Wednesday, July 2, 2014

Pizza on the Grill


You don’t have to have a wood-fired oven to get great pizza. Pizzas can be cooked at home on your grill. The other night we watched Bobby Flay grill really great tasty looking pizzas on his charcoal grill and decided to give it a try. It looked simple enough – Bobby just punched out his dough, brushed it with a little oil, seasoned it with salt and pepper and threw it on a hot grill, turned it once, and in minutes he had a nice crispy grilled pizza, ready for the toppings. We made two different grilled pizzas - one with slow roasted tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and basil and the other with fresh mozzarella topped with a lemony arugula salad.

Pizza with quick-rise dough
I usually make a simple quick-rising dough using the food processor, shown above and link here, with our homemade tomato sauce and top it with fresh tomatoes and basil. However today we took a short cut and purchased dough from the deli of our local supermarket. Some supermarket dough is better than others (Publix has a great one).

Pizza dough is simple to make at home and next time, if I’m not near a Publix, I will make my own. In addition to my quick rise dough recipe above made in the food processor, I can also recommend a very tasty recipe for homemade dough that we found in the New York Times from pizza mavens Roberta’s in Brooklyn (I know how wonderful this recipe is because my brother-in-law made this dough recently), link to Roberta’s recipe here, and another link to how they make their dough here.

We used Bobby Flay's method of grilling pizza. Bobby says instead of oiling his grill, he prefers to brush his food with the oil and don't forget to season your food with salt and pepper. Bobby uses tongs to flip his pizzas and so did we. We found it was a lot of fun to be outside, enjoying the weather while we flipped pizza dough and the pretty grill marks and crusty edges are part of the reward.

If you're having a cook-out this weekend, shake it up a bit and throw some pizza dough on the grill.


Grilled Pizza with Slow-roasted Tomatoes, Fresh Mozzarella, and Fresh Basil
Grilled pizza dough instructions adapted from Bobby Flay
Topping - My Carolina Kitchen – Sam Hoffer, serves 2
Printable Recipe

1 pound ball of pizza dough, homemade or store bought, brought to room temperature if refrigerated
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 ounces fresh mozzarella, cut or torn into small pieces
4 tablespoons freshly grated Italian Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Slow-roasted tomatoes, recipe below
Fresh basil leaves, torn or if small, left whole

Punch and stretch out the pizza dough with your fingers until you reach a desired shape, round or slightly elongated, your choice (not all pizzas have to be round.) Heat a gas or charcoal grill to high and when very hot, brush both sides of the dough with oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill until golden brown on both sides (use long tongs to flip them), about 2 minutes per side. Remove the pizza to a flat surface (we slid ours on a pizza peel dusted with cornmeal) and top first with the mozzarella, then sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese, and finally arrange the slow-roasted tomatoes on top of the cheeses. Slide the pizza back on the grill, cover and heat just long enough for the mozzarella to melt & become bubbly, about a minute. Remove the pizza and top with basil leaves. Basil leaves tend to turn dark when they get hot, so leave them for last minute. Serve immediately.


Slow Roasted Tomatoes
Adapted from Cooking for Friends from Williams Sonoma, serves 4 – 6
Printable Recipe

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Slice 8 to 10 plums tomatoes in half lengthwise and arrange on a lightly oiled rimmed baking sheet, cut side up. Be careful, the tomatoes will want to slide around. Drizzle with about 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil and sprinkle evenly with some sugar, about a teaspoon, then thinly sliced garlic, a clove or two depending on their size, and plenty of crunchy sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast until the tomatoes turn a deep red and are wrinkled, which should take about 2 to 2 ½ hours. Remove them from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet. They are good warm or at room temperature.


For a nice twist to a pizza, top it with a freshly dressed salad. In this case I used a lemony arugula salad, but you could use any young greens. Roberta’s pizza in the New York Times used arugula, as well as my brother-in-law when he made the NY Times version of this recipe, so I followed suit.

All in all we had a fun time grilling the pizzas, flipping them with tongs like Bobby Flay. Whether you grill your pizzas outdoor, indoors, or use a pizza stone, these are very versatile recipes and are open to your own interpretations.


