Grilled Sausage Basil Pizzas Recipes

PIZZA WITH SAUSAGE, TOMATOES AND BASIL

Steps:

• Mix flour, yeast and salt in a bowl. Gradually add 1/2 cup warm (110°F) water until a soft dough forms. Divide dough into 4 portions. Using hands, roll dough into balls. Coat with cooking spray, cover with plastic wrap and set aside to rise, 30 to 45 minutes. When ready to cook, place each ball of dough on a piece of wax paper and flatten into a 4-inch circle. Coat grill with cooking spray and heat on high. Gently place dough onto grill and cook until dough puffs and underside stiffens (about 30 seconds); flip and reduce heat to low. Mix topping ingredients, then divide among crusts. Cover grill. Cook until cheese melts, 5 to 6 minutes more. Slice and serve.

CARAMELIZED ONION, SAUSAGE AND BASIL PIZZA

Steps:

• Put an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F. Sprinkle a heavy baking sheet (without sides) with cornmeal and set aside.
• In a large skillet, melt 3 tablespoons of olive oil and the butter over medium-low heat. Add the onions, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden and caramelized, about 20 minutes. Increase the heat to medium-high and add the sausage. Using a wooden spoon, break up the sausage and cook, stirring constantly, until cooked through, about 8 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly.
• On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough into a 13-inch diameter circle, about 1/4-inch thick. Transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Spread the onion mixture evenly over the dough, leaving a 1-inch border. Sprinkle the cheese on top. Bake until the crust is golden and the cheese has melted, about 15 to 17 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with chopped basil. Cut the pizza into wedges and serve.

GRILLED PIZZA WITH HOT SAUSAGE, GRILLED PEPPERS AND ONIONS AND OREGANO RICOTTA

Steps:

• Preheat a grill.
• Grill the sausage on both sides until golden brown and cooked through, about 10 minutes per side. Brush onions and peppers with the oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill the onions and peppers until soft, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Remove the sausage from the grill and slice into 1/4-inch thick slices. Remove the onions, separate into rings, and roughly chop. Remove the peppers and slice into 1/8-inch thick slices.
• Heat grill to high. Brush dough with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and grill for 2 to 3 minutes or until golden brown. Turn over and grill for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the grill and place on a flat surface.
• Divide the fontina cheese among the 4 pizza rounds. Divide the sausage, onions and peppers over the cheese. Place the pizza on the grill, close the cover and grill until the cheese has melted, about 3 to 4 minutes. To finish in the oven, preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Place the pizza on sheet pans and bake until the cheese has melted, about 5 to 10 minutes.
• Mix together the ricotta, extra-virgin olive oil, and oregano in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Remove the pizzas from the oven and drizzle with Basil Vinaigrette. Top with dollops of the ricotta cheese mixture and let rest for 5 minutes. Slice and serve.
• Combine all ingredients and blend until smooth. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, to taste.

GRILLED PIZZA WITH SPICY ITALIAN SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Combine water and sugar in a food processor. Sprinkle yeast over; let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes. Add oil, then 3 cups flour and salt. Process until dough comes together, about 1 minute.
• Turn dough out onto floured work surface. Sprinkle with rosemary. Knead until dough is smooth and elastic, adding more flour by tablespoonfuls if dough is sticky, about 5 minutes.Lightly oil large bowl. Add dough; turn to coat with oil. Cover bowl with plastic, then towel. Let stand in warm draft-free area until dough doubles, about 1 hour. To test that the dough has risen sufficiently, push two fingers into it. The depressions should remain.
• Punch down dough. Knead dough in bowl until smooth, about 2 minutes. Divide dough into 4 equal pieces. Stretch out each piece on floured surface to 9-inch round. To prevent the dough from sticking as you stretch it, use flour sparingly; too much will result in a tough crust.
• Toppings
• 3/4 cup olive oil
• 6 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 3 tablespoons minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 pound spicy Italian sausages
• 2 yellow or red bell peppers, cored, lengthwise
• 1 large red onion, peeled, cut through root end into 1/2-inch thick wedges
• Whisk first 4 ingredients in medium bowl. Let vinaigrette stand 15 minutes at room temperature or refrigerate up to 2 hours.
• Prepare barbecue (medium heat). Arrange sausages, peppers and onion on baking sheet. Brush with some of vinaigrette. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill sausages until cooked through and peppers and onion until slightly charred and crisp-tender, turning and basting occasionally, about 12 minutes for sausages and 8 minutes for peppers and onion.
• Transfer sausages and vegetables to cutting board. Cut sausages into 1/2-inch pieces and peppers into thin strips.
• Final preparation
• 2 cups grated mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 cups crumbled chilled soft fresh goat cheese (such as Montrachet)
• 4 plum tomatoes, halved, seeded, chopped
• 3/4 cup chopped green onion tops Add coals to barbecue if necessary. Place 2 dough rounds on grill. Grill over medium heat until top of dough puffs and underside is crisp, about 3 minutes. Turn rounds over. Grill 1 minute. Transfer to baking sheet with well-grilled side up. This side of the dough becomes the surface that will hold the toppings.
• Repeat with the remaining 2 dough rounds. Sprinkle each with 1/4 of mozzarella and Parmesan. Top each with 1/4 of sausage, peppers and onion, then with 1/4 of goat cheese, tomatoes and green onions. Drizzle each with 1 1/2 teaspoons vinaigrette.
• Using large metal spatula, return 2 pizzas to grill. Close grill or cover pizzas loosely with foil. Grill until cheeses melt and dough is cooked through and browned, using tongs to rotate pizzas for Transfer to plates. Repeat grilling for remaining 2 pizzas.

