Caramelized Veggie, Prosciutto and Alfredo Pizza

One of John and my favorite things to do is make our own pizza. We've tried a million different combinations, and I try to share some of our favorites. This definitely makes the cut, and is packed with veggies, creamy sauce and golden cheese. John loves anything with prosciutto, so that's just an added bonus!

The best thing about making your own pizza is that you can do just about whatever you want. Sometimes my combinations aren't winners, but most of the time I'm pleasantly surprised by the results. Have fun and share any good pizzas with me, please!

Caramelized Veggie, Prosciutto and Alfredo Pizza
Recipe by Call Me Mrs. Rapp
Yields 1 pizza 

Chicken Alfredo Pizza

Those of you who faithfully follow my blog may know that my girlfriends and I love to get together for monthly dinner parties. Well, it had been quite some time since we last got together - a baby, an engagement, wedding to plan and big move, to name a few - have certainly kept us busy!

Jourdan remedied this by having us over last Saturday, and we were able to catch up, enjoy her fabulous cooking and play with sweet baby Reese! Jourdan made two pizzas, and both were to die for. I could not stop thinking about the chicken Alfredo pizza she made, and I vowed to recreate it at home. Enter this delicious dish and perfect weekend meal. A huge thanks to Jourdan for the inspiration (and perfect girls night!).

Note: I might make two of these. John devoured half of it Sunday night, and had finished the remaining piece by noon the next day. Needless to say it was a huge hit here - and worth the indulgence! :)

Chicken Alfredo Pizza
Recipe inspired by Jourdan Leigh in the kitchen, Alfredo sauce by The Pioneer Woman
Yields 1 pizza

Pesto Pizza with Roma Tomatoes & Chicken Sausage

Saturday afternoons are perfect for so many things...sleeping in, running errands, spending time with your significant other...and making delicious homemade pizzas! Saturday afternoon pizzas are a favorite around here. We combine whatever we have in the fridge and make something super tasty. This time, I did make one thing (pesto!), but it was worth it.

When Jourdan shared a version of this pizza she said homemade pizza keeps getting better and better. She was sooo right! This was easily one of our favorites, and so simple to make. The flavors were awesome, and so not what you would expect from a typical pizza. I absolutely adore this homemade pesto recipe (link below), and I really think that's what took this over the edge. We're already planning to make this again in the coming week!

Pesto Pizza with Roma Tomatoes & Chicken Sausage
Recipe loosely adapted from My Life as a Mrs.
Yields one pizza, serves 2-4, depending on portions
 
Ingredients:

*1 pound pizza dough (I used Trader Joe's Garlic & Herb)
*1/3 cup pesto (I swear this easy homemade recipe is the BEST!)
*8 ounces mozzarella, shredded
*3-4 roma tomatoes, sliced

*handful spinach

*1 smoked apple chardonnay chicken sausage, sliced 

Preparation:

*Preheat the oven to 425° F.

*Roll dough out onto pizza pan.  Spread pesto over entire crust in an even and thin layer.  Sprinkle with mozzarella.  Evenly spread the tomatoes, spinach and chicken sausage on top.

*Bake for 15 minutes or until pizza dough is cooked through.  Remove from oven and serve!

All the steps before the oven

Whole pizza and slices!

Cinque Formaggio Pizza

The title means five cheese pizza in Italian! I figured I should make that clear right away. I was going to call this "Quattro Formaggio" pizza, as its inspired by Bazbeaux's "Pizza all Quattro Formaggio." However that means four cheese pizza, and this has five cheeses. And I would never lie to you. And not just because I have the worst poker face ever. (I blame the big eyes.)

Anyhoo, as I said, this is inspired by one of my favorite pizzas from our favorite pizza place - Bazbeaux! I mentioned it in this post, when I told you all it was the site of our first official date (awww!).

This is not the healthiest of meals (it has whole wheat crust though!), but it was a nice splurge after our weekend. John was mugged 3 blocks from our apartment, and has a nice black eye and bruised ribs to show for it (don't get me started or I'll write a whole post about how hysterical I was and now how upset I am that none of the 15 people around him said or did anything until after the guy ran off...).

