Monday, February 23, 2009

Chicken Wing Pizza


We had homemade Pizzas last week for one of our dinners. We hardly ever buy take-out pizza anymore. We find the quality of a homemade pie is so much better. Plus buying take-out pizza is somewhat limiting in topping choices for us. We are 5 different people here, with very different ideas of what tastes G-O-O-D. Oh, for the days of old, when the kids were little and Pepperoni and Cheese was good enough for them all!

And the cost of a good Take-out Pizza seems to be rising faster than the yeast in the dough.lol That use to be the lure of Pizza-it was cheap, quick & easy to eat. Now a pizza will cost you $10 and the frozen ones in the grocery stores are not much less than that!


Making pizza at home can be a most frugal of meals. If you don't have the time or bravery to make your crust from scratch & have a pizza parlor nearby, ask to buy a hunk of dough from them. Usually they will sell you a piece large enough for a couple of pies for $1 or so. If you have to, use a premade crust from the grocers. Boboli is pricey but there are other regional quality crusts a bit cheaper and just as good. Heck, grab a loaf of foccaccia at the grocers bakery dept. or your local bakery if you are blessed enough to live near one. If you have leftover pieces of other breads-english muffins, bagel halves, french bread chunks, etc. In a pinch, most any bread product can be used as your pizza base.

Don't buy premade jarred pizza sauce either. Save yourself some money here and make your own. Have you looked at what's in a can/jar of pizza sauce? All you need is a can of tomato paste, some italian herbs, garlic and a pinch of sugar. Dump the paste in a bowl, along with 1 teaspoon of sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder & italian herbs to taste. Add enough water to the mix until you have the consistency of pizza sauce. You have just made pizza sauce! If you like your sauce chunky, add some diced or crushed tomato pieces, either canned or fresh.
Why pay double the price for something you already have the ingredients to make, that takes 1 minute of your time and costs so little?


You can top your pie with most anything you like. Be creative with your toppings. It's a great way to use up bits of produce or those couple of stray pieces of lunch meat in the fridge. Got a Hickory Farms beef stick laying around from a Holiday gift you got from your Uncle Bob? Slice it up and you've got a meat topping. 5 Mushrooms left in the produce bin?....marinate them for an hour in olive oil and balsamic vinegar and you've got gourmet sliced mushrooms for another topping. Sauteed onions or peppers are other tasty & cheap toppings.



At the family's request, I made Chicken Wing Pizza last week. It was a great hit!
Well, after they doused it with MORE hot sauce....YIKES!
Here's the recipe. It's not really chicken wings, but any chicken you have on hand. You can use fresh shredded breast meat or even breaded chicken like nuggets or filets. Just make sure it's cooked before putting on the pie. There is no tomato products in this pizza either so you don't even have to make your sauce. Just crack open a bottle of blue cheese salad dressing....or ranch will do in a pinch.



Chicken Wing Pizza
Makes 1 Large Pie


1 Pizza Shell or Dough to make 1 Shell
1 & 1/2 cups chicken-shredded, cut, torn up or diced
3/4 cup blue cheese dressing
1/8 cup Butter, melted
1/2 cup Hot Sauce
3/4 cup Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
Olive Oil
Bleu Cheese crumbles, Optional


Preheat over to 350 degrees.
Mix the Butter & Hot Sauce. Set aside.
Coat your pizza pan with Olive Oil. Place your shell or spread out your dough to cover the pan. Apply a 'glug' or two of oil on the top and rub into the shell.
Put chicken pieces into your butter/hot sauce mixture to coat.(If you like it real spicy, use more hot sauce in your mix.)
Spread blue cheese dressing evenly over your shell.
Arrange chicken pieces on your shell.
Layer Mozzarella cheese over your shell.
OPTIONAL-Sprinkle more Hot Sauce on top of pie. Sprinkle crumbled Bleu Cheese pieces on top of pie.

Cook in a preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, until lightly golden brown.

Pair with any Salad Greens splashed with a Vinaigrette Dressing and Mange!



Sluggy

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