GRILLED PIZZA

Steps:

• Two to three hours before grilling, transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface. Using a sharp knife or a bench scraper, divide the dough into three even pieces. Drizzle a teaspoon of neutral cooking oil into three soup bowls. (Each bowl should be able to hold at least twice the volume of the dough pieces.)
• Working with one piece of dough at a time, shape each into a ball by stretching it and pinching it into a point at the bottom, forming a sort of "skin" that wraps the whole ball. Lightly dust your hands with flour as necessary to prevent excessive sticking. Transfer the ball to one of the oiled bowls and turn it a few times to completely coat the surface in oil, then let it rest seam side down. Repeat Step 2 with remaining dough pieces, then drape a damp kitchen towel over all three bowls. Let the dough balls rest until roughly doubled in volume, about 2 hours.
• Transfer the tomatoes to a fine-mesh strainer set over a large bowl and shake the strainer, allowing the tomatoes to drain thoroughly. Still working in the strainer above the bowl, season well with salt, and, using clean hands, squeeze them through your fingers until a rough purée is formed. (The pieces of tomato should end up ranging from 1/4 inch to roughly 1 inch in size.) Allow any excess liquid to drain (you can save the strainer tomato juice for another use), then transfer the crushed tomatoes to a bowl and set aside.
• Turn out one ball of dough onto a floured work surface and dust thoroughly with more flour. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a 10-inch-by-12-to-14-inch oblong. Dust both sides thoroughly with flour, then transfer to a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet. Repeat with remaining two dough balls, stacking them on top of the first with a layer of parchment paper between each.
• To cook, ignite a full chimney of charcoal. When the coals are mostly covered in gray ash, spread evenly under half of the grill. (If using a gas grill, set half the burners to high, leaving the remaining burners off. Cover, and allow to heat for 10 minutes.)
• Using your fingers, carefully lift one piece of rolled-out dough from the stack and drape it quickly on the grill grates directly above the fire. Let it cook without moving until the top starts to bubble and the bottom is lightly browned, about 20 to 30 seconds. Continue cooking, using metal tongs and a large spatula or thin metal pizza peel to move and rotate the crust as it cooks, until the bottom is evenly browned all over with a few charred spots, 1 to 3 minutes.
• Flip the crust, and brush the cooked side with a thin layer of olive oil. Continue cooking until the second side is browned, charred and crisp. Flip again (so that the bubblier side faces up), transfer to a clean baking sheet, and brush the second side with olive oil. Repeat Steps 6 and 7 with remaining two pizza skins, stacking the crusts as they finish cooking. (If using coal, the heat may start to dip. Extend cooking time to compensate, or add 15 to 20 fresh coals to the top of the embers and allow them to ignite before continuing.)
• Working one pizza at a time, transfer the crust to the pizza peel. (A cutting board or the back of a baking sheet will also work.) Spread a thin layer of shredded cheese across the surface of the crust (about 1 cup should do it). Using a spoon, add tablespoon-size dollops of crushed tomatoes, spaced an inch or two apart, across the whole surface of the pizza. Add toppings as desired (see Tips). Slide the pizza onto the cooler side of the grill, cover, and cook until the cheese is melted and the crust is crisp, 1 to 5 minutes total, rotating the pizza occasionally to encourage even melting and crisping. Transfer to a cutting board, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with basil or scallions, cut into squares, and serve immediately. Repeat Step 8 with remaining pizza crusts.