Insert deep breath...

Anyhoo..this pizza is yummmmmy! (It deserved those extra "m"s). It has five cheeses (thus the title Cinque Formaggio, which is Italian for 5-Cheese), though you could easily make it with less if you are not like me and have at least six different cheeses in your fridge at any given time...I've told you before that I love cheese so no judgments. In addition to the cheeses? My favorite bacon EVER, which I've also mentioned here and here. With Trader Joe's premade pizza crust and sauce, this meal was a breeze. Perfect for tonight!

Cinque Formaggio Pizza
Recipe by Call Me Mrs. Rapp, inspired by Bazbeaux
Serves 2-4, depending on portions
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Ingredients:
*whole wheat pizza crust
*4 oz. mozzarella cheese, sliced thinly or shredded
*1/2 cup fontina cheese, shredded
*1/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
*1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
*3 tablespoons fat free ricotta cheese
*3 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
*1/3-1/2 pizza sauce

Preparation:
*Preheat oven to 400 degrees, or according to package directions.

*Roll out pizza dough, being sure to flour rolling pin and surface. Once rolled out, move to pizza stone (or whatever you're cooking your pizza on).

*Spread pizza sauce over dough. Sprinkle or cover with 3/4 mozzarella cheese. Drop 1/2 tablespoons of ricotta onto pizza. Sprinkle Fontina on top, then sprinkle with bacon crumbles. Cover with parmesan and cheddar, plus remaining mozzarella.

*Bake for about 15 minutes, or according to your package directions. Let sit for a couple minutes before slicing, then enjoy!

sauce, mozzarella, ricotta

plus fontina and bacon

plus cheddar and parmesan

all done!

close up

dinner is served!

Tlayuda (Mexican Pizza)

For Christmas I surprised the hubby with a one-night getaway to Chicago. I found a great deal on a hotel on Michigan Ave. (The Intercontinental), and I got us tickets to see Second City.

(Sidebar: if you have never seen Second City and live somewhere that has one or are visiting somewhere that has one, you MUST go! Hysterical. And all your favorite comedians - Tina Fey, Steve Carrell, the Belushi brothers, Chris Farley...all started their careers there.)

Anyhoo, we went to dinner at Adobo Grill, which happens to be right next door to Second City. I ordered a Tlayuda, which was delicious! The portion was HUGE (I only ate a third of it), but delicious nonetheless. I decided I wanted to try and recreate it, but make it a bit lighter.

The result was super, super tasty and even easier! And I did manage to lighten it up, which is always a perk. It was the perfect meal after a tough workout (Strength Training!). It came together quickly, was filled with something from almost every food group, and did I mention it tasted amazing? Try it! I think you'll love it! The ingredients list looks long, but I promise you it is easy!

Tlayuda (Mexican Pizza)
Recipe by Call Me Mrs. Rapp, inspired by Adobo Grill
Serves 2
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Ingredients:
*2 small chicken breasts, cooked (I suggest using my SUPER easy method found here!)
*1/2 teaspoon chili powder
*1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
*1/4 teaspoon salt
*2 small pinches crushed red pepper flakes
*about 2 cups baby spinach, sliced into small strips
*3/4 cup pearl tomatoes (or grape tomatoes), sliced into fourths
*1/2 avocado, sliced into small pieces
*1/2 finely grated cheese (I used extra sharp white cheddar), divided into fourths
*2 whole wheat tortillas
*2 teaspoons butter
*1 tablespoon fat free plain Greek yogurt
*1 tablespoon fat free sour cream

Preparation:
*Shred chicken, and combine it with chili powder, cumin, salt and crushed red pepper flakes in a small bowl. Mix well. (If using my method, add about 6 spoonfuls of the chicken broth to make it extra moist.) Divide it into fourths.

*Combine Greek yogurt and sour cream in a small sandwich bag. Mix well, then cut a tiny part of the corner (you're creating a make-shift pastry bag to drizzle the combo!).

