3-Meat Pizza with a Seasoned Crust

I used to be a vegetarian. Not a full-on "meats are evil" gal (I still ate fish and eggs), but I started doing the veggie thing and decided to continue because at the time I just didn't miss meats that much.

That was five years ago. Hardly a day has gone by since then that I have been meat-free. Now I revel in the delight of crispy, rich bacon with breakfast, perfectly tender chicken parmesan, and even the occasional juicy cheeseburger.

Don't get me wrong, I've heard all the meat-haters out there get on their soapboxes and disparage animal products saying things like, "Meat gives you cancer!" or "Too much protein is bad for you!" or "Red meat is the worst thing for you!" And if they can't make those claims then they just start spewing off things like "Hormones!", "Antibiotics!", "MSG!", "Processed!" all while trying to conjure up images from The Jungle in your impressionable brain.

All things in moderation, my friends. All things in moderation.

Sooo...pizza. Shall we?

Lately, before the pizza making on pizza night begins, I've been hearing the husband chirp into my ear, "Can you make it with a garlic crust?" And the answer is inevitably, "Of course, darling!"

Really, it is. Because all it takes to turn a crust from "plain" to "gourmet garlic" is to add about a tablespoon of garlic powder to the dough while it's mixing.

But for this za, I wanted something more from the crust. I added the standard 1 tablespoon of garlic powder, but I also included 1 tablespoon of onion powder and 1 tablespoon of oregano. And if I am remembering this correctly, "I think you've perfected the crust" is a direct quote from the spouse during the pizza eating. Score.

Seasoned dough, waiting and rising

Ingredients:

• Prepared or homemade pizza dough for the crust
• About 1 cup pizza sauce
• 1 cup shredded chicken breast meat
• 9-10 large deli pepperonis
• 5 pieces bacon, cooked and crumbled
• About 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

I seasoned up the chicken meat with a dash of chili powder and a sprinkle of crushed red pepper flakes. The pepperoni may lend enough spiciness for you. But not for me. I like it nice n' spicy!

Put it all together:

• First, place your pizza stone into a cold oven. I cannot stress this enough. If you want to know why, here's the reason. If you're going to be using the oven for the meat preparation, just leave the stone in there for whatever temperature you use to cook your meats, then later you can increase the temp up to 500 without ever having to wait for the oven to cool or putting the stone into an oven that's already hot. It is such a sadness to have a pizza stone break. When it happened to me, more than just my stone broke. So did a little piece of my soul. 

So let's get started with those three meats: chicken, pepperoni, and bacon.

• I prepped the chicken in the crock pot earlier in the day. I've found this is definitely the easiest way to prepare a bunch of plain chicken that I'll later shred and season for various meals. All that's required for that cooking is to place your chicken breasts (mine come in packages of 3) into the crock with a splash of olive oil plus a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Put the temp on low and let things simmer in there until the meat is no longer pink. My crock pot gets Africa-hot, so it only takes me about 3 hours on low to cook up that sort of batch. 
• The pepperoni is from the deli counter in the grocery store. Ask your delicatessen for about 9 or 10 thin slices of pepperoni. I used to order everything in pounds or ounces, but as it turns out, the people working behind the meat counter actually prefer counting slices than estimating the weight of your meats and cheeses. It didn't take me long to stop and think, "Oh, that does seem like it would be easier." 
• Bacon cooks so easily in the oven. Turn the oven to 375, line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil, and place the bacon onto the sheet without overlapping any pieces. Place that in the oven until the bacon is crispy, about 10-15 minutes. When the bacon is done, blot the excess grease with paper towels, then crumble or chop it into bits and pieces. 

It's all just toppings from here!

• You did set your oven for 500 degrees a while back and put the pizza stone in it, right? Phew. Good. Now grab that stone with your hand in an oven mitt, place it on a stable work surface, and put the crust for your dough on top of the hot stone. Put it back in the oven (no toppings yet!) for 2-3 minutes. After that time, remove the half-cooked dough-topped stone form the oven and place it back on your work surface. (That's the secret to my so-called "perfected crust" recipe.)
• Spread the sauce on the dough as evenly as possible. Sprinkle on the shredded chicken. Evenly place the pepperonis on top of that. Sprinkle on the mozzarella cheese followed by the bacon bits. Add more cheese to any spots you may have missed.
• Put the whole shebang back in the oven and set a timer for about 6 or 7 minutes. Really, just stay nearby so you can keep an eye on it and take it out when the cheese is melted and the edges of the crust are golden brown. 

