Okay. Let’s make that “The Best-Ever Way to Make Pizza if You Don’t Happen to Own a Fancy-Schmancy Wood-Burning Oven Imported from Italy.”
Recently I discovered the joys of making pizza on the
backyard grill. In the process of creating recipes for a story in Coastal
Living magazine, I tossed some pizza dough on our Kirkland gas grill, and was
blown away by the way it poufed up into a camera-ready pie in two minutes
flat.
For my story – a SoCal Thanksgiving celebration -- my editors at Coastal Living wanted an appetizer that Turkey Day guests could nibble while sipping aperitifs on an oceanfront bluff. (Yes, it’s true that most November days here are warm enough for an outdoor, mid-day feast.) I figured pizza would be easy to make, and everyone could gather round the grill while it cooked. What I didn’t figure on was that I’d never go back to a pizza stone and 450-degree oven again. Ever.
I’m afraid I can’t give you the scrumptious recipe right now. You’ll have to wait and see the November issue of the hip, handsome magazine. Let’s just say it involves peppered smoked salmon. Let’s just say you’re gonna love it. (I probably could have done a better job on this photo, but it would have meant waiting a few extra minutes to eat the pizza. Never gonna happen.)
However, I can tell you now that grilling pizza is the way to go. Last night I experimented some more, this time with a blob of Trader Joe’s freshly prepared pizza dough. (It’s sold in the refrigerator case and must be used within a few days of purchase). I brushed the rolled out slab with a bit of olive oil; oiled the hot (but not too hot) grill; tossed the doughy disc on and closed the lid.
After one minute, I flipped the dough gingerly. It had
beautiful grill marks and dramatic air bubbles. After another minute I removed
the finished dough to the side of the grill, layered on thin slices of
mozzarella, then spooned on a mixture of halved cherry tomatoes, chopped sweet
onion, fresh basil, snipped chives, salt and pepper. Back onto the grill (with
the heat turned off) for another couple minutes, and, finally, a pizza worth
shouting about.
Comments