You can make your own dough or buy a pre-made crust but I prefer middle ground - publix has a great dough that I love.
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Get some basil leaves and roll them up. TIP: if you don't have one in your home or garden you can buy a small basil plant for ~$3 instead of spending slightly less for a small bag of clipped herbs.
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Rolled up..biggest leaves on the outside.
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Now, chiffonade by cutting across.
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Here's how I slice tomatoes..
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Cored! TIP: squish the mush out - otherwise your pizza ends up soggy (learned that the hard way)
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Slice..
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Then dice & you're on to the next step.
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Cut the mozzarella
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You can shred or cut - this time I cut..
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Then cube
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Flour your hands and work surface.
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Roll out the dough - if you're a perfectionist (like I USED to be) the results will definitely bother you..
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Perfectly imperfect
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Now, to prep the crust
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Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
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Brush to coat the crust
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Season with salt, pepper & garlic salt
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Extra flavor alert! I like making my own seasonings, but this one is the bomb diggity - great for pizza crust.
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Awesomeness is now applied.
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Ready for the grill
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Coals are hot! TIP: If possible, use charcoal with some soaked wood chunks/chips or at least some chips in a smoker box on a gas grill. Check out my quesadilla guide for more about charcoal grilling.
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You do NOT want a HOT fire - the doughy crust will char easier than a pre-made crust. TIP: use pre-made crust to save time/hassle. I like the boboli thin crust if I go that route.
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Very hard to see - sorry. You get the idea, though. That's my 4 yr old daughter saying "Hey!" at the end. :-)
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Drizzle EVOO on this side now & brush to coat then season with the salt, pepper, garlic salt and optional garlic herb blend. I suggest covering to both help the baking process & to minimize flames.
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Take a quick sip of your favorite frosty beverage then check on that crust!
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When the crust starts bubbling up check the bottom and prepare to flip.
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It's ready to flip using tongs, spatula or both.
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Nice crust!
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Quickly add the toppings.. Maters are what we call these in the South.
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Cheese..
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And basil..
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Quit gawking at your pretty pizza and cover it up to let it finish!
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Heat was a bit too high, but we're still OK. Plus, we like a crisp exterior on our crust. Switching to plan B.
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On to a baking sheet and back to the makeshift oven to finish cooking. You can gauge when it's ready by watching the crust & toppings.
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Cheese is gooey, crust is crispy outside & tender inside.. Just right.
Thanks!! I really like the whole process of cooking - from the prep to seeing people (hopefully) enjoy the food. We grew potted herbs 2 yrs ago and expanded with more herbs and some veggies last year thanks to some more pots & a few small raised beds. I loved just going outside to clip the herbs I wanted to use. Best producers that survived and thrived despite my infrequent waterings were Italian and regular parsley, oregano, pineapple sage (got HUGE), sage, dill (for a while), tarragon & chives.
Absolutely brilliant guide! I totally enjoy the way you have fun with what you do and it's very entertaining to read the step by step instructions. The food looks so delicious and I definitely want to grow my own herbs this year so I can make this and even just a simple caprese salad ;) Thank you 👏👍😄
Linda O. 3 months ago
Houston Long (author) 3 months ago
Linda O. 4 months ago
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