*Melt 1 tsp. butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Place tortilla in skillet for about 2-3 minutes, then flip. You want the tortilla to become crispy. Once crisp, repeat with second tortilla.

*Place crisp tortilla on a pan. Sprinkle 1 part chicken on it, followed by 1 part cheese. Add spinach, then 1 part chicken, plus half the tomatoes and 1 part cheese. Repeat for other tortilla.

*Place the tortilla in the oven and broil (at 500 degrees) for 1 minute. Remove and add avocado and some of the sour cream-Greek yogurt combo. Serve immediately!

Shredded chicken with spices

tortilla plus chicken and cheese

all ready for the oven

fresh after being broiled, just enough to melt the cheese

cut into fourths

close up

greek yogurt-sour cream combo was great!!

Roasted Red Pepper & Fontina Pizza

I realized it's been a little while since I posted a recipe from one of my favorite blogs, How Sweet It Is. Time to change that! I saw this post, and knew I had to make this ASAP because it looked super good. Not only is it spruced up with some Fontina and Parmesan cheeses, it also has fresh basil, caramelized shallots, bacon and a super tasty balsamic glaze that goes on top.

This was absolutely delicious. Perfect dinner for a Sunday after watching the Hoosiers pull off ANOTHER win!! Hoosh, our dog named in honor of IU's mascot, cheered the team on with us, and it was nice family time. However, she did get confused when we would shout "Hoosh!" or "Hoosiers!" at the TV. Poor thing.

On a final note, I have revised the recipe to show how I will do this next time. My pizza was ready before the balsamic glaze had really set - I set it for the minimal time but wish it had set for longer. So, I would reverse some steps to give you time to really get a nice, thick glaze. As you'll see in my pictures, mine could have thickened (and did!) with more time.

Roasted Red Pepper & Fontina Pizza
Recipe by How Sweet It Is
Serves 2-4 
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Ingredients:
*pizza dough (I planned to make my own but was too lazy so I just used store-bought)
*2 slices thick-cut bacon (I suggest the BEST bacon EVER from TJ's)
*2 shallots, thinly sliced
*2 roasted red peppers, cut into strips
*1 tablespoons olive oil
*2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
*6 ounces freshly grated Fontina cheese (about 1 1/2 cups)
*2 ounces freshly grated Parmesan cheese (about 1/2 cup)
*1 1/2 cups balsamic vinegar
*3 basil leaves, roughly cut or torn (my addition)

Preparation:
*Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

*Heat vinegar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Allow to come to a boil, then let simmer and cook for about 15-20 minutes until reduced to about 1/3-1/2 cup. Set aside to cool for at least 10 minutes to thicken.

*Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add bacon and cook until crispy and fat is rendered. Remove with a slotted spoon, then add shallots and stir to coat. Cook for about 10 minutes over low heat, or until shallots begin to caramelize. Set aside.

*While shallots are cooking, make sure that red peppers are patted dry (if from a jar). If you’d like to make your own roasted red peppers, see here.

*Once pizza dough is ready to go, roll/press into desired shape and brush the surface with olive oil and top with minced garlic.

*Sprinkle on 1 cup of fontina cheese, then top with shallots, red peppers, and bacon.

*Sprinkle remaining fontina and Parmesan evenly on top. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or according to your pizza dough package instructions, until crust is golden and cheese is bubbly.

*When pizza is finished baking, drizzle glaze on top and serve.

mine came from a jar and were great

caramelized shallots

the BEST bacon EVER

ready for the oven!

pizza is ready! look how pretty it is!

cheesy

with balsamic glaze...see how it's not quite thick enough?

another

love how it cooks on a pizza stone!

one more shot. mmmm so good.

Caramelized Onion & Prosciutto Pizza

As soon as my friend Katie posted this recipe on her blog, courtesy of The Pioneer Woman, I knew I had to make it. In case you didn't know, John just loves prosciutto. I think I told you that when I shared story of our engagement in my post about Toasted Prosciutto & Mozzarella.

