Hail Caesar!! Chicken Caesar Pizza

CHICKEN CAESAR PIZZA

Alright everyone, time to break the dessert baking trend! I’m blogging about my first savory recipe today! And oh my gosh, this was hands down the best thing we have ever made! When Danny and I were in Florida on vacation, we went to a place called Mellow Mushroom. It was the most amazing pizza…completely different flavors and ideas than you would ever think about for pizza. Our favorite was the chicken Caesar. It was awesome! Cheesy, buttery, garlicky pizza with a Caesar salad on top. We actually went there two nights in a row it was so good! When one of our sets of plans was canceled we decided it couldn’t get much better than MM and that is when we discovered this gem. We’ve been in withdrawal since coming home because there isn’t one around us so of course, we went on our quest for a copycat recipe. I am so excited and ecstatic to tell you that on our first try- we nailed it! That never happens…the first time is always rough and full of ‘next time, we’ll do this instead’. Not yesterday!! I hope that one of you will enjoy this as much as Danny and I did :) I will separate the crust recipe from the toppings so you can top it however you wish. The crust was out of this world and I must give props to www.food.com for the ‘easiest best focaccia bread recipe’ as this was hardly tweaked at all! If Caesar salad and pesto isn’t your cup of tea I would still recommend trying this crust recipe and topping it with whatever you please. If you’re up for a completely new twist on pizza though, then give this a shot! (Side note: this is NOT a healthy recipe, you can modify if you wish but I won’t promise the same amazing results. The reason this is so good is because it’s super buttery…just don’t eat lunch ;)

What you’ll need for the crust:

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon white sugar

1 (1/4 ounce) packet active dry yeast

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon oregano

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1 dash ground black pepper

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 cup warm water (105-115 degrees)

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons parmesan cheese (I used the Kraft crumbly kind for this because I think it bakes better on the dough)

2 tablespoons butter (for the pan)

Crisco (for the pan)

To make the crust:

1. Mix the yeast and water in a small bowl. Let proof for 10 minutes (until bubbles begin to form).

2. In large bowl, stir together flour, salt, sugar, garlic powder, oregano, thyme, basil, and black pepper.

3. Add the yeast mix and vegetable oil to the dry ingredients and combine.

4. When dough has pulled together, turn out onto lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic.

5. Lightly oil a large bowl, place dough in bowl; cover with damp cloth and let rise in warm place 25 minutes.

6. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

7. Prepare the baking sheet or pizza pan (we use a deep dish pizza pan) by greasing with Crisco; then melt 2 tablespoons of butter in the bottom (like I said, this isn’t healthy).

8. Punch dough down, form into whatever shape you please about 1/2 inch thick (we did a circle for pizza pan); place on buttered and greased baking sheet.

9. Brush top with olive oil, then sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

10. Bake for about 8 minutes until starting to bubble; then take it out so you can put on your toppings. (Caesar topping recipe below.) Put back in oven and bake for another 6-10 minutes until golden brown and cheese is bubbling.

What you’ll need for the chicken Caesar toppings:

1 chicken breast

1 tablespoon of olive oil (for chicken)

~1/2 cup Basil Pesto (I used the Classico brand)- I’m not sure exactly how much we used but you’ll need some for cooking the chicken and some for the pizza crust

2-3 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese (we used fresh- it melts so much better)

1 cup shredded Fontina cheese

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

1/4 cup olive oil

2 large cloves of garlic

1 head romaine lettuce

Caesar dressing

1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

To make the chicken Caesar pizza:

1. Get a sauté pan very hot to cook the chicken. Use about a tablespoon of olive oil in the bottom and start the chicken breast. Flip once about 3 minutes in; cook another 1-2 minutes. Take chicken out of pan (it won’t be cooked all the way through) and slice into thin pieces.

2. Put the chicken slices back in the pan and top with about a 1/4 cup of pesto. 

3. Turn heat up in pan (to get a nice sear) and cook until the chicken is done (about 4-6 minutes more). Make sure the chicken has a nice golden color to it. Turn chicken off and leave in pan until you’re ready to top your crust.

Our golden pesto chicken

4. Crush the two cloves of garlic and mix with the olive oil; sauté in a pan or heat in the microwave to cook the garlic for a bit (not long; 2-3 min sauté or 30 seconds in microwave).

5. After the dough is close to done baking (about the 8-10 minute mark) take it out the oven and use the garlic oil as the sauce. Spread it around evenly across the top of the crust.

6. Coat with some pesto (we probably used another 1/4 cup but it's up to your preference) as additional sauce. 

Here is the crust with the sauce; you can tell that it's not quite done yet because the edges are not golden

LOTS of cheese!!

7. Place slices of chicken on top of the sauced crust.

8. Top with the shredded cheese. 

9. Put back in oven and finish baking. (We did about 5 minutes at 425; then broiled on high for a final 5 minutes until the cheese was golden and bubbling.)

Right after it's come out of the oven

10. While your pizza is finishing 

it’s bake, cut the head of romaine and toss with the Caesar dressing and shredded parmesan cheese.

Danny's making a guest appearance in my blog!

11. When your pizza is all done baking, take it out and let it rest for a few minutes (we also soaked up a little extra oil/grease with paper towels from the top). Then slice into triangles and top with the Caesar salad. You’ve now made the most magnificent pizza! Crack open a beer or pour a glass of wine and

Topped off with the salad: A-MAZ-ING!!

ENJOY!!

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