Deluxe Greek Pizza

If you're thinking this za looks familiar, then you're probably remembering my recent Mini Greek Pizza. No need to be confused and no need to be alarmed. I am not a pizza repeater. The Mini was a grand and tasty thing, but this Deluxe truly lives up to that title.

This pizza is loaded down with tangy flavors and fresher than fresh toppings. It was one of those so-good-out-of-the-oven-you-burn-the-roof-of-your-mouth tasty ones. It's a pizza I've been wanting to make for quite some time now but never seemed to have all of the ingredients at home all at once. But suddenly that all changed and the Deluxe Greek became a very delicious reality.

Pizza toppings:

• 1-2 cups pizza sauce
• 1 medium tomato, chopped
• About 1 cup chicken breast meat, chopped
• Handful of Kalamata olives, sliced in half
• Handful of marinated artichoke hearts, roughly chopped
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• About 3 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
• Half avocado, diced
• Half cucumber, diced

There are really two "sets" of toppings for this pizza: the ones that go on before the pizza goes into the oven, and the ones that go on after the pizza comes out of the oven, just before it is served.

Instructions:

• Preheat the oven to 500 with a pizza stone inside.
• Prepare your crust - roll it out on a lightly floured surface and cut it into a circle that is the same size or just smaller than your pizza stone. Let it sit there while the oven preheats and you prepare the rest of your toppings.
• The rest of the prep work is really nothing more than just chopping up ingredients. I used some leftover oven-baked chicken seasoned with tomato basil pesto as a topping, but if you don't have that on hand already like I did, that's the only cooking prep you'll really have to do. (Spread the pesto over the chicken and bake at 350 for about 25 minutes.)
• Chop the chicken, tomato, artichoke hearts, and olives into bite-sized pieces and set them aside. (These are the toppings that go on first.)
• Chop the cucumber and avocado and set those aside separately. (These are the post-bake toppings.)

• When the stone is completely hot, take it out of the oven and place it on your work surface. Place the prepared dough for the crust on top of that.
• Spread your desired amount of pizza sauce on the crust, and spread it out evenly, going as close to the edges as you can. Then add on the first set of toppings, sprinkling them around evenly to the edges (chicken, tomatoes, olives, and artichokes).
• Top it off with your two cheeses (mozzarella and then feta on top) and carefully place it back in the oven. Bake it for 10-12 minutes or until the crust is golden on the edges and the cheese is melted on top.
• Take it out of the oven and place it back on your work surface. Immediately sprinkle the last two toppings on it - the cucumber and avocado pieces. Let it sit and cool for a few minutes before slicing. 

One thing I wish I'd used more of on this pizza were the Kalamata olives. These are not the puny, pathetic little black olives that you typically see atop the pizzas from major major pizza chains and subs from franchised sub shops. These are different. They are larger, full of flavor and downright excellent. And they just want to share all that flavor with you and your taste buds. Sadly, I only had about half a jar of these in my fridge. I suppose they were just so tasty I never even noticed how quickly they had been disappearing! 

Another thing I'd recommend is red pepper flakes. Sprinkle them all around! Spice is good. I actually sprinkled a bit over the whole za as soon as it came out of the oven, and then more onto my individual slices. It really brings all the flavor flaves together - salty feta, tangy olives, creamy avocados, fresh and crunchy cucumbers, savory pesto chicken and artichokes, and then there ya go with that spice. 

It's My Birthday!

It is true...this day, 27 years ago, I rolled into the world. And just look how far I've come with all my pizzas and exercise things. It nearly brings a tear to my own eye.

So let's get down to business. There aren't too many great restaurants in my small town, and of the handful of ones I like I really wasn't craving any of those for a birthday meal. Yes, despite the time and energy, I made my own birthday pizza because I wanted to. 

I found a recipe for "Antipasta Pizza" on Pinterest last week and decided I'd like to try this as a birthday meal. The basic idea of it is that it's covered with things you'd find on an antipasta platter...but it's on a pizza. It's so genius, I wish I'd thought of it myself. My pizza philosophy is that you can make any meal into a pizza. If you love mac & cheese, buffalo chicken, tacos, or stuffed mushrooms, you (or I) can think some way to top a pizza in those sorts of things. Instantly you have the best of both worlds. Your favorite food and pizza. Instantly! It blows my mind sometimes, I'm sure you just experienced that too. 

