Pizza on the BBQ

One of the things that I missed most while I was living in Indiana was being able to barbeque outside... I absolutely love grilling, it is one of the quintessential summer activities for me. What's great about southern CA is that this awesome cooking option can be done year round! We have grilled several times a week throughout August, and decided to grill pizza out on the bbq. We did this once before with cousin David on a trip to Aruba last summer and it was great!

We bought whole wheat pizza dough from Trader Joe's - it is in the refrigerated section. You can also call up your local pizza store and ask if they sell dough...many do. Bring the dough home, flour a surface, and roll out your dough. Sometimes we do one piece with all of the dough, other times we divide it into 1/4s for more of a single serve pizza feel. Whatever you prefer! If you have the equipment, grab your pizza peel. This is an instrument that allows the pizza to slide right off of it and into the oven or onto the grill. We placed some cornmeal on it before placing the rolled out dough to prevent sticking.

Put oil on a paper towel and rub it on the grill slats. Slide your pizza on to the grill - medium heat.

Allow the 'down' side to firm up, and even brown a little. When this happens, flip it over and get your toppings ready! You can add anything you want....traditional cheese, pepperoni, veggie, bbq chicken, thai pizza, etc! Go crazy and get creative. The bottom of the crust will cook and brown as the cheese and toppings on top warm and start to melt. Check both sides of the pizza to know when it's time to remove it.

Grab your pizza peel and gently slide it underneath the surface of the pizza and remove it from the grill once the bottom is lightly browned and the cheese is melted on top. Yum!

Use your pizza peel to slide the pizza onto the cutting board. Grab your pizza cutter and slice up. We often times will top the finished pizza with a bunch of arugula and a sprinkling of red pepper flakes. Enjoy :)

For you pizza lovers, this is a great option to take out or chain pizza. Nothing against them at all, but with homemade pizza you control exactly what is going into your body.

Just to show you all that this blog is named moderation for life, for a very good reason... here's a picture of a homemade dessert that I baked and thoroughly enjoyed eating! Moderation is the key - I don't eat sweets like this every day, but when I do, I am not afraid to indulge and enjoy.

Can't believe Labor Day has come and gone...2011 is flying by!

Mary