Pizza out to cool on the cooling rack. This definitely helps with crust crispiness.

If you don't have the patience or shoulder strength to keep up with the calisthenics of removing and replacing and removing the weighty pizza stone from the oven, then you can do things the lazy way. Top your dough once with all the toppings in the order described and cook it in the 500 degree oven for 10 minutes. Still works, still yummy, but perfect? I'll let you be the judge of that.

Dinner is served!

It feels so right to eat this meat-covered pizza. 

Deluxe BBQ Chicken Pizza

When I made a barbecue chicken and pineapple pizza with sharp cheddar, I thought I really had something there. And at the time, I did. But then the world of Pinterest presented to me an even better version of something I thought couldn't be topped. And here it is…

It's still a BBQ chicken pizza with pineapple chunks, but so much more…red onions, bacon, and jalapeños.  I am still recovering from this delight and can't possibly fathom improving upon this pizza any further.

Also, I did a twice-baked crust to make it a bit crispier. Lately my crusts have had a little "mush" layer just beneath the toppings, and although it does not ruin the meal it certainly causes a distraction. To eliminate the mush layer, simply bake your crust for 3 to 4 minutes before putting the toppings on, then remove it from the oven, top it with all the good stuff, and bake it again until it's done. Just that one extra step is completely worth the work.

Toppings you'll need:

• About 1 cup pizza sauce
• 1/4 to 1/3 cup barbecue sauce, more or less depending on your preference
• 1 chicken breast, cooked and chopped into bite-sized pieces
• 1/2 red onion, sliced and cooked
• 2-3 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled into bits
• 1/2 can (about 1/2 cup) pineapple chunks
• Handful of jalapeños, to taste
• 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

If you don't have your chicken and onions all ready to go, cooking these is very simple.

• All I did for mine was slice the onion and chicken breast very thin, place the onions onto an oiled baking sheet, and place the chicken on top of the onions. That goes into the oven at 350 for about 20 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through. The only thing I would have done differently is use more red onions. I only used half of a medium red onion, but using the whole thing would have satisfied me even more. But that's purely a matter of taste - use the amount of onion that makes you happy.

• When the chicken is cooked, remove the baking sheet from the oven and chop everything that was on it into bite-sized pieces. Set it aside while you prepare the rest, or put it in the fridge if it's going to be more than a few minutes before you start the rest of the za making.

Let us now start with the real business we came here for: to make an epic pizza.

• Preheat the oven to 500, making sure your pizza stone is inside.
• Gather everything you plan to put on the pizza (cooked chicken and onions, crumbled bacon, drained pineapple chunks, sauces, and shredded cheeses). Once you have your dough ready, you need to work with the swiftness. 

• If you want to do the crispy crust thing like I did, make sure your dough is ready to go (prepped and cut just smaller then the pizza stone). When the oven reached 500, take the pizza stone out and put just the dough for the crust on it - no toppings just yet. (Or if you're really crafty, slide the dough right onto the stone without removing it from the oven at all. 
• Now you're going to have to keep an eye on it so it doesn't cook too much, but generally it should take no more than 4 minutes to crisp it up a little bit. 
• Remove the stone with the dough on top from the oven and get ready to place your toppings on it next. 

It may be a little bit lumpy or bubbly looking if you're doing this step, but don't worry, it will all be just fine. Generally, kneading and rolling out your dough gets rid of the air bubbles within it, but obviously I don't have that art down to perfection just yet. If your crust begins to look like this, simply press down the bubbly parts with a spatula (not your hand 'cause it's freakin' hot!), or pop them with a knife to deflate them a bit. 

• Working with your pizza stone on a stable surface, evenly spread your pizza sauce onto the crust.
• Spread (or squeeze from a bottle) about half of your barbecue sauce onto the crust next. If you like your barbecue sauce more than pizza sauce, you can adjust the ratios of those. But don't worry - you will be adding more barbecue sauce in the last step. 
• Sprinkle on all the rest of the toppings (onions, chicken, pineapples, jalapeños, and bacon). Make sure they are evenly distributed around the pizza. You may prefer more or less jalapeños depending on your tolerance of hot and spicy things. 
• Sprinkle on the cheeses last (you can mix them or just sprinkle on one after the other) and carefully place the whole thing back into the oven.
• Now if you did the pre-bake on your crust, you won't need it in the oven very long before it's done. Perhaps 5 or 6 minutes should do it. If you didn't pre-bake, then this will take about 10 minutes until it is complete. My best advice is to keep an eye on it and take it out when it's as done as you like it. (Golden edges on the crust and melted cheese on top can usually indicate a done pizza.)

