.sun-dried tomato, kalamata olive, and feta pizza.

Yes... we are cliche. We had heart-shaped pizzas on Valentine's Day.  I have been craving feta and kalamata olives the past week.  At the bakery, we used to make pizza as part of our lunch menu, in addition to salads, sandwiches, wraps, and soup.  This was by far my most favorite thing to eat.

The saltiness of the olives with the tanginess of the feta... nestled on baked dough and warmed garlic sauce?  Oh man.  Can you smell it?  (it's fantastic!!!)

Melt 3 Tbsp butter in a saucepan and add 1 clove minced garlic.  Saute for a minute.

Add 2 Tbsp flour and whisk.  Let the roux cook for a few minutes on low heat.  Keep stirring to keep from burning.

Add 1 1/2 cups milk and kick up the heat a little.  Make sure you whisk while adding the milk so you don't get lumps.  Keep stirring this and it will begin thickening.

The sauce needs to be slightly thicker than a gravy.  Season with salt and pepper and I even add a little parmesan cheese.

The main ingredients.  Feta (check!), kalamata olives (check!), and sun-dried tomatoes (check check!).

My tomatoes are julienned.  If yours aren't, you'll need to slice them up into thin strips.  Chop up some olives.  Make sure you get pitted olives otherwise you'll have to try and rip the flesh from the pit and chop up.  That's no fun.

Take your pizza dough and divide in half or in thirds.  Since my family doesn't really like this pizza (read: they hate olives), I made it smaller so it was all mine!  ALL MINE!!!

I formed my pizza into a heart shape.  Awwww... 

Spoon on some of the garlic sauce.  Top with the olives, tomatoes, and feta.  I also put a little parmesan and mozzarella on top.

As you can see I put a little sprinkle of cornmeal around on the pizza peel.  If you don't have a pizza peel, don't worry.  Just use a cookie sheet that doesn't have a lip.  You do want to use a pizza stone though.  You can find them at Bed, Bath, and Beyond or if you know someone who sells Pampered Chef, get one of those!  They have a better warranty.

If you're using a stone, put it on the lowest rack in your oven about 30 minutes before you start rolling out your pizzas.  Turn your oven to 475* and let that stone heat up real good.  That's key for giving you a nice crispy and chewy crust.  Mm mm mm. 

Carefully shimmy the pizza onto the stone once it's hot.  Sometimes I have to use a pancake turner to push it off without losing all my toppings.  Bake for about 10-15 minutes.  The top will be nice and golden brown and your crust should be all puffy and beautiful.  Let sit for a few minutes before slicing and eating.

.it's pizza night.

We really enjoy making our own pizza. Everyone gets involved and I have found it's a great family bonding time.



One of my favorites to make is BBQ Chicken Pizza. It has a tangy sauce with a bit of a kick, chicken, cilantro, and sauteed red onion. Paige doesn't like this one very much so we make pepperoni too. Get creative and make it your way. Give your kids bits of dough to roll out and let them make their own creations. That's the best way to get them to eat!

Start with your pizza dough. If you know how to make bread of any sort, the pizza dough will be a cinch for you.


Start by proofing your yeast. Put 1 1/2 c. warm water, 1/2 tsp sugar, and 4 tsp yeast in a bowl. Let dissolve and get foamy for 10 minutes.











Add bread flour to your bowl, one cup at a time. After adding the 1st cup of flour, put in 1 tsp salt as well. This recipe only needs a few cups of flour so don't dump it all in like a crazy person. You can always add more flour. If you put too much in, you can't take it back out and your dough is going to be ruined because it will be too tight for it to rise. When the dough starts clinging to the dough hook and is no longer "sticky" on the bottom, it's ready. Drizzle a little olive oil along the edge of the bowl and turn the mixer on low to coat the sides of the dough. Remove dough hook and cover the bowl with a towel. Allow to rise in a warm spot in the kitchen for an hour or until double in size.

Right when you finish your dough, preheat your oven to 500* F. I know that seems really hot, but trust me. You want it hot because it will give your pizza crust a nice crisp bottom but still chewy in the center. Make sure you put your oven rack on the lowest setting and put your pizza stone in if you have one. It needs to heat with the oven.





This BBQ Sauce is a little different than the one I make for my ribs. It's more tangy and not as sweet.

First you want to heat a little olive oil in a saucepan. Add 2 cloves minced garlic and 1/4 cup finely minced onion. Saute in the oil with 1 bay leaf for a minute. Don't let the garlic burn or else you'll be left with a bitter taste.




Add 1 cup ketchup, 2 Tbsp worchestershire sauce, 2 Tbsp brown sugar, 2 Tbsp lemon juice, 1/2 tsp tabasco sauce, and a shake or two of celery seed. Allow this to cook on low for about an hour. Remove bay leaf at that time.







Cook up one chicken breast, seasoned with Seasoning Salt. Dice into cubes. Set aside.










Slice some red onion.











Saute in a saute pan until they become nice and soft.

Remove from pan. Set aside.








When your dough has doubled in size, punch it down and pull from the bowl. Knead on a floured surface for a minute or two.









Divide in half. Roll out one of the halves.



















Pull a little of the edge back over and pinch down to make the crust.








Lightly dust a pizza peel with some flour and corn meal. Transfer your rolled out crust onto it. Pizza peels can be found at any home/kitchen store. This is one I bought online at King Arthur Flour for the bakery. I actually own two. The wooden one I own I bought at Bed, Bath, and Beyond for $10.00. They are a must have for pizza making.





Spread out some of the bbq sauce on the crust, being careful not to get any on the edges.












Sprinkle some mozzerella cheese on top of the sauce.








Top with the sauteed red onion, diced chicken and a handful of chopped cilantro.










Carefully shimmy the pizza from the peel onto the hot stone. If you need, keep a spatula handy to help guide the pizza off the peel. Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes. The outside crust will be a gorgeous brown and the top of your pizza will be nice and melted (the cheese). You don't want a burnt pizza so keep an eye on it!



Voila!

Now repeat the steps to make the other pizza. We made pepperoni, remember? I let Paige help me make this one since it's her favorite.


Use regular pizza sauce and spread out.

Top with cheese and lots of pepperoni. (we used the whole box! *gasp*)

Mmm.. perfection!

Carefully put on the hot stone in the oven and again.. bake this for about 10-15 minutes.

Here's our final creation!

Printable version:
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dg2vfjqm_31c35nqtcs