Pizza Pizzazz

It's Friday night and Michael's turn to "treat" for dinner. Whether that means taking me out or cooking for me is his choice and tonight he chose to cook. Grilled Pizza to be exact. I must say, my husband is good at dough - be it for a pie, galette/crostata, bread, or pizza. You might remember I've blogged about grilled pizza before (see my blog entry dated June 26); however, there are so many sauce and topping combinations, I doubt you would make the same thing twice even if you tried.

Here's the dough, sauce, and topping from tonight. All inspired from the "Create Your Own Recipe" builder available from www.finecooking.com :

Dough (makes enough for two full-sized pizzas or 8 individual sized pizzas)
2-1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1-14/ cups warm waer (about 105 degrees Farenheit)
1-1/4 lbs (about 4-1/4 cups) all purpose flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt; more for sprinkling on the crust
1/4 cup olive oil; more for brushing

Stir the yeast into the water; let sit for 15 minutes. Combine the flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. On low speed slowly add the yeast mixture and the olive oil alternately to the flour. Knead for 6 minutes. The dough should feel soft and just a little sticky. If it feels grainy or dry, add 1 tablespoon of warm water at a time (up to 1/4 cup).

Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl that's at least twice the size of the dough and cover with a damp dishtowel. Let rise at room temperature until almost doubled, about 1 hour. Punch down the dough and divide it into two (wrap one portion tightly in cling film and put into a plastic bag and freeze for use another time). Put the other portion on a floured surface and, with your hands, flatten and stretch it into a disk that's about 1/2 inch thick. The dough will be fairly elastic and will tend to spring back. Cover with plastic and let rest for 5 minutes. Stretch or roll out the dough and let rest for a few more minutes. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment or waxed paper and place the round of dough on it.

Prepare your barbeque. For a gas grill turn one of the burners to low to create a cooler zone. Scrub the grill grate with a wire brush and then wipe the grate with a paper towel dipped in oil. Brush the top of the dough with olive oil.

Moving quickly and holding the top edge of the dough, lay the bottom edge (oiled side down) on the hot part of the grill. As soon as the first edge of the dough makes contact with the grill grate, pull gently on the dough as you finish laying it down to strech it thinly.

Brush the top of the dough with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Grill without moving until the pizza browns and develops good grill marks on the bottom, 1 to 3 minutes; check frequently to prevent burning.

Using tongs, transfer the dough, browned side up, to a baking sheet and cover the grill. Spread a thin layer of the tomato sauce (recipe below) all over the browned side of the crust. Add the other pizza toppings over the surface of the pizza (see tonight's selection below). Using tongs and a wide spatula, slide the pizza, raw side down, back to the hot side of the grill and close the lid. When the bottom has browned and developed strong grill marks, 1 to 3 minutes, move the pizza to the cooler part of the grill.

Close the lid and grill until the pizza toppings are hot to the touch, 3 to 8 minute smore. Check the bottom of the pizza frequently, turning the pizza from back to front and side to side to prevent burning in case your grill has any hot spots. Transfer the pizza to a cutting board. Now that the pizza is fully cooked, add fresh greens or delicate herbs.

Tomato Sauce
14-oz can crused tomatoes
1 tablespoon red-wine vinegar
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 cloves garlic, minced

Whisk everthing together in a bowl and add enough water to thin the sauce so that is it easy to spread.

Toppings
10 slices Canadian Back Bacon
4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
4 oz. Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, grated
Fresh basil leaves (added at the end when pizza was fully cooked)