It’s summer time… (Enter Rascal Flats tune here…) and our
family tries to both cook and eat outside for every meal. I try to never cook
inside to keep the need for air conditioning down to nothing. Now with our new
house, which is nestled in the middle of a dozen or so beautiful trees, we
never seem to need artificial/conditioned air so I really don’t want to mess up
the balance of this wonderful environment we have going! So… the grill is
my kitchen in the summer months!
Also, I have learned over the years that the kids just love
to have a dinner time “theme.” We have done taco Tuesdays, pizza Fridays,
breakfast for dinner night and meatless Mondays and everything else in between.
The kids get excited when they know what to expect (but still have a surprise
with fillings and toppings etc…). Right now we are all on a pizza/flatbread kick
so we have pizza 1-2 nights per week. I really like this basic flatbread recipe
for the dough. It doesn’t contain yeast
and it is so easy to throw together. I love a super thin crispy crust that
still has a bit of a chew to it. This dough meets those requirements! This post is especially dedicated to my new
friend Pricilla, who isn’t convinced that grilled pizza is a super simple
dinner optionJ. So Pricilla (and everyone else who has never
grilled pizza or flatbread) give this a try and let me know how it comes out!
The whole-wheat flatbread dough (serves four)
1 cup whole wheat flour, plus 1 tablespoon for dusting as you roll out the dough1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
¾ cup fat-free Greek yogurt (if your herbs are very moist you may only need ½ cup of yogurt)
No need to get out the mixer (then there is less to wash
after dinner). Just use your hands to
mix this dough. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and parsley in a medium
mixing bowl. Slowly incorporate the
yogurt, adding ¼ cup of yogurt at a time, mixing until the dough is smooth. The
dough should just pull together and release from your hands when it’s ready. Wrap the dough in plastic and let rest for 30
minutes to an hour.
Toppings
This is totally up to you and your taste buds! This pizza
was made with our favorite summer toppings:
1 ½ lb ripe fresh beef steak tomatoes
8 ounces of fresh mozzarella, sliced
1 cup of fresh pesto (recipe below)
½ cup fresh basil, chiffonade (fancy term for cutting
into long, thin strips) or torn
Balsamic vinegar for drizzling (optional)
Assembly
Pre heat your gas or charcoal grill to medium/high heat. Assemble
all of your toppings on a try to take out to the grill with you. Remove dough
from plastic wrap and place on a floured board and separate into 2 pieces or 4
if you want to make individual flatbreads. Roll out to desired thickness. You
could try and make it pretty and round, but I don’t bother, I like a more
rustic shape, AKA I don’t have the patience for perfectly round pizza dough! Oil
one side of the dough and slip it onto the grill. Grill until nice grill marks
form, about 3 minutes. Then oil the top
of the flat bread and flip it over with a metal grill spatula, like flipping a
pancake.
Brush the grilled top with pesto (recipe below) then
layer the tomatoes and mozzarella. Grill until the bottom is cooked and nice
grill marks form, approximately 3 minutes. Slide flatbreads onto a tray or
sheet pan and top with basil and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar. Enjoy your
grilled pizza and your cool house!
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| Rustic! |
 |
| Side one almost done! Time to Flip! |
 |
| Ready for toppings |
 |
| Just close the lid and wait for the cheese to start getting all melty:) |
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| Add your basil and Enjoy! |
Basil Pesto
1 garlic clove, peeled
2 cups fresh basil leaves
¼ cup toasted pine nuts
1 tablespoons lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ cup - 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese
into the bowl of a food processor, add the garlic, basil
leaves, pine nuts, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Pulse until finely chopped.
With the food processer still running, slowly pour ½ cup of olive oil. Check
for a thick, yet smooth consistency, adding more oil if necessary. Transfer to
a bowl and stir in ½ cup Parmesan cheese. Adjust seasoning as necessary/to
taste.
Follow this peso recipe through adding the oil and freeze
for a quick last minute pasta or pizza sauce or sandwich spread. After it’s
defrosted add the parmesan!
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