Grilled Pizza.

Pizza, Sides 1 and 2!

The first time I ever grilled pizza was over at my best friend Marilyn’s house.  I’d wanted to try pizza on the grill for years – seriously! – but had never summoned up the nerve until she bravely led the way, and now I’m a convert and rarely bake pizza in a conventional oven.  Initially, I was afraid that the dough would seep through the grill grate and land on the coals, rendering my food inedible and forcing a call to Domino’s (not that there’s anything wrong with that).  But amazingly, everything tends to hold its form as it should!  So trust me – give this recipe a try once and you’ll be hooked on the excitement of your own fire-kissed pizza straight from the grill!

First, you’ll want to allow enough time to make the dough, let it rise for an hour, and, ideally, let it cool in the refrigerator for another hour or so minimum.  (Cooling the dough makes it more pliable when the time comes to shape your pizza crusts.)  So, backing up, allow at least two and a half hours – up to 24 hours if you want! – to get your dough together.  Today, I made the dough around 3 p.m. for a 6:30 p.m. dinnertime.

To make the dough, add 1 cup of warm water to a large bowl (or stand mixer bowl) and sprinkle the yeast in, mixing gently with a wooden spoon.  Next, add one cup of flour and all of the olive oil and seasonings.  (And by all means, substitute out seasonings as you see fit!  This is an easy mix-in recipe and you’ll hone your personal favorite dough over time, believe me.)

Blend your mixture with the spoon or a stand mixer’s dough hook and continue adding the flour, half a cup at a time, until the dough pulls away from the side of the bowl and forms a cohesive ball. 

If you’re using a stand mixer, hooray for you – just let the dough hook do its job and knead your dough in the mixer bowl until the dough is no longer sticky.  Next, drop down past the next paragraph and join up with me there.

If you’re doing this by hand, turn out the dough onto a floured work surface and flour your hands well.  Then put a little elbow grease into the job and knead your dough until it’s no longer sticky – this usually takes me about five minutes, with the occasional distraction.

(Stand mixer users, please join me again here!  And by-handers, stick with me too.)  Spray a bowl – I usually use the one I’ve just been mixing in, and let me be honest, I don’t even clean the leftover flour and dough out – with cooking spray and place the balled-up dough in, sealing up with plastic wrap.  Let rise for an hour; your dough will nearly double in size.

Next, spray a zip-top bag with cooking spray (on the inside, people!) and put the dough in, sealing it up nice and tight and doing your best to remove any leftover air.  Place your bag in the fridge for at least an hour, up to 24, and let cool.  If you’re going to be longer than 24 hours, just put it in the freezer and place it in the refrigerator the morning you’re planning on using it.

Once your dough is ready, fire up the grill!  You want your grill nice and hot for this one.

Bring all of your supplies outside to your backyard table (or what-have-you) and clean your hands up well.  You might want to keep a clean dishtowel nearby because this can get a little bit messy.

Next, grab a hunk (that’s the scientific term) of dough, enough to fit in a fist, and begin to shape it into a small, personal-pizza-sized disc.  Experiment with the thickness to determine what style you like best.  Once it’s ready, just throw it onto the grill – and by all means please do not try to shape it and/or push it around once it’s on the grates!  Your dough will fall through the cracks and it’ll make a big mess.  Plus, you’ll burn yourself, which is hardly the way to kick off an evening al fresco.

After about five minutes on a super-hot grill, start checking your dough for doneness (on the bottom, at least – the top will still be pretty soft).  Once it’s browned (or blackened, as are some of our creations) to your liking, use a spatula to scoop it off the grill and bring it over to a plate or work surface.  Decorate it however you see fit – with any of the ingredients above, or with some of your own, we won’t judge you! – and place it soft-side down back on the grill for another five to seven minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the bottom is browned.

Next, scoop it up again, place it on a cookie sheet (we actually use a pizza pan), slice it up with a pizza cutter, and voila!  Personal pizzas for all, cut up into sizes suitable for sharing.

The ingredients:

For the dough:

1 cup water

1 packet of yeast

3-3 ½ cups flour

¼ cup olive oil

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. pepper

½ tsp. garlic powder

½ tsp. onion powder

½ tsp. dried basil

½ tsp. cumin seed, optional

For the toppings:

1 jar pizza sauce

1 container sliced white mushrooms

1 bell pepper

1 can sliced olives

1 jar capers

2 veggie burgers, heated and sliced up into bite-sized squares

1 ball mozzarella cheese (or vegan cheese that melts, like Daiya)