Grilled French Bread Pizza With Mushroom Pesto And Fontina Cheese Recipes

PIZZA WITH PARSLEY PESTO, CREMINI MUSHROOMS, FONTINA AND GOAT CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F.
• For the parsley pesto: Add the Parmigiano-Reggiano, pine nuts, basil, garlic, parsley and some salt and pepper to a food processor. With the motor running, slowly add about 1/2 cup olive oil and process until smooth. Pulse a few times to incorporate, adding more oil if the mixture is too thick. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.
• For the mushrooms: Heat the canola oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat until almost smoking. Add the mushrooms, garlic and shallots and saute until brown, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Remove to a plate and reserve.
• Preheat a grill pan over medium-high heat.
• For the pizzas: Portion the dough into six golf-ball-size pieces. Dust a work surface with flour and roll each piece of dough into a rectangle (or whatever shape you like). Brush the tops of each piece with oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss on the grill, oil-side down. Cook until the bottoms are an even golden brown, about 3 minutes. (The tops will also start bubbling up with air pockets.) Flip over and grill until golden brown on the other side and just firm, about a minute or so. Remove to a baking sheet.
• Top the pizzas with the fontina, mushrooms, Parmigiano-Reggiano, dollops of goat cheese, crushed red pepper flakes and salt and pepper. Bake in the oven until the cheese is melted, 3 to 4 minutes. Top with the parsley pesto and garnish with a few more torn basil leaves.
• In a small bowl, add 1/2 cup warm water (if the water is too hot the yeast will die and if the water is too cold the yeast will not activate). Add the dry yeast and sugar, stir to combine and let sit for 15 minutes. The top of the water will bubble and it will smell very yeasty; this is what you want.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour and salt. Make a well in the center of the flour and add the olive oil and the yeast/water mixture. Using a fork, gradually stir the flour into the yeast/water mix. Once most of the flour has combined, turn the dough out to a smooth, clean work surface dusted with flour and use your hands to knead the dough to a smooth consistency.
• Lightly coat the mixing bowl with oil, return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size, at least 1 hour.
• When the dough is ready, portion it into six golf-ball-size pieces. (If you're not using the dough right away, wrap each ball individually in plastic and refrigerate until ready to use.) Dust a work surface with flour and roll each piece of dough into a rectangle (or whatever shape you like; I like irregular shapes). Top the pizzas as desired.

SUNNY'S EASY CHILI CHEESE FRENCH BREAD PIZZA

Steps:

• For the pizza: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Remove a bit of bread from the inside of each bread half, leaving about 1 inch of bread in the base. Brush the insides and edges with the garlic butter and place the bread on a baking sheet. Bake until golden on the edges, about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven.
• Evenly distribute the Chili along the length of the bread. Sprinkle the cheese over the top and arrange the jalapenos so there will be one slice on each serving. Bake until the cheese is melted and the edges of the bread are golden, 15 to 18 minutes.
• For the garnish: Top the pizza with the scallions, cilantro, a few shakes of hot sauce and a drizzle of crema. Slice each half into 8 pieces. Serve immediately.
• Add 2 tablespoons olive or cooking oil, 2 1/2 teaspoons salt, a few grinds of black pepper and the onion to a large pot over medium heat and cook until tender. Add the chili powder and beef and cook, breaking up the beef into bits, until cooked through. Stir in the tomatoes and chiles and the beans, then cover and cook for 20 minutes. To thicken the chili further, simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes more.

FRENCH BREAD PIZZAS

Steps:

• For the base sauce: Place an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 425 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
• Mix together the melted butter, Italian seasoning and garlic in a small bowl. Place the French bread on the prepared sheet pan cut-side up. Brush the butter mixture over the bread.
• For the fully loaded pizza: Spread the marinara sauce over one half of the French bread. Sprinkle over the mozzarella, then top with the pepperoni, green pepper, sausage crumbles, black olives and jalapenos.
• For the garden pesto pizza: Mix together the ricotta, pesto and lemon zest in a small bowl. Spread over the other half of the French bread. Lay on the zucchini slices, peppers, asparagus, corn and finally the goat cheese.
• Bake until the cheeses melt and become bubbly, 12 to 14 minutes. Garnish the fully loaded pizza with the Parmesan and the garden pesto pizza with the basil. Slice and serve.

PIZZA GRILLED CHEESE

Steps:

• In a small bowl, mix together the butter, Parmesan, Italian seasoning and crushed red pepper. Brush one side of each slice of bread with this mixture.
• Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Lay one piece of the bread, butter-side down, in the skillet. Spread 1 tablespoon marinara sauce on the bread and layer on the mozzarella, provolone, pepperoni, pepper slices, olives and basil leaves. Top with the second slice of bread, butter-side up. Toast in the skillet, flipping as needed, until the bread is golden and the cheese has melted, 4 to 5 minutes.
• Remove from the skillet and slice in half. Serve with the remaining 1/4 cup marinara on the side.

PESTO AND MOZZARELLA FRENCH BREAD PIZZA

Steps:

• Make the pesto: Heat the oven to 450 degrees with a rack in the middle position. Combine basil, 1 garlic clove and pine nuts in a food processor, and pulse until finely chopped. With the machine running, stream in the olive oil. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add Parmesan and salt, and pulse to combine.
• Prepare the pizza: Combine the 1/4 cup olive oil and grated garlic in a small pot over medium. Cook, swirling occasionally, until the garlic starts to sizzle (but doesn't begin to brown), 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Place the French bread cut side up on a baking sheet. Brush cut sides with garlic oil. Bake until edges are golden, 5 to 7 minutes.
• Spread the pesto over the two halves all the way to the edges and top with the cheese. Return to the oven and bake until the cheese is evenly melted, about 5 minutes. Increase heat to broil and broil (watch carefully!) until the cheese is bubbly and browned in spots, 1 to 2 minutes more. Let cool 5 minutes before slicing and serving. Top with red-pepper flakes, oregano and more Parmesan, if you like.

GRILLED FRENCH BREAD PIZZA

Steps:

• Heat grill to medium heat.
• Brush the cut side of the baguette with oil and place oil side down on the grill to brown. Remove from grill.
• Top lightly with crushed tomatoes, salt, pepper, basil and cheese. Return to grill and close the lid.
• Cook until cheese melts and the sauce is warmed through.