Squash and Kale Pizza

INGREIDENTS:

• 1 whole wheat pizza dough (homemade or store bought)
• whole wheat flour for rolling dough
• finely ground yellow cornmeal for dusting
• 3-4 tablespoons  olive oil
• 2 cups  Tuscan kale leaves, washed and torn into bite-size pieces
• 3 cloves garlic, sliced thin
• 1 1/2 - 2 cups  butternut squash, peeled, deseeded, cubed
• 6 ounces  smoked mozzarella
• fine sea salt (or kosher salt)
• black pepper to taste

step-by-step directions

• Place pizza stone in the oven. Preheat oven to 400°F. Toss squash pieces with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Spread on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for about 15-20 minutes, tossing once or twice, until tender.
• Raise heat in oven to 500°F.
• Toss kale with about 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
• Thinly slice the mozzarella.
• Roll or toss pizza dough with extra whole wheat flour to about 1/4" to 1/2" thick circle. Sprinkle cornmeal on the pizza peel (or hard surface) and place rolled dough on top of cornmeal.
• Heat 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet over medium-low heat. Sauté garlic until fragrant, but not yet brown. Brush dough with garlic olive oil mixture, covering the whole pie including crust. Make sure garlic is evenly spread around the dough.
• Sprinkle oiled dough with 1/4 teaspoon of salt, place a few slices of mozzarella on the crust, then the squash pieces, kale, and top with more sliced mozzarella. Gently slide pizza onto hot pizza stone and bake for 8-10 minutes, or until crust reaches desired consistency, the cheese is melted, and kale is slightly crispy.

Fresh Herb Pizza

I made this to go along with the Chicken, Feta, Blueberry Salads!! Perfect!!


Click HERE for the recipe!

Sunny Side Up Pizza

INGREDIENTS:
1 lb fresh pizza dough
2 TBL olive oil; divided
2 garlic cloves, minced
4-6 large eggs
Bacon (cooked and crumbled)
1/8 tsp kosher salt
4 cups of baby spinach
1/4 cup red onion thinly sliced
3 TBL balsamic vinaigrette
Parmesan cheese, shaved
3/8 tsp black pepper

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 450. Place dough in a covered bowl for 15 minutes to stand. Cook bacon. Place dough on baking sheet (I used cornmeal underneath) and roll out into 12 inch circle. Combine 1 1/2 TBL olive oil and garlic; brush over dough. Bake for 14 minutes.
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add remaining oil; swirl to coat. Crack eggs into pan; cook 4 minutes or until whites are set. Sprinkle with salt.
Combine spinach, onion, and vinaigrette. When crust is done, slide eggs onto the top and place bacon over. Arrange spinach on top and top with cheese and pepper.

BLT Pizza

INGREDIENTS:
1 lb fresh pizza dough
Cooking Spray
Bacon (I used turkey bacon)
Chunky Marinara Sauce or Italian Diced Tomatoes
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1 TBL cornmeal
Provolone or Mozzarella Cheese
1 cup arugula or spinach
Sliced Red Onion
Balsamic Vinaigrette
Parmesan cheese, shaved
Black Pepper

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 450. Place dough in a bowl coated with cooking spray; let dough stand, covered for 15 minutes. Cook bacon in a skillet until crisp and then crumble (I just cut into small slices before cooking). Sprinkle a baking sheet with cornmeal; roll out dough into a 12 inch circle. (I brush dough, especially crust areas with an olive oil and minced garlic mixture). Spread marinara/tomatoes on top and sprinkle red crushed pepper. Top with bacon and cheese. (I made two layers) and then back at 450 for 17 minutes. Combine arugula/spinach and remaining ingredients and place on top of pizza when done cooking.

Chicken Ranch Pizza

I took this recipe from my friend, Kara's blog! It turned out really yummy and was easy to put together!

