Pizza on the Grill

I'm still alive! I know, it's been a while since I've posted, but August is quite a busy month for me. A wedding in Atlanta, visiting relatives from Europe, a wedding shower in Iowa, my husband's birthday, and a trip to Kansas City... yeah, August is busy! I've still been cooking a little when I have the chance, but I have to admit that the summer weather makes me much less inspired in the kitchen.

That's why I'm so lucky to now be able to take my cooking outside! We got the grill about a month ago, and have been using it at least three times a week. Some nights it's been basic marinated chicken or grilled veggies, but I've been experimenting with more creative grill recipes, too. Grilled Pizza is something I first heard about at The Wooden Spoon, and I knew once I had a grill that I would have to try it myself. This is one of those recipes that has limitless combinations, so you won't ever get bored. We've always been big on pizza in our household, so bringing it to the grill is a fun way to change things up.

For the dough, use whatever recipe you use for oven pizza. I didn't like the recipe I used, so I'll just say it seems like any dough would work. Just let is rise like normal pizza dough, and when you're ready, roll it out into thin ovals (or whatever shape you manage... don't worry if it's not pretty!).

Heat the grill to low, and when you're ready, brush olive oil on one side of the dough. Set the dough onto the grill, and let it cook for about two minutes, until it's puffy and cooked on one side. Try not to open the grill too much, and be careful not to let it burn!

When each crust is grilled on the first side, it's time to get creative. Add all your toppings to the grilled side of the crust, so that the second side will get grilled when you're cooking the topings.

We topped ours with tomato sauce, cooked turkey italian sausage, fresh and grated mozzerella, and red onions. We also put fresh basil on the top, but next time I wouldn't add the basil until I finished grilling. We had friends over when we made the pizzas, so each of us got to customize our own.

When they were assembled, we put the pizzas back on the grill to finish cooking. The cheese took longer to melt then we expected, so we moved them to the top rack of the grill to avoid burning the crust. The final result was a perfect summer pizza, and a cool kitchen to escape back into. I have a feeling I won't be able to give up this grilling thing just because it gets cooler... but check back with me in the middle of a Chicago winter and see if I'm still saying that :)

Joe was in charge of making dessert pizza with the leftover dough. We cooked the first side like before, and then brushed melted butter onto the grilled side. We sprinkled on a cinnamon-vanilla and sugar mixture, and tossed it back on the grill to finish cooking.

When it was done cooking, we brushed on a little extra melted butter, then drizzled a simple powdered sugar glaze on top. It tasted just like a cinnamon roll, and was tasty enough that we all regreated how much we ate. A great use of the extra dough!