to 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Prepare pizza dough as directed.  Spread dough with pasta sauce and layer vegetables.  Don't they look pretty?  So colorful!

Sprinkle with salt and dried basil.  Sprinkle with cheese and bake as directed.

It was so good!  When I was younger, I did NOT like bell peppers or fresh tomatoes on my pizza.  But as I've gotten older, I've come to love the sweet yellow bell peppers and fresh tomato on pizza is AMAZING!  I'm so glad I grew out of that!

I missed my hubby while he was away overnight, but I sure did love having a yummy pizza!

Have a great Friday Night Pizza Night with your family!

Enjoy!

This post has been linked to:

• Friday Favorites at Simply Sweet Home
• Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum
• Food on Fridays at Ann Kroeker
• Vegetarian Foodie Fridays at Breastfeeding Moms Unite 
• $5 Dinners (Zucchini)

Friday Night Pizza: Campfire Pizza Pockets

A few weeks ago I was reading Christy's post on her blog at Southern Plate about campfire meat pies.  My mind went crazy thinking of all the great combos.  That afternoon, I was made some pizza dough to take on our trip to Savannah and decided to try and use the dough as the pocket and stuff them with pizza toppings.  They were very successful!  My husband loved it!  Less messy and a great food to take in the car.  So when we planned our camping trip, I decided we'd eat them again but grill them over the campfire to heat them and eat them.  Here's how I did them:

Campfire Pizza Pockets

I used  Pizza Dough II and made 1-1/2 times the recipe in order to make enough pizza pockets for everyone on the trip.

Divide the dough into 6-8 equal portions and roll them out flat using oil on a cookie sheet or parchment paper.  Fill them with whatever you like.  I did BBQ Chicken with Jack cheese, Tomato Mozzarella and Pepperoni with Mozzarella.

Fold the top over and press and twist the seal to close.  Place on oiled cookie sheet and bake at 425 for 15-18 minutes, until the tops are golden brown.

Remove to cooling rack.  Once cooled, wrap in tin foil and refrigerate.  You can eat these cold, by all means!  But to heat them, place them over a hot grill or at the edge of a campfire.

We got a total of 17 out of the batch.  One opened while baking so we ate it!  Austin said they were SO GOOD.  I have to agree!

Enjoy!

Linked to:
Life as Mom (Grab and Go)

Friday Night Pizza: Sausage & Mushroom

Today I'm participating in the New Friend Fridays Blog Hop at The Girl Creative and Trendy Treehouse.  If you're stopping by for the first time, thank you so much!  Each Friday I share a pizza creation and call it "friday night pizza night". 

I had to make two pizzas because my picky-eater (my hubby) doesn't like mushrooms.  He was pretty happy eating his own Meat-a-tarian pizza.  

Over the last several Pizza Nights, I was trying to think outside of the box and come up with some interesting pizza creations.  Some were brilliant, like the Meat-a-tarian and others were fails, like the Chicken Teriyaki.  So this month I figured I give my family a break and try some "normal" pizzas.  So that's what you'll be seeing this month.  

Mushroom & Sausage Pizza is pretty straight forward.  But to save some money (you know me!) I purchased some breakfast sausage on sale.  I chose a regular flavor, not Sage, so I could tweak it by adding some ground fennel.  Adding the fennel will make it taste like Italian Sausage without the price tag.  I do this with ground turkey, ground beef and just about anything.

Mushroom & Sausage Pizza

Pizza Dough or Pizza Dough II

1/2 to 1 cup pasta sauce

1-1/2 to 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

6 oz can sliced mushrooms (I like the canned mushrooms for pizza)

16 oz browned ground sausage with 2 teaspoons ground fennel

Prepare the pizza dough as directed.  Spread the pasta sauce over the dough, top with mushrooms and sausage.  Sprinkle evenly with mozzarella cheese and bake as directed.  

Hope you have a great family night!

Enjoy!

This post has been linked to:

• Friday Favorites at Simply Sweet Home
• Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum
• Food on Fridays at Ann Kroeker

Friday Night Pizza: Monte Cristo Pizza

I really love Monte Cristo sandwiches and thought we might be able to transform it into a pizza. 

After much thought, this is what I've come up with:

Monte Cristo Pizza

Pizza Dough or Pizza Dough II

1/2 cup strawberry jelly
8 slices of deli ham 

8 slices of deli turkey

1-1/2 to 2 cups shredded Swiss cheese

powdered sugar

Prepare pizza dough as directed.  Spread strawberry preserves over the dough.  Layer ham and turkey over the dough.  Sprinkle with shredded cheese and bake as directed.  Serve with a dusting of powdered sugar.