Anyhoo, I decided to make this for lunch on Sunday, thinking it would be a nice change up while John watched Captain America. Not only was this super simple to make, but it tasted delicious. John quickly ate half the pizza, while my self-control kept me at two pieces...and then another an hour later. I couldn't help it.

This is the perfect blend of sweet and salty, and such a nice change up from our normal pizza routine. Make it! Make it now. You won't regret it.

Caramelized Onion & Prosciutto Pizza
Recipe by The Pioneer Woman
Yields 1 pizza; Serves 2-4, depending on portions  
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Ingredients: 
*1 whole pizza crust 
*olive oil, for drizzling 
*1 whole large red onion, halved and thinly sliced 
*1/4 cup brown sugar (I used about 3 tbsp and thought it was sweet enough!) 
*kosher salt to taste
*parmesan cheese, grated  
*10 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese (I only used 8 ounces and it was enough) 
*8 slices prosciutto, more to taste (I used 4 slices, which was four sheets of my 4 oz package)


Preparation:
*Preheat oven to 500 degrees.

*Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet. Add onions and brown sugar and toss/stir for several minutes, or until onions are brown and cooked. Set aside.

*Roll out pizza dough (she suggested rectangle but I did a circle because I was using our awesome pizza stone). Drizzle on olive oil, sprinkle on a little salt, followed by a little Parmesan.

*Lay slices of mozzarella evenly over the top of the crust. Arrange caramelized onions over the top of the mozzarella. Randomly lay slices of prosciutto over the onions.

*Bake for 15 to 17 minutes (mine only took 12 minutes - go pizza stone!) in the lower half of the oven, or until crust is golden brown. Remove from oven and cut into slices.

*Serve immediately.

olive oil...I started to spread it with a brush but it was easier to use my fingers

add some freshly grated (or bagged) parmesan cheese

plus mozzarella...love it fresh!

caramelized onions next

drape that prosciutto

add a little more parmesan cheese on top

yum!

started with two slices

and then the hubby ate another two :)

French Bread Pizzas

TGIF - does anyone else remember when TGIF meant an awesome block of TV (Boy Meets World anyone?)! After a long week back at work and getting my classroom put together - school starts next week!! - I was ready for a fun and relaxing night at home with the hubby and pup. I got just that. :)

The other day I was grocery shopping and saw a really nice looking loaf of French bread. I was immediately inspired to make French bread pizzas this week. After chatting with the hubby, I decided Friday would be the perfect night for some homemade pizzas, a nice glass of wine and a movie (we went old school - Independence Day and it was awesome!).

As it turns out, this was the perfect night for these pizzas. We had so much fun deciding what toppings and combinations to try, and it was so exciting to see them come out of the oven looking golden, bubbly and delicious. And they were. Absolutely scrumptious! I totally recommend these for a date night or just a fun night at home. Feel free to experiment as you like with toppings and even sauces. I've included all the variations we used below.

Ingredients (for the 6 pizzas I made):
*1 loaf french bread, sliced in thirds and then in half
*pizza sauce, homemade or store bought (I went the easy route, aka store bought - - see below for brand, which was great!)
*mozzarella cheese (I recommend a combo of fresh and shredded)
*parmesan cheese
*red onion, sliced finely
*green pepper, julienned
*grape tomatoes, halved
*dried basil
*BBQ sauce
*pepperoni, sliced in half
*spinach (I used frozen and thawed/cooked a cup in the microwave)

Preparation:
Cook each pizza for 12 minutes at 350 degrees (preferably on a pizza stone!). Switch broiler on to brown cheese (I just stared at mine until it was ready, about 1-2 minutes).

See below for my individual pizza directions. 

*BBQ Pizza:
Start with one slice of French bread (see pics below if confused). Spoon some BBQ sauce over the bread. Sprinkle shredded mozzarella or place slices of fresh mozzarella on top of sauce. Add a few green pepper and red onions. Top with a little shredded parmesan cheese.

