Grilled pizza is kind of amazing. The crust gets nice and crispy on the outside, but soft and chewy on the inside. The grill gives it this delicious charred flavor that you just can't get out of an oven. Plus, nothing beats not having to turn out the oven and heat up the house when it's already 104* outside. I like making "specialty" pizzas when we grill pizza, but this would be just as good with pepperoni, or whatever other kind of toppings you want.
Grilled Pizza
What You Need:
1/2 cup warm water
1 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
Olive oil
Sun-dried tomato pesto (or other pizza sauce of your choice)
Caramelized onions, artichoke hearts and goat cheese (or pizza toppings of your choice)
What You Do:
Turn your oven on to warm (200*) for about 5 minutes, then turn it off. Sprinkle yeast over warm water and let sit for about 5 minutes. Mix together with flour and salt until a rough, craggy mess forms. Turn the dough and any loose bites out onto a lightly floured counter and knead until the dough becomes smooth and elastic. Coat a bowl with olive oil, place the dough in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Put the dough in the oven and let sit for 30 minutes, or until the dough has doubled.
Once the dough has risen, roll out into a circle about 1/2 inch thick on a lightly floured counter. At this point you also want to turn on the grill to medium high. Brush olive oil on one side of the dough and put it olive oil side down onto the grill. Brush some olive oil on the top side of the dough. Once the dough bubbles on the surface and there are dark grill marks on the bottom of the crust pull off the grill. Put it cooked side up on a pizza stone or baking sheet and put the toppings on the crust. Gently slide the pizza back onto the grill and cook for a few more minutes until the bottom has dark grill marks.
And there you have it, grilled pizza. It really could not be easier. If you don't feel like grilling you can always make this in the oven. Bake the pizza at 450* for 17 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and crispy. But I highly, highly suggest you try grilling pizza at least once. It will change your life. Seriously.