I thought it was really good, but my hubby didn't like it too much.  He peeled the cheese and meat off and ate it, but left the jelly and crust behind.  

Have a great Pizza Night with your family!

This post has been linked to:

• Friday Favorites at Simply Sweet Home
• Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum
• Food on Fridays at Ann Kroeker

Friday Night Pizza: Cubana Pizza

Do you love Cuban Sandwiches?  Yum!  Well, if you do, you might like this week's pizza.  I actually blogged about this in February 2009.  Since then, I've learned how to make our own pizza dough and so I'm re-posting it for new readers of my blog.

Cuban Pizza

Pizza Dough or Pizza Dough II
1/2 to 1 cup honey mustard
1-2 cups leftover pork roast, shredded
juice of 1 lime
pinch of red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 Tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped + extra for garnishing or 1/2 tsp dried
1/4 lb deli ham thinly sliced (or about 8 slices)
1 cup Swiss cheese, shredded
1 cup Monterrey Jack cheese, shredded
dill pickle spears

Prepare pizza dough according to directions. Spread honey mustard over dough to within 1" of all edges. Heat pork in the microwave for a minute with lime juice.  In mixing bowl, add shredded pork, any leftover juices, red pepper flakes, cumin and cilantro; toss well and sprinkle evenly over mustard. Arrange ham over shredded pork. Sprinkle cheese evenly over pizza.  Bake according to pizza dough directions.  Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve with pickles on the side.

The kids and I loved this!  The hubs, not so much.  He doesn't really like honey mustard but he ate most of it until he got close to the crust edge...then he said "bleh" and was done and ate watermelon :)

Enjoy and have a great weekend!

Friday Night Pizza: Meat-a-tarian Pizza

My husband doesn't like vegetables.  In fact, he says he's a "meat-a-tarian".

His definition of meat-a-tarian = everything he eats, has already eaten vegetables, so he has in fact, eaten vegetables.

I know, he's crazy, that's one of the many reasons I love him.  We haven't had a traditional pizza in a while, so I thought I'd make one similar to our favorite "meat lovers" pizza at Nicolo's Chicago Style Pizza in Duluth. 

Meat-a-tarian Pizza

Pizza Dough or Pizza Dough II

1/2 to 1 cup spaghetti sauce

8-10 large pepperoni slices

4 or 5 deli ham slices

1 cup browned ground beef

1 cup browned Italian sausage

4 or 5 pre-cooked bacon slices, chopped

1-1/2 to 2 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese

Prepare pizza according to directions.  Spread sauce to within 1" of edge of dough.  Layer ham slices and pepperoni slices over sauce.  Sprinkle ground beef, sausage and chopped bacon evenly over the previous layers.  Top with cheese and bake per dough directions. 

Oh my word y'all!  This one will make you slap your momma it's so good!  I ate 2 pieces, the kids shared a slice and my hubby?  Yeah, he ate the rest!  He said it was the best pizza he's had in a long time.  Definitely a keeper.  This one will make any "Meat Eater" happy!

By the way, the mozzarella cheese, ground beef, Italian turkey sausage, bacon and ham slices were in the freezer waiting for me.  And I picked up some of the deli pepperoni at Publix last week.  I didn't bother thawing out the meats from the freezer since the oven is set on 500 degrees and the pizza bakes for 10-12 minutes. 

Have a great Pizza Night and enjoy your weekend!

Friday Night Pizza: Chicken Fajita Pizza

If you've been following my blog for some time, you'll already know how much we love Tex-Mex flavors.  We love tacos, nachos, burritos, enchiladas, fajitas, rice and beans...etc.  This week's pizza is based on the Fajita concept. 

Chicken Fajita Pizza

Pizza Dough or Pizza Dough II 

1/2 to 1 cup enchilada sauce

1-1/2 to 2 cups Monterrey Jack cheese (you can use whatever you have on hand)

1 grilled chicken breast, thinly sliced

sliced bell peppers (we had red, yellow and orange, so I used a little of each)

sliced onions (we don't like raw onions, so I left these off) 

non-stick cooking spray

dried oregano

fresh cilantro

lime wedges

avocado

Prepare pizza dough according to directions.  Spread enchilada sauce over dough, sprinkle with cheese.  Layer chicken and peppers over the cheese.  Spray with non stick cooking spray and sprinkle with dried oregano.  Bake according to dough directions.

 

Serve with fresh cilantro, lime wedges and sliced avocado.

