combustication

I don’t know where the idea of grilling pizza came from. I remember reading about it a few years ago and giving it a shot and it being completely amazing. Grilled pizza has a delicious and slightly charred bottom and a great (slight) charcoal taste. If you like pizza and BBQing, this is the summer recipe you must try. The above pizza was made during some Memorial Day shenanigans - I think we made six pizzas or something with various toppings. Who needs burgers?

Grilled Pizza

Ingredients:

Pizza dough (make your own, use store bought, or buy from a pizzeria – they will be happy to sell some to you and it’s super-fresh)
Olive oil
Mozzarella (or cheese of your choice)
Tomato sauce (use your own or get a small can of tomato sauce for pizza – it’s a little thicker than usual)
Toppings (basil, rosemary, olives, sautéed mushrooms, olives, whatever)

To Do:

First, heat up your BBQ. You can use a gas grill or charcoal – I prefer charcoal, but use what you’ve got.

In the meantime, stretch out the pizza dough to pie size of your choice (don’t make it bigger than your grill!) and form a crust. If you’re using store/pizzeria-bought dough, divide the dough in two and shape one pizza. Put the remaining dough under a damp towel until ready to use.

Dust the underside of a cookiesheet with flour and place the pie on top. Brush the top of the pie with olive oil and turn the cookiesheet over the BBQ (so that the olive oil crust-y side is facedown on the grill). Brush the top of the pie with more olive oil and using a metal spatula flip the pizza. Now you should have the crust-side facing up, begging for toppings.

This is the fun part! Ladle on some sauce and spread it around like a pro. Add some cheese. Put the toppings on. IMPORTANT!!! DO NOT OVERLOAD YOUR PIE! It will be tough to get off the grill and the dough may tear leaving you with a cheesy mess. Remember, you have another ball of dough waiting to be used, so don’t overdo it. Cover your grill with the lid and just chill for a few seconds. Have a sip of beer or lemonade. Open lid and look at your pizza. Is this cheese all melty? Does it look delicious? If so, take it off the grill and serve; if not, put the lid back on and cook for a few minutes or keep the lid off to keep an eye on it. This is BBQing, not rocket science.

Serve your pizza to amazed guests. You can BBQ anything!

Some combinations to try:
- Cheddar cheese, soy crumbles (or meat) and salsa for a Mexican-style pizza
- Olive oil, goat cheese and basil for a fresh pizza
- Mozzarella, tomato sauce, pineapple (and ham) for Hawaiian pizza
- Anything you ever wanted to get on a pizza but were to afraid to ask for