Pizza, undone.

So, in February I posted about my pizza making escapades. While that pizza was good, I have since discovered what is most easily described as spectacular pizza. And these are not my words.
Several weeks back, a good friend of the ball and chain came down for a little visit. Since we have taken up vegetarianism, cooking for company has become...well..interesting. How do you cook for good friends, without them feeling like they went to visit the health nuts?

So, I decided to make individual pizzas that we all could top ourselves. That way, J's friend could add the pepperoni or not. I then had to decide how we would cook the pizzas. The oven would be difficult (I only had one large pizza stone). So, I decided to attempt a trick that I had seen on Food Network ages ago: pizza on the grill. As I brought all the ingredients out, I warned J's friend that we'd never tried this before. J was nervous about making his friend a guinea pig. I assured him that if all else failed - we would be ordering in! Turns out J's friend was ready to invest in our new pizza venture. He liked the pizza so well, he made it at his next get together.

The nice thing is, all the ingredients are the same, the process is just different.

Detailed instructions for making pizza on the grill.

1. Start the water-yeast-sugar mixture on the dough. Set aside.

2. Dice 1 onion and 1-2 cloves garlic. Add to 1/8 cup warm olive oil in medium pot. Cook until onions are starting to turn translucent.

3. Add one can diced (unspiced) tomatoes. Bring to a vigorous simmer and reduce heat (you don't want to burn it, but a small bubble is still good. We are looking to cook down the tomatoes and evaporate excess water).

4. Finish crust. Set aside to rise.

5. Add one can of tomato sauce to the cooking pot, bring to a boil. Use immersion or regular blender to whip and blend sauce up. Return to heat, bring to boil, and simmer to reduce/thicken. Salt as needed (but be careful - it won't need much if any!) Watch closely over the next hour to determine when it is thick (creates a nice thick film on the back of the spoon). You also want to get as much of the water evaporated from the sauce as possible, without turning the darn thing to paste.

6. As the sauce finishes, let the dough rise for the required hour. Remove sauce from heat when necessary. This is a great time to get everything else together, like toppings, plates, and tools. I like to take everything outside with me so fellow eaters can partake in the topping and cooking process.

7. When the crust is done, cut it into 4 equal pieces. I do this right in the bowl, cutting into quarters as best I can visually. Place pieces on large, oiled, cookie sheet in mounds. Work dough as little as possible in this process.

8. Prepare grill. Heat high to clean grill. Reduce heat. Optimal cooking temperature is 400-500 degrees. Spray grill with oil.

9. Quickly work dough to a loose circle. Perfection is not necessary. Imperfection will add to rustic feel. Toss onto grill, and close. Until you get a feel for this, do just one pizza at a time.

10. When the dough is two-thirds done (think a pancake), turn with a pair of tongs or a spatula. Spread some sauce (to desired taste), toss on the toppings, saving the cheese for last. While you can top with the typical mozzarella generally used, I really recommend fresh from the deli (sold in little balls). Just slice up and toss on in chunks. Our favorite pizza is basic: Fresh tomatoes, fresh basil, topped with fresh mozzarella. When topped, close grill and wait for cheese to melt. If extra water is forming on the top, you can tip the pizza to allow it to run off. This can come from the mozzarella or the tomatoes if enough water hasn't evaporated from the sauce.

11. Optional step: after you spread the sauce and top, you can paint on a layer of olive oil and spices around the edge of the pizza (on the exposed edge of the crust). All you need to do is whisk together olive oil, mashed/minced garlic, and whatever additional Italian spices float your boat (basil or oregano). It will make the edges yummy like bread sticks. This mixture is also fantastic to paint over unusable crusts (I always have one of these each batch). You know, a crust you turn to early and crumbles. One that gets a hole in it and is unable to be sauced. Makes a creat nibbler. Just let it finish cooking (in whatever state it's in), and paint the crust with this mixture.

12. Shimmy off the grill with the tongs and a nearby plate, and slice up however you prefer.

This is our pizza: This if for the kids (I use regular shredded mozzarella):

Really, the grill does such a great job of cooking the crust perfectly. It's crunchy on the outside, but soft and chewy on the inside. The only problem I have encountered is some water forming on the top of the pizza, but if you are vigilant about reducing the sauce in steps 5 & 6, it will come out better.

We made this just last night for baby boy's 2nd birthday. The nice thing about this, is that it is easy enough for a weekday night (provided you can get the crust done). You can easily cheat with store bought dough in a pinch. Such fun and so yum.