*Tomato Basil Pizza:
Spoon pizza sauce over french bread slice. Place slices of fresh mozzarella on sauce, and sliced tomatoes between each slice. Sprinkle shredded mozzarella cheese and dried basil on top.

*Supreme Pizza:
Spoon pizza sauce over french bread slice. Sprinkle some cooked spinach over sauce, and place slices of fresh mozzarella on sauce. Add green peppers, red onion, pepperoni slices, tomatoes, and more shredded mozzarella and parmesan cheese on top.

*Veggie Pizza:
Spoon pizza sauce over french bread slice. Sprinkle cooked spinach over sauce. Place slices of fresh mozzarella on sauce. Place tomatoes slices between slices of mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle a little shredded mozzarella cheese on top.

*Pepperoni and Green Pepperoni Pizza:
Spoon pizza sauce over french bread slice.  Place slices of fresh mozzarella on sauce. Top with green pepper slices and pepperoni slices. Sprinkle with additional shredded mozzarella cheese.

Some toppings

Sauces...although I didn't end up using the pesto.

BBQ Chicken pizza and Veggie Pizza

Tomato Basil Pizza

Supreme pizza, pepperoni and green pepper pizza, and tomato basil pizza

Fresh out of the oven - love my pizza stone and how yummy these look!

BBQ Chicken Pizza

This is another recipe I am especially proud of and excited to share. Why, you may ask? Because it is my own recipe! I randomly had a craving for BBQ chicken pizza the other night, and I have not been able to get it off my mind since. When I googled "Barbeque chicken pizza recipes" I was bombarded with hits. After looking at a few recipes I decided I could figure out how to make it on my own, much like my lasagna recipe.

This pizza was awesome!! John absolutely loved it! He told me it was the "best. barbeque. chicken. pizza. EVER!" And I was thrilled to hear it. For the Indy people out there, you'll appreciate this next comment, "It was even better than Bazbeaux!" For you non-Indy people, Bazbeaux has the best pizza in the city! - And is the home of our first official date. :)

As always, I'd love to hear your feedback. I'm especially curious because I came up with this recipe on my own. Tell me your thoughts, good or bad! And, hopefully, enjoy!

BBQ Chicken Pizza
Recipe by Call Me Mrs. Rapp
Yields 1 pizza; Serves 2-4, depending on portions
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Ingredients:
*1 can/bag premade pizza dough (found by biscuits @ store or by cheese @ Trader Joe's; homemade is great too!)
*2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
*low-sodium nonfat chicken broth + Montreal steak seasoning (optional)
*1/2 cup + 1/2 cup BBQ sauce (highly recommend Sweet Baby Ray's Honey BBQ)
*1/2 red onion, sliced
*1 carrot, peeled and grated
*1 cup skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
*5 fresh basil leaves, chopped finely
*sprinkle of parmesan cheese, grated (optional)

Preparation:
*Cook your chicken. I chose to stick mine in the slow cooker on high for 2 hours. I added nonfat chicken broth (covering chicken halfway) and a couple shakes of Montreal seasoning. You can read more about this method in the post How To: Cook Easy & Healthy Chicken.

*When chicken is cooked, pull apart and mix with 1/2 cup BBQ sauce.

*Roll out pizza dough. Oil a pan or place rounded dough on a pizza stone (as I used).

*Add 1/2 cup BBQ sauce on top of dough. Then sprinkle about 1 cup shredded - or fresh! - mozzarella cheese.

*Spread pulled chicken evenly across. Add onion and carrot. Sprinkle a little extra parmesan cheese on top.

*Bake for about 15 minutes at 400 degrees (or according to your pizza dough). When pizza comes out, sprinkle the basil leaves on top. Serve hot! :)

Onion and carrot ready!

Layer 1: Sauce

Layer 2: Cheese

What the chicken looked like after being mixed with BBQ sauce.

Layer 3: BBQ chicken

Layer 4: Onion, carrots and sprinkle of parmesan cheese

Fresh out of the oven

Close up!