My new obsession

I am obsessed. Period.

I LOVE PIZZA!  Deep dish. Thin crust. Brick oven. Homemade. Take-and-bake. On a bagel, English muffin, or pita. Delivery. National chain. Mom and Pop restaurant.  It doesn't matter.  I love it all!

Pizza on the grill is EVERYWHERE! I have been reading about it.  I had a friend who tried it and told me about her adventure.  My Southern Living mag had a little blurb about it.  I think I even saw something about grilled pizza on one of my many daytime TV shows (Today, Rachael Ray, Food Network, etc.)

I was curious and determined to try this new recipe out.  We used some of our friends as guinea pigs.  This was the first time we were making dinner for them, so I was a tad bit hesitant - didn't want to make a bad meal for new guests.  (Needless to say, I had a back-up meal planned in case this venture didn't pan out.)

I did some research and stumbled upon this how-to guide for grilled pizza.  Pretty easy, I thought.  After channeling Rachael Ray and Bobby Flay, I randomly called our mom and pop pizza restaurant in town, Bruno's, and found out that they sell their pizza dough for super cheap.   They will even roll it out for you!!  I went to our specialty grocery store FRESH, the equivalent of Central Market, and loaded up on all kinds of goodies: fresh pulled mozzarella that they make in the store, gourmet sauce, some fun toppings, and fresh herbs!  We were set.

Our friends were on their way over.  I had to read the instructions multiple times to gear up for the extravaganza!  I was a little anxious.  I didn't want to mess it up. 

Here's how it went.

Pizza #1 (a.k.a: kiddy pizza) - red sauce, shredded mozzarella, pepperonis, and sausage

Pizza #2: Mediterranean (a.k.a. grown-up pizza) - pesto sauce, grilled chicken, fresh mozzarella, basil, banana peppers, red onion, sun-dried tomatoes, fresh parmesan

Finished!!  Delicioso!!! Tastes just like a brick oven pizza.

We learned a few things while making the pizza:

• The grill should be between 375 and 400 degrees.
• Use olive oil spray to coat the grill grates.
• Leave the lid closed as much as possible, especially once the toppings are on.
• Fresh mozzarella is best!

 Make some grilled pizza!!  It's easy and delicious! (30b30: #4 and #9)