Enjoy!

Linked to:

Ultimate Recipe Swap at Life as Mom (anything goes)

Friday Night Pizza: Santa Fe Pizza

We love Tex-Mex flavors and since we've already eaten Chicken Enchilada Pizza.  I thought it might be fun to create one with ground beef.  Here's what I came up with:

(sorry for the iPhone pic)

Santa Fe Pizza 

Pizza Dough thin or thick

1/2 to 1 cup enchilada sauce

1/2 to 1 cup browned ground beef (drained of fat and rinsed)

1/2 cup black beans (rinsed and drained)

1-1/2 to 2 cups cheddar cheese or Monterrey Jack (whatever you have)

1/4 cup frozen corn (or canned corn)

red bell pepper strips (I used 1/4 of a pepper)

pickled jalapeno peppers or banana pepper rings (optional)

Preheat oven per pizza directions.  On prepared pizza dough, pour enchilada sauce and spread to within 1" of the edge.  Top with ground beef, black beans, cheese, corn and bell pepper strips.  Bake in oven as directed.  Top with jalapeno or banana peppers.  

Since my hubby doesn't like corn or peppers, I only "dressed" half the pizza so he'd eat part of it.  He doesn't like corn or peppers so I only put them on one side.

Thinking back, it might have been tasty to add a little chopped cilantro too!

Enjoy your Friday Night Pizza night with your family.  Make your own pizza creation with your favorite toppings.  Experiment and have fun!

Enjoy!

Friday Night Pizza: Chicken Teriyaki Pizza

This is a new pizza we tried.  I was thinking of what I like with Chicken Teriyaki but I also needed to figure out some sort of base for the pizza.  I think next time, we'll just leave out the cream cheese* altogether as Kevin and I did not liked the flavor of it.  Just an FYI and keeping it real for ya! 

Chicken Teriyaki Pizza

Pizza Dough or Pizza Dough II 

1 cup cooked chicken, sliced, chopped or shredded

4 oz cream cheese, softened*

2 Tablespoons Teriyaki sauce

1 Tablespoon Soy sauce

1/4 cup duck sauce (or apricot preserves)

Shredded Carrots

Red Bell Pepper Slices

Broccoli Florets

Preheat oven per pizza directions.

Mix cream cheese, Teriyaki sauce, soy sauce and duck sauce together until well combined (*FYI-I'll leave out the cream cheese next time completely, and probably increase the duck sauce).  Spread over the prepared pizza dough within 1" of the edge.  Sprinkle chicken over the cream cheese layer.  Sprinkle shredded carrots, red bell pepper slices and broccoli florets evenly over the chicken.  Spray with non-stick cooking spray Olive Oil flavor. Bake according to pizza directions and enjoy!

I hope you have a great Friday Night Pizza night at your house!

Have a great weekend!

Friday Night Pizza: Hawaiian Pizza

One of our favorite pizzas to order from Domino's is Ham and Pineapple.  Here's my version:

 sorry for the iPhone pic

Hawaiian Pizza

Prepare pizza dough thin crust or thick crust

1/2 to 1 cup pasta sauce

1/4 - 1/2 cup pineapple, crushed, tidbits, chunks or slices

ham slices, deli ham or Canadian bacon (I cut deli slices into smaller pieces)

1-2 cups mozzarella cheese

Prepare the pizza dough as directed.  Top with pasta sauce, then layer the ham and pineapple and top with shredded cheese.  Bake as directed.  

DELICIOUS!

I hope you're having a great Friday Night Pizza night!  Enjoy time with your family!  Stay tuned each Friday when I share some of our favorite pizza creations.

Enjoy!

Linked to:

Grocery Cart Recipe Swap

Friday Night Pizza: Chicken Parm Pizza

I was thinking about pizza variations...we LOVE pizza.  I think it's in a food group all on it's own.  Anyways, this week for Friday Night Pizza night we're eating Chicken Parm Pizza.  Here's what you'll need:

Chicken Parm Pizza

Pizza Dough thin or thick

Pasta Sauce

Shredded Mozzarella cheese

Breaded Chicken (I'm using Ritzy Chicken Nuggets but you can use any breaded chicken nugget or tender you get on sale at the store too!)

 

Press the pizza dough in the pan or place it on the heated stone.  Pour the desired amount of pasta sauce and top with chicken nuggets and sprinkle generously with cheese.  Bake as directed.

You can serve this with any yummy salad and enjoy!

YUM!

