Grilled Pizza

~I posted this last May, but thought it was time to dust off the recipe now that warm weather is here again.~

Pizza is one of my favorite meals to make on the grill.  It has a smell that is a cross between a great pizzeria and carnival food.  Grilled pizza has a great taste, too.  The best part is the crust, very crispy on the bottom, but soft everywhere else.

Ingredients for the crust...

1 1/2 cup very warm water (like bath water)

1 T yeast

1/4 cup flax seed (optional)

1 T sugar

1 1/4 t salt

1/4 cup olive oil

*  herbs of your choice, I used basil

*  flour, about half white and half whole wheat.  I would guess that it will take about 4 cups to make the dough somewhat firm and workable.

Soften the yeast in the warm water for a few minutes and then add the rest of the ingredients and about 1/2 cup of the flour.  I added basil today, but onions or oregano are also wonderful.  I bet it would be great with all three as well, but I try not to overwhelm the kids' taste buds too much.

Add the flour, 1/2 cup at a time alternating between white flour and whole wheat.  The whole wheat flour gives the dough a bit of a firmer texture and really lends itself well to grilling.

Switch to the dough hook and work the dough, adding flour one tablespoon at a time.  You want fairly firm (but in no way stiff) dough.  This is what the dough looked like right as I finished kneading it.  I put the dough out on cookie sheets to rise, coated in olive oil.  Let it rise for about 20 minutes and then form small personal sized pizzas.  Let those rise while you are getting the topping ready.

One of my favorite toppings is tomatoes.  I drain the tomatoes really well, even pressing the water out using paper towels until the tomatoes resemble tomato paste.  Otherwise they are too wet for the pizza and end up kind of slimy and gross.

Then, I add olive oil, diced basil and 1/4 t salt.  I use this as my sauce, but the kids and Eric like a more traditional sauce.  For them, I use a little Prego.

Toppings make the pizza...  Today, I used sausage, bacon, mushrooms, onion, tomatoes, mozzarella and Parmesan.  Sometimes I even cut up spinach and use it as a topping.  Very, very yummy.

Add all the toppings, except for the cheese.

Carefully place the pizzas on a very hot (350 to 400 degrees) grill.  The best way is to kind of pull up the edges to meet in the middle, forming a very fragile sack.  Then, lay the pizza on the grill gently and reposition the toppings as needed.  This is where the dough's consistency is so important, too soft and it falls apart.

Add the cheese.

I love slices for this job because it's easier to control.

Let the pizza cook with the grill lid down as much as possible.  I try to keep the grill at least 250 degrees.  My grill is totally taken up by the pizzas, but if it wasn't I would use a more indirect heat (the burner that isn't under the food).  As it is, I just monitor the pizzas to avoid burning and move them to the top rack when they are nearly done.  Don't try to move your pizzas around until the dough is cooked very well or you will have a mess of toppings and dough. 

Enjoy with your favorite people.