Golden and melty and DONE!

• Remove the pizza from the oven and spread or squeeze the remainder of your barbecue sauce on top. Let it cool for a few minutes (the pineapple pieces get hot in a 500-degree oven and they stay hot the longest). 

Mmm. Get into ma belly.

So, so, so good. Typically I do add-ons to my slices…nothing unusual - maybe just some red pepper flakes or a side of sauce for dipping. But I can say with confidence that this pizza needed nothing! It was a stand-alone winner and a Friday night delight. 

Turkey, Bacon and Spinach Pizza with Old Bay

Have you ever tried food seasoned with Old Bay? If you have, you've probably tried it with seafood. And it was probably delicious. But I say...ignore the conventional, add this to your pizza! I don't remember specifically the last time I had any food seasoned with Old Bay, but I will remember this turkey, bacon and spinach za forever.

Does the picture have you convinced at all? I know you can't taste it through the screen, and even if you try really hard you probably won't be able to smell it either. But if I might just fill in those blanks for you, the taste is like no pizza you've ever experienced. This is one for the top 10 list for sure. A quote after the husbands first bite: "Wow. I think you did it again." That was a proud moment for me. And the smell is just outta control. Like whoa. Old Bay has got a savory, spicy, earthy aroma that you'd most likely encounter in restaurants around the Gulf Coast. But bring it into your kitchen, and oh my! And did I mention that there's bacon in it? That alone should get your tasters and smellers in gear.

So, gather your ingredients for the za toppings:

• 1-2 cups pizza sauce
• 6-8 slices of bacon
• 1/2 chopped onion
• About 1/2 lb. ground turkey
• 1-2 tablespoons Old Bay seasoning
• About 2 cups spinach, roughly chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1-2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Get cooking, good looking!

• Place your pizza stone into a cold oven. Turn the temperature to 500. 
• Fire up the stove with a skillet on one burner. I love my cast iron skillet, but if you don't have one you can still cook these foods in a normal sort of pan. While the skillet is heating, chop your bacon into small pieces - smaller than bite-sized. Place those pieces in the hot skillet and begin to cook these, but don't cook them all the way through just yet. Maybe keep them on there for about 2 minutes.
• While the bacon is in the pan, chop up your onion. Add those pieces to the pan and cook with the bacon until the onion pieces are translucent, about 3-5 minutes. 

Bacon + Onions = Divine smelling kitchen

• Add the ground turkey to the pan and keep breaking it up so you don't have any large chunks. 

Use about 1/3 of a package of ground turkey

• Now add the magic. (Cue to add the Old Bay.) You don't need a ton of this - really less than a tablespoon would be fine. I didn't measure mine specifically - just sprinkled a smattering on there until it was fragrant!

Oh, hello back there, Old Bay.

• When your turkey is cooked through, turn off the heat. Add the chopped spinach to the mix and stir it around until it wilts. You may have to do this in batches, as raw spinach tends to occupy a lot of volume. 
• Now get your stone out of the oven and place it on your work surface. Place prepared pizza dough on top of the hot stone, followed by the sauce. Spread the sauce evenly on the dough working it as far to the edges as you can. 
• Top that with the bacon/onion/turkey/spinach mixture, evenly topping the pizza. Sprinkle the mozzarella on next, followed by the chopped parsley. 
• Place it back into the oven and bake for about 10 minutes. I did a bit of a thinner crust with this one, so mine cooked in under 10 minutes. Just keep an eye on it and you'll know it's done when the crust and the cheese on top turn golden. 

Yummy yum-ness. You'd better come with your appetite and your pizza party hat on. You've just made a real masterpiece, friend. You really don't understand the magic and wonders Old Bay can bring until you've tried this pizza. During the eating of this pizza I constantly asked myself...what is this sorcery? But all I can figure out is that I will need to stock my kitchen with some new Old Bay very soon if this za making continues. 

Za and beers for two, thank you!

Chicken, Bacon, Asparagus and Ricotta Pizza

Last time I made a "white pizza" it was good but not a fan favorite. Let me reassure you, this one was.

If I can remember correctly, I believe the spouse told me, "That was so good, I couldn't even talk," after he'd had just the first slice. 