Grilled Pizza with Mozzarella and Arugula Salad
Grilled Pizza dough instructions adapted from Bobby Flay
Salad topping adapted from Roberta’s & the New York Times, serves 2
Printable Recipe

1 pound ball of pizza dough, Roberta’s homemade, your own homemade, or store bought, brought to room temperature if refrigerated
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, cut or broken into small pieces
4 tablespoons freshly grated Italian Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Extra virgin olive oil
Crunchy sea salt (I liked Maldon)
2 handfuls baby arugula
Half a lemon, juiced and seeds removed

Punch and stretch out the pizza dough with your fingers until you reach a desired shape, round or slightly elongated your choice (not all pizzas have to be round.) Heat a gas or charcoal grill to high and in the meantime put the arugula in a large bowl and dress it lightly with a splash of olive oil, lemon juice and a further pinch of salt, or to taste. Brush both sides of the dough with oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill until golden brown on both sides (use long tongs to flip them), about 2 minutes per side. Remove the pizza to a flat surface (we slid ours on a pizza peel dusted with cornmeal) and top with the mozzarella and Parmesan, then slide the pizza back on the grill, cover and heat just long enough for the mozzarella to melt and become bubbly, about a minute. Remove and top with the dressed salad greens and serve immediately.


This will be shared with Foodie Friday at Rattlebridge Farm, Miz Helen’s Country Kitchen Full Plate Thursday, and Food on Friday at Carol's Chatter.  

Have a great weekend everyone.


41 comments:

  1. Cutting down on time I get my dough from a local pizza place. It is so beautiful cooked on the barbecue. Love the light dressed arugula on pizza.

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  2. Fantastic! These pizzas are perfect and ever so mouthwatering.

    Cheers,

    Rosa

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  3. It looks ..they look..delicious..we had pizza too last night ..like you..home made..I have never tried a bought one.. the dough..good to know re Publix..for Fla:)We love them on the BBQ too..
    In our heat these days..I should have bought a bought dough and grilled it:)
    The oven at 500 lol.



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  4. I've never tried it grilled. You (and Bobby) have inspired me. I already have the slow-roasted tomatoes and basil is in the back garden.
    Have a delicious 4th of July!!

    Best,
    Bonnie

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  5. I have always wanted to grill a pizza, but have ever had the nerve. I always thought the soft dough would drip through the grates. Glad to know that you did it and it looks like it turned out beautifully!

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  6. I don't have a grill, but I know what I am having for lunch. Have a great 4th.

    Madonna

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  7. I love this pizza on the grill!
    Look amazing!

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  8. I have never made a pizza on grill..well, don't even own a grill. The pizza looks fantastic, Sam.

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  9. Thanks, Sam, for a great idea. Pizza is a standby here but I never thought about grilling it. Think we will try it this very night.

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  10. This is a great idea. Thank you!

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  11. Hi Sam, this method sounds very interesting, my husband does all the grilling so all I would have to do is supervise. Hehe! Looks delicious!

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  12. wow wow looks so good, ate in local high end restaurant and had awful pizza yours is so much better

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  13. I like the idea of grilling the crust first and I wouldn't have done that Sam. I just bought a round Lodge cast iron griddle thinking it would be great for pizza on the grill... Luckily it can be used for many other things as well:@) Happy 4th of July-hope it's a dry one for you!

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  14. Pizza on the grill is the only way we do it anymore but I've yet to brave the charcoal grill. Yours looks delicious and I can imagine the flavor added by the roasted maters - ours are just coming in.

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  15. Your pizzas look fantastic - I think I tried grilling a pizza once and ended up with an awful mess. I guess I'm a slow learner! Hope you have a great 4th of July, Sam!

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  16. That looks so beautiful and delicious, Sam. We don't eat pizza often but with fresh tomatoes and basil from the garden this would be a real treat, I love the arugula too. Pinning ;)

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  17. Sam, Both of the pizzas look great. I think my favorite would be the Grilled Pizza with Slow-roasted Tomatoes, Fresh Mozzarella, and Fresh Basil! Now all I have to do is build up my nerve to try this seemingly simple recipe on the grill... Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

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  18. Hi Sam, your pizza looks delicious! I LOVE home made pizza! You are right, homemade dough is the best!

