Pizza on the Grill - A Family Favorite!

The warmer weather (finally!) means one of our best grilled dinners is back – pizza on the grill, individual and customized to each diner’s liking. Craig is famous for it, and if you’re a good friend of ours, you’ve had pizza on the grill at our home. This is really fun to make when you have small children to help roll out the homemade dough. You get their buy-in to eat what they’ve made and perhaps even get them to eat a few veggies. The variations of toppings is abundant and the dough’s smoky flavor is outstanding. Last night we offered spicy Italian sausage, pepperoni, a mix of yellow and orange peppers, green onions, spinach, tomatoes, bella mushrooms, mozzarella, and cilantro.

Pizza on the Grill
Yields four individual size servings

Quick and Easy Crust
2/3 C. white whole wheat flour
1 1/3 C. bread flour
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. sugar
1 package quick-rise yeast
1 T olive oil
3/4 C. warm water (120 - 130 degrees)

Combine first five ingredients in a large bowl; make a well in center of mixture. Combine water and oil; add to flour mixture. Stir until mixture forms a ball.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Place the dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85 degrees), free from drafts, 45 minutes or until doubled in bulk. Punch down dough; divide ball in half. Cover and let dough rest 10 minutes.

Working with one portion at a time (cover remaining dough to keep from drying), roll each portion into four individual serving size circles and place on a baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal.

Grilling the pizza
Gently lift the crust from the baking sheet to the grill. Turn crust, grill-mark side up when the crust begins to bubble, about three minutes or so (not an exact science). Brush lightly with olive oil. Allow each guest to select toppings of their choice and arrange over crust. Move to lower heat section of the grill and cover (Craig moves to the upper shelf of our grill). Grill until done when cheese is melted.

Tomato Herb Sauce
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 cup tomato sauce
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons tomato paste

In a medium saucepan, sauté garlic and onions in olive oil until tender. Add seasonings and continue cooking a few more minutes. Stir in tomato sauce, and then tomato paste. Simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes. Makes about 1 1/2 cups.