Monday, June 6, 2011

Grilled Salad Pizza

There is nothing I love to put on the grill more than lettuce.  Even when I was a meat-eater, grilled lettuce in the summertime was a must have. From romaine, to cabbage, to radicchio- I grill it all.  By simply brushing some lettuce with extra virgin olive oil, giving it a few cracks of pepper, a sprinkle of sea salt and a few quick turns on the grill- you have lettuce like you have never had lettuce before.

When I saw this recipe for grilled pizza salad I knew it was for me.  Rather than grilling the lettuce directly on the gill, the lettuce wilts slightly on a perfectly grilled pizza crust brushed with vinaigrette and sprinkled with parmesan cheese.

This is seriously delicious. The kids were initially disappointed to see their "pizza" had no sauce and gooey cheese. However, the two large pizzas this made were polished off and the kids were begging for seconds.


Grilled Salad Pizza
((Printable Version))

Vinaigrette:
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons raw honey
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 clove garlic, minced
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
small pinch sea salt and a few cracks of fresh pepper

1 batch of pizza dough, enough to make about 2 large pizzas
(I used a half batch of my No-Knead Pizza Dough)

3 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
about 5-6 cups mixed greens of your choice (such as chopped romaine, arugula, radicchio, sliced endive, etc.)
1/2 a red onion, thinly sliced
1 cup garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half
additional shaved parmesan cheese for garnish

Heat your grill, placing the hot briquettes on one side of the grill so you can move the crust around to control the temperature while it cooks.  Or, set up your gas grill for indirect cooking.

Place all the vinaigrette ingredients in a jar and give it a good shake.  In a large bowl, add the lettuces, onion, tomatoes and garbanzo beans.  Toss with about 1/2-3/4 of the vinaigrette.

Roll out your pizza crust.  Place on a pizza peel or large cookie sheet pan that has been covered with corn meal.  Give the crust a few pokes with a fork.  Grill on the indirect side of the grill (the cooler side) for about 3 to 4 minutes, covered.  Slide the crust over to the hot side and give it a quick char.


Flip the crust and place back on the cool side. Brush the top of the crust with a little bit of the vinaigrette and a sprinkle of the grated parmesan.  When the crust is just about cooked on the bottom, top with the salad mixture and place on the hot side of the grill.


Cover and allow the crust to char lightly and let the lettuce wilt slightly.  This will take about 30-45 seconds, depending on how hot your grill is.


Remove the pizza from the grill and top with the shaved parmesan cheese.