    Happy 4th of July

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  19. Why don't you come to my kitchen and I'll show you that pizza dough is not easy to make. I even bought a ball of pre-made dough a few weeks ago and couldn't even get it to roll out right. :::::sigh. I'd love to grill pizza one day. Signed, Your Favorite Doughaphob

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  20. Thank you for this - what a wonderful idea - I never thought of this and didn't see Bobbi Flay! the pizza's look fabulous:))
    Mary

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  21. I'll share this with my husband, the pizza maker. On these hot days, getting out of the kitchen is a priority.

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  22. Those pizzas are terrific! Mouthwatering goodness! I've never tried it on the grill, actually I've never cooked anything on the grill as Bill does it all. I will have to experiment now and try this. Thanks for the recipe and Happy 4th of July to you and yours!

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  23. I love grilled pizza and these two look fantastic. I don't think I could pick a favorite, they both look SO good!

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  24. The Publix pizza dough is great, isn't it? though I've been meaning to make Roberta's for a long time. Perhaps I will experiment on the grill with the former as it would be heartbreaking to mess up the latter!

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  25. I have been wanting to do a pizza on the grill-It is easy, flavorful and can be enjoyed with a salad and glass of wine. Your post has inspired me! I like tthe flavor combination of your grilled pizza and the idea that I can pick up the prepared dough at Publix.

    Happy grilling.

    Velva

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  26. Hi Sam,
    I just love Pizza on the Grill, it just has a different texture and flavor, your pizza looks so good, makes me want to try a pizza on the grill really soon. Hope you have had a great weekend and thanks so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday!
    Come Back Soon,
    Miz Helen

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  27. We have enjoyed grilling pizza of late, and like you Sam, we buy the pizza dough from Publix just because it's easy and it's really pretty good dough! These are great toppings that you chose and photographed beautifully! Hope you're enjoying the 4th of July holiday weekend!
    Roz

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  28. Your pizzas look so good. I always wanted to try grilling them but thought they might sick. We left our grill in Maine when we moved and have not yet bought a new one. When we do, I'll definitely try the recipes. Karen

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  29. Those are fabulous looking pizzas, Sam. (yes, I agree Publix dough is darn good) I've never made one on the grill....looks far easier than I thought.

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  30. You always ALWAYS have the best food. Real tomatoes have arrived in MN and this is the perfect recipe for them. Now - to get a pizza peel and do this. (Cannot believe I don't own one.) Many thanks for kind words about Luce on my blog. It's been tough.

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  31. we just did pizza on the grill last weekend and it looked nothing like this! Yours looks amazing. The crust perfectly cooked- chewy yet crispy! YUM!

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  32. Marvelous pizza Sam, and grilling is a fun idea-thanks for the tips! Have a great week!
    Warmly, Anna and Liz

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  33. While I have done plenty of pizzas on the grill, I've actually done very few over direct heat like that, although I know that's the way most people do it. Your pie looks fantastic and the crusts perfectly cooked, not doughy looking or burned. Excellent job, guys!

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  34. Grilled pizza sounds awesome!!! There is nothing like hot Mozzarella on pizza.......yummy! There will definitely be a pizza on my grill at our next cookout. Would by chance do you know of a chicken tart recipe?
    I have a friend who is 94 yrs old and used to live in Charleston in 1989. Her townhouse was demolished when Hugo came through and she lost all her cookbooks. She said it was a recipe from a newspaper and chicken tart was her favorite. I've been doing a lot of researching on the internet and don't know of all the names of these newspapers at that time. Thanks!!!!

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    1. Hi Kim, I tried to reach you by email, but there was no address available for a reply. Thanks for the kind comment about the grilled pizza. I have a zillion cookbooks and I wish I could help you with the chicken tart recipe, but it doesn't ring a bell with me. I do promise to keep my eye out though. Also I'm not familiar with the names of paper in Charleston either. Wish I could help...
      Sam

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  35. just stopped by to let you know you've been featured today over at Carole's Chatter. Cheers

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  36. I always wanted to grill pizza on the BBQ grill, now seeing all these pizza, I sure have to give a try...all of them look so good Sam. They are sure grilled to perfection!
    Hope you are enjoying your week :D

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  37. I've never tried grilling pizzas. What am I scared of? These are so appetizing looking, I must give it a go. (BTW, my pizzas never turn out round!)

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  38. Congratulations Sam!
    Your recipe is featured on Full Plate Thursday this week. Hope you enjoy your weekend and your new Red Plate!
    Miz Helen

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  39. What a beautiful pizza! Now following you via Bloglovin!

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