Antipasta Pizza toppings:

• 1-2 cups pizza sauce
• 1/4 cup pesto sauce
• 1 6-oz. jar of marinated artichoke hearts, chopped into smaller pieces
• 1/3 to 1/2 cup sliced black olives
• 1/3 to 1/2 cup pickled banana pepper rings
• 1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes, chopped into small pieces
• 6 to 8 slices of large, round genoa salami (Boar's Head at the deli counter is always good)
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella
• 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Directions:

• Preheat your oven to 500 with the pizza stone inside. 
• Chop all toppings into pieces that are a size you would like to eat. I chopped my artichokes and tomatoes pretty small because they're a little too chewy when they're left as-is. I also cut the salami into fourths because those pieces were sort of massive on their own. The banana peppers and olives came pre-sliced in just the right sizes.
• When the pizza stone is ready, take it out of the oven and place your prepared crust on top of it. 
• Spread the pesto sauce evenly around on that and then spread the sauce on. 
• Add all the toppings on next, starting with the veggies, then the salami, the mozzarella, and finally the parmesan. 
• Pop that stacked za into the oven for 10-12 minutes. Let it sit and cool for a bit when it's done because it is 500 degrees, duh. 

Go as spicy or mild as you want with all those toppings. I used hot banana peppers, making this za very spicy and tangy. It was good. So, so good, and I'm glad I had it for my birthday. I also left it in the oven a little longer than I meant to, which is why the cheese on top looks extra golden. No biggie, as long as it wasn't burnt we're doing good.

Naturally, good friends and good conversation complimented the pizza too. We had our friends Farrah and Anne over to enjoy the meal with us and there was never a dull moment with those two. It's just further encouragement for me to keep making and sharing pizzas!

Look at those magical slices. You may not be able to tell by looking, but they are absolutely mouth-wateringly incredible. Pizza like this isn't dull or even average. It is so flavorful and exciting for your taste buds that it really does not take much to satisfy you. As good as it was I only had one slice with my dinner...never mind all the other stuff I ate. But even still, when it comes to cheap pizzas (or any cheap foods for that matter) you keep going back for more, just hoping and expecting that it will taste better with the next piece. But it never does. Actually, it only gets worse. So make this damn pizza already and experience some good satisfying food for once!

Quick Mini Greek Pizza

Really the only reason for this pizza being "quick" was because I already had some prepared dough on hand for the crust. Start to finish, the thing took about 25 minutes to make. Not bad when I consider this a gourmet weekend lunchtime meal. I know, I'm so fancy.

Toppings you'll need:

• About 1 cup pizza sauce
• 1 6-oz jar of marinated artichoke hearts
• 1/3 cup sliced black olives (or other olives of your preference)
• 1/2 cup chopped chicken, cooked
• A handful of spinach, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
• 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

Typically I'm not a fan of olives on or around my food. But I'm finding that in the right quantities and with the right flavor combinations, they're not half bad. I happened to have this can of olives on hand, which partially led to the "Greek" pizza flavor decision. And it was a good decision. Since I usually also have artichoke hearts, feta cheese, and spinach in the house too, making foods with Greek flavors is an easy go-to for me.

When it comes to artichoke hearts, I can never get enough. I just love those little things. I've made many dishes with that food item including pastas, stuffed mushrooms, dips, casseroles and salads of many varieties, and of course, pizza. They add a nice hearty texture without feeling too heavy. If you're unfamiliar with artichoke hearts, you can find them in the grocery store in the aisle where you pick up your canned vegetables. I know, you can buy them fresh too and cook/marinate them yourself. But I'm a lazy cook and that is just too much of a time-consuming task for me.

How to make it:

• As always, pizza stone goes into a cold oven. Turn the temperature to 500 degrees and get the stone good and hot.
• Roll out the dough, and when the stone is hot enough, take it out of the oven and place the dough on top of that.
• Next, spread on the sauce.
• Sprinkle the toppings on top of that, distributing evenly. Chicken, artichokes, olives, spinach, mozzarella, then feta. 
• Carefully place that all in the oven, turn the timer on for 10-12 minutes, and find something to occupy your mind in the meantime. 

I spent that time making one very unimpressive salad. Just greens, carrots, sunflower seeds and some Greek vinaigrette dressing that I thought would nicely compliment the za. It did in fact go very well together. I'm repeatedly let down by salads served at pizza restaurants. I know the point of a pizza restaurant is not to make a good salad, it is to make a great pizza. But when I see that a salad is priced around $5 at a pizza place, I'd really like more than some week-old bagged lettuce with a package of Club crackers. 

I didn't season this pizza any more after it came out of the oven. However, I do believe that adding some black pepper, crushed red pepper flakes, or a drizzle of balsamic vinegar would liven up these slices. Up to you though how much you want to get pizza crazy. 

All in all, this lunch was tasty and satisfying. Definitely has those flavors I love and will return to again. Who knows, perhaps I'll spend more time one evening and step it up to make a gourmet Greek pizza dinner! Only time will tell.