For me, as much as I love a white pizza, I also have a deep love for tomato sauce. To solve that little dilemma here, all I did was serve the red sauce on the side. Excellent choice, if I may say so myself. 

Now I must also say, this pizza was work. Set aside about 2 hours from start to finish to make it...but don't be discouraged by that amount of time. It is so worth it. I guess you could go a little bit faster if you really tried. After all, I cleaned up as I went along and also unloaded the dishwasher and watched a Netflix documentary during the making of this pizza. You know if you want to watch a documentary, Netflix is the place to go.

So first, let us start with the crust. I didn't do my regular white/wheat crust because I wanted this one to be thinner and crispier. Although my usual crust is chewy and delicious, I was just in the mood to change it up. So I consulted a nearby cookbook called "Delicious Pizza." I thought, I can't go wrong with a title like that! 

I did a brief search for the book on Amazon, but I was not able to find it. Bummer. I guess all the delicious pizza secrets are not for sale! But the recipe for the crust was very basic...flour, water, yeast, sugar, salt and oil. I rolled it out thin, heated up the pizza stone, and then baked the crust for about 4 minutes on its own. That's right...the crust on the pizza stone - no toppings - and bake it for 4 minutes. You want crispiness, this is how you get it. 

Now get your toppings ready, hold your pants on, and prepare for some pizza making madness. 

Gather your ingredients:

• 1 15-oz container of ricotta cheese
• 1 clove fresh garlic
• 1 tbsp rosemary
• 5 strips of bacon
• 1 chicken breast
• Handful of asparagus spears (I used a package of frozen)
• 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese

To make it all so tasty and good:

• Pour the ricotta into a small mixing bow. Chop up the garlic into the tiniest pieces you can manage and add it to the ricotta. Add the rosemary into there as well and mix it all about. Let it sit while you do the rest so those flavors can mingle for a bit.
• Prep all the toppings. Heat the oven to 350. Arrange the bacon on one baking sheet and the asparagus on another. I added a little olive oil to my asparagus sheet to make it tastier and keep it from sticking. Pop those into the oven for about 20-30 minutes. I didn't set a timer, but just keep an eye on it until it's cooked the way you like it. I prefer my bacon and asparagus pretty crispy, so they were both in there for a while - the asparagus took a little longer than the bacon. 
• When they're done, chop the bacon into tiny bits, and cut the asparagus spears into thirds. 
• Heat a pan on the stove with a little olive oil, dice the chicken breast, and fry it up until it's cooked through.
• When the bacon and asparagus are done and the oven is empty, place the pizza stone inside and crank the temperature to 500. Now it's just a waiting game for the oven to get that hot. Go relax. Or do what I did and throw together a little Caesar salad to have on the side. You can also use this time to start heating up some red sauce...whatever kind is your favorite. I used some leftover homemade sauce I had on hand. 
• When your pizza stone is hot, take it out of the oven, and do what I told you to do before with the crust. Bake it, alone, for about 4 minutes. No toppings on it yet. Just a lonesome crust. This may cause some sections of the crust to bubble and rise. That's okay. Pop those bubbles and even out the surface again. You'll be able to do this because you're not cooking it all the way through yet.
• After those 4 minutes, take the pizza stone with the crust on it out of the oven and place it on your work surface. Spread the ricotta mixture onto it. You may not use all of it, depending on the size of your za. 
• Place the asparagus spears on top of that, followed by the chicken and then the bacon bits. Finish it off with just a touch of mozzarella and place that beauty into the oven for another 5 minutes or so. With the thin and now slightly crisped up crust, this will cook up in no time. It only took 5 minutes in my oven, but keep an eye on on it until it's cooked to your liking. 
• Serve with sauce of your choice on the side. 

You're going to want to dive into this ocean of pizza bliss long before it's done cooking. Actually, you may even be thinking of doing so during the bacon cooking phase. It's okay to munch on a little bacon, just don't eat all of it before za time.

If you're not a sauce lover like I am, feel free to omit it. Also if you want it a bit spicier, a bit of black pepper or red pepper flakes may suit your tastes.

I know, that looks like ketchup on the side. Now I do love ketchup, but as the old adage goes, there is a time and a place for everything. Mark my words - pizza time is no time for ketchup. That is tasty homemade pizza sauce.

Have a lovely time stuffing your face with this pizza excellence. I know I sure did!