INGREDIENTS:

Homemade Pizza Dough (I bought some from Publix)

Ranch Dressing (I used low-fat)

Mozzarella Cheese, shredded

Assorted Veggies (Onions, Red Bell Peppers)

Chicken (I used the Tyson package of already cooked grilled chicken strips)

Fresh Cilantro

DIRECTIONS:

Spread the pizza crust out and bake in 350 degree oven for 5 minutes. Spread ranch dressing, cheese and toppings on top of the crust. Bake until the cheese is melted (took around 25 minutes) and you may broil at the end to make the crust crispy!

Calzone

INGREDIENTS:

Pizza Dough (refrigerated or home-made)

Pizza Sauce

Mozzarella Cheese, shredded

Ricotta Cheese (optional)

Pizza Toppings (Pepperoni, Sausage, Bacon, Green Peppers and Onions is what I used)

Italian Seasoning

Olive Oil

DIRECTIONS:

Roll out pizza dough into small circles. Mix pizza sauce, cheese, and toppings in a bowl and then spread on 1/2 of the dough circle. Fold the crust over, and brush with olive oil and sprinkle on italian seasonings. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes (or follow directions on dough package).

Blackened Chicken Pizza

INGREDIENTS:

6 tsp. Blackened Seasoning

3 chicken breasts, pounded to 1/4 inch thickness and cut into 1/2 inch cubes

8 slices of bacon, cut into small pieces

4 TBL butter

4 cloves garlic, minced

3 green onions, chopped

2 TBL flour

1/4 cup white wine

3/4 cup milk

2 TBL chopped basil

1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella

1 cup fresh spinach leaves

1 cup parmesan cheese

2 pizza crusts (either store bought, or you can use my recipe)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 450.

With 1 TBL of butter, cook chicken in a skillet and cover with 5 tsp of blackened seasoning, until chicken is cooked through. Remove when done and in same pan (with seasonings still in it) cook the pieces of bacon until done. Remove and drain grease.

In another skillet, melt 2 TBL of butter and add garlic and green onions. Cook for 2 minutes and add flour. Cook another 2 minutes and add wine and milk. Whisk until thickened, and then add basil and 1 tsp of blackened seasoning.

You will use either your pizza dough or pizza crust to assemble the pizza now- first, spread the cream mixture on the crust, top with mozzarella cheese, chicken, bacon crumbles, spinach, parmesan cheese and more mozzarella. Bake for 15-20 or until lightly browned. 

For desert, we bought Blue Bunny's Sedona Frozen Yogurt Granola Sandwich (Double Strawberry Flavor) it's a low fat ice-cream treat that was really good after the pizza!

Homemade Pizza

This pizza dough recipe is from Andy's Mom! Making homemade pizzas is a family favorite- fun and yummy!! She uses a Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer and Dough hook- but you can mix by hand, too.

Pizza Dough:

INGREDIENTS:

1 pkg. active dry yeast

1 cup warm water

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp olive oil

2 1/2-3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Cornmeal

DIRECTIONS:

Sprinkle yeast over warm water in warmed bowl-  let stand 5 minutes. Add salt, olive oil and 2 1/2 cups flour. Attach bowl and dough hook. Turn to speed 2 and mix for 2 minutes. Add remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until dough clings to hook and cleans sides of bowl. Knead on speed 2 for 5 minutes. 

Place in greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover; let rise in warm place, free from draft, until doubled in bulk- about 1 hour. Punch dough down. Brush 14 inch diameter pizza pan with oil and sprinkle with cornmeal. Press dough across bottom of pan, forming a collar around edge to hold filling. Top with toppings. Bake at 450 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

Topping Ideas:

Canadian Bacon/Pineapple

Veggies- Onions, Peppers, Tomatoes, Mushrooms, Banana Peppers

Meats- Chicken, Sausage, Pepperoni, Hamburger, Bacon

Really, anything! :) I use a canned sauce- anything from Ragu to a speciality sauce would be good! I also use mozzarella cheese- but different cheese would be good with different toppings. This recipe is especially fun for little ones to help make their own pizza.