Friday Night Pizza: Meatball Sub Pizza

I thought it might be fun to make a pizza inspired by our favorite Meatball Sub Sandwiches!

Meatball Sub Pizza

Prepare pizza dough thin crust or thick crust

1/2 to 1 cup Pasta Sauce

10 Meatballs, cut in half

1-2 cups Shredded Mozzarella cheese

1/2 teaspoon Garlic Salt

4 Tablespoons Butter

Prepare the pizza dough as directed.  Top with pasta sauce, then layer the meatballs, cut side down, and top with shredded cheese.  Bake as directed.  Meanwhile, melt butter and add garlic salt.  When the pizza comes out of the oven, brush the garlic butter all over the crust.  DELICIOUS!

I hope you're having a great Friday Night Pizza night!  Enjoy time with your family!  Stay tuned each Friday when I share some of our favorite pizza creations.

Enjoy!

Friday Night Pizza: Chicken Enchilada Pizza

This is an easy and yummy pizza with the Tex-Mex vibe we love so much!

Chicken Enchilada Pizza

Pizza Dough or Pizza Dough II

1/2-1 cup enchilada sauce

1 cup cooked and cubed chicken

1/2 cup black beans, drained and rinsed 

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

pickled jalapeno peppers or roasted green chiles (optional)

Pour the enchilada sauce over the prepared pizza dough.  Scatter the chicken and black beans over the sauce.  Spread the cheese over the chicken and beans.  Sprinkle with jalapeno peppers or roasted green chiles if you like.  Bake in preheated oven until cheese and crust is golden brown.

Enjoy!

Hope you have a great Friday Night Pizza night.  Stay tuned each Friday for more pizza creations.

RECIPE: New Pizza Dough and Black & White Pizza

I found this recipe on Allrecipes.com for Black and White Pizza.  It's a really interesting combination of ingredients.  You could also call this Chicken Alfredo and Black Bean Pizza.  We tried it on a new pizza dough recipe.  It reminds me of a "hand-tossed" style crust from Domino's.  If you don't like a thicker crust, you can try my Original Pizza Dough recipe.  It's a thinner type of pizza crust. 

I can't wait to share this with you:

Pizza Dough II (adapted from Saveur Magazine)

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 Tablespoon active dry yeast

1 Tablespoon honey or sugar (I use honey)

2 cups hot water (110-115 degree F)

6 cups of flour 

1-1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt

In a bowl, combine oil, yeast, sugar and water, let rest 5-10 minutes until yeast has activated and foamy.  Add flour 1 cup at a time along with salt to yeast mixture and stir until combined.  Transfer dough to floured surface and knead until smooth about 8-10 minutes.  Cut dough in half for 2 large pizzas.  Roll each portion in a ball and place them on a floured sheet pan.  Cover with tea towel and allow to rise for 2-3 hours.  

Place one ball of dough in the center of a metal sheet pan.  Pat and press the dough into a round shape, allowing the "crust" about 1" on the edge.  Don't flatten that part.  Cover with the tea towel and allow to rise for 15 minutes (this will give you a fluffier and chewier crust).  Top with your favorite toppings and bake at 500 degrees F for 10-14 minutes.  

This was so good!  We're even going to try to use this recipe and make some garlic bread sticks.  Oh my goodness!

RECIPE: BBQ Chicken Pizza

Nearly every Friday night we have Pizza & Movie Night.  I make our pizza dough from scratch and store them in the freezer.  

I thought I'd share how we make our BBQ Chicken Pizza.  It's so easy, you really don't need a recipe.

• BBQ Sauce (your favorite or what's on sale)
• Precooked chicken (I always have some in packaged in 1-1/2 cup portions in the freezer)
• Pizza Dough
• Shredded Cheese (your favorite or what's on sale - I used Mozzarella here, but I've used Cheddar in the past and it was good too)

Prepare the pizza dough and roll it out to the appropriate size (round or rectangle, whatever you like).

Pour BBQ sauce over the unbaked crust and spread with the back of a spoon to within about 1" of the edge.

In a separate bowl, add chicken and BBQ sauce and mix together (like you're making BBQ Chicken sandwiches).  You can make this as saucy as you like.  Just remember too much sauce might make the dough soggy.

Using a fork, drop the BBQ Chicken over the sauce on the pizza dough.  Add as much or as little as you like.  We usually have enough to make two pizzas and then a little leftover for me and the kids to eat sandwiches the next day.  

Sprinkle your choice of cheese over the chicken.  Bake at 400 degree F for 18-20 minutes.  Until cheese is golden and crust is slightly golden.

Enjoy!