May 07

BBQ Chicken Pizza3 Comments

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I really love just plain old Margherita Pizza, but I save that for our favorite pizza place when we go out. I end up being creative and adventurous when we make pizza at home. The cool thing about it is that the possibilities and combinations are endless! I used to love going to California Pizza Kitchen with my mom every time we went shopping to the King of Prussia mall. It was our little treat to take a break in the marathon shopping that we did when we went there. The ironic thing is that I had their pizza maybe once, I am a sucker for their BBQ chicken salad, which lucky for me I just stumbled upon a knock-off recipe for it. I can’t wait to try it. 

On the rare occasion that I did order pizza, I ordered the BBQ chicken one. When my Food Network Magazine came with a copycat recipe for the pizza, I was all over it. I put it on the menu and looked forward to it all week long. This pizza is beyond awesome. We absolutely loved it. It is a nice alternative to a traditional pizza. You start off by swapping out the marinara sauce for BBQ sauce, top it with some BBQ chicken, two cheeses, and red onion. The combination of flavors makes it a winner indeed. We adored it so much, we had it two nights in a row. I know I won’t be running to my local CPK anytime soon now that I have this recipe in my repertoire. 

BBQ Chicken Pizza
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
1/2 pound prepared pizza dough, at room temperature
1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons dark barbecue sauce
1 8-ounce skinless, boneless chicken breast
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
2/3 cup grated smoked gouda cheese (about 3 ounces)
2/3 cup grated part-skim mozzarella cheese (about 3 ounces)
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
Fresh cilantro, for topping

What you’ll do:

Position racks in the upper third and middle of the oven. Place a pizza stone or inverted baking sheet on the top rack and preheat the oven to 425 degrees for at least 30 minutes.

In a small bowl, mix 2 tablespoons barbecue sauce and 1 teaspoon olive oil together. Put the chicken in a baking dish, season with salt and pepper and brush both sides with the barbecue sauce mixture. Bake on the middle oven rack until cooked through, about 20 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly then cut into 1/2-inch cubes.

While the chicken is cooking, lay out a sheet of parchment paper and brush with olive oil. Transfer the ball of dough to the parchment and roll it out into a 12-inch round, stretching it with your hands as needed. Lightly brush the dough with olive oil. Evenly spread the dough with the remaining 1/3 cup barbecue sauce, leaving a 3/4-inch border. Top with the chicken, cheeses, and red onion. Slide the pizza (still on the parchment) onto a pizza peel or another inverted baking sheet, then slide onto the hot stone or baking sheet; bake until the cheese melts and the crust is golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.

Source: Food Network Magazine, April 2012