Buffalo Chicken, Bacon & Ranch Pizza

This pizza is the ultimate crowd-pleaser, man-pleaser, comfort food, and the all-time top pick for the husband. It is just so good. Normally I make a pizza that extends completely to the edge of my pizza stone, but I was using some leftover dough from some pizzas last week that I kept in the fridge and I simply did not have enough. Luckily it was enough to feed two fat-kid-at-heart adults, but if you're serving more than that, make a larger za. Or make two.

Oh, by the way, I sometimes call pizza "za." It's much easier for lazy people to say. And (on Words With Friends) it's an actual word. Win. 

Truly, I think this is the ingredient that can take any dish to the next level...

Yes, there's no denying it. Bacon is a gift, a glorious gift, sent from Jesus H. Christ to show us that there are good things in this cruel, cold world. Do not omit this ingredient from the recipe. You will be sad, depressed, and get an embarrassing rash if you do. If you are a vegetarian, I'm sorry...this pizza is not for you. 

I also used a variety of cheeses to make this tasty fellow. Mozzarella is always a good go-to cheese for pizza. It's mild flavor allows the flavors of other ingredients to really stand out. Other cheeses can compliment other ingredients as well. Once I used monetary jack on a Mexican pizza and it was incredible alongside the spicy chicken, salsa, and roasted peppers on that za. On this one I used some mozzarella, some provolone, and a touch of gouda. If you don't want to get fancy with cheeses, or if you have some other cheese preferences, by all means, use those. 

The recipe (which you can adjust amounts of ingredients based on your taste preferences):

• Homemade pizza dough
• 1-2 cups pizza sauce
• 1/3 - 1/2 cup your favorite buffalo wing sauce
• 1 red onion
• 1 chicken breast
• 6-7 slices of bacon
• 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
• 1/4 cup shredded or sliced provolone
• Gouda, enough to your liking (I used about 2 slices from a package)
• Ranch dressing, any variety 

Place your pizza stone in a cold oven. Turn the temperature to 500 degrees F.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out your pizza dough into a circle. Or whatever shape your pizza stone is. You can sprinkle a little cornmeal on top of that, but I find it doesn't make much difference.

Cook the bacon until it's crispy. I usually do mine in the oven on a baking sheet because it contains the mess, but if you're a stove-top bacon fryer, go for it. Place the cooked bacon on paper towels, and drain it of the extra grease. Then chop it up into little bits. I know you're going to want to eat some of this bacon now. You must resist. Believe me, the pizza will be that much more satisfying if you do. 

Dice your onion and sauté in a little bit of oil. Sure, you can use a white or yellow onion, but I prefer colorful things. Plus the red onions make me cry less than other ones.

Dice your chicken and cook that up as well. Any cooking method for this is fine. Pan-fry, oven, crock pot (although that one will take a while), but it's up to you. 

Once your pizza stone is nice and hot, carefully take it out of the oven and place it on something that can handle a 500-degree object. Hot pads do a good job of this. Transfer the pizza dough (corn meal side down) onto the hot stone. Try to do this step quickly and don't mess with it too much. The dough may get a little mis-shapen or tear, so just sort of touch it up, but don't spend too much time on that. The stone is freaking hot and will immediately start cooking the dough into a beautiful crust. Or it will immediately start cooking your hands into an ugly crisp. No one wants crispy hands. 

Pour about half of the buffalo wing sauce onto the dough and spread it around using the back of a spoon. Next, pour on all of the pizza sauce. Spread it around evenly using the back of a spoon.

The dough may start to "bubble" a bit. This is fine. You can ignore it or you can pop some bubbles. Up to you.

Sprinkle the cooked chicken and onions on there next. Then the mozzarella, provolone, and gouda. 

Bacon goes on top. 

Pop that into the oven, set your timer for 9-10 minutes. When the timer goes off, drizzle the remaining wing sauce on top of the cooked pizza. Keep it in the oven for another 1-2 minutes. 

When it's totally done, let it sit and cool off. It is very hot, believe me. Since I want you to have the best experience possible with this incredible za, you must wait. God forbid you should burn your tongue or throat and blame me. I can't have that on me!

After about 10-15 minutes of cooling, cut this bad boy up. Then go get some ranch out of your fridge or wherever you keep it. I know people that put ranch on the side, but in true fat-kid fashion, I have generously poured ranch all over the top of my slice. Actually, this was my second slice, hence the messy plate and almost finished second glass of wine. And also, I'm not a real food photographer, or a photographer by any means. I'm just a girl with an iPhone!

Eat up. This za usually disappears in less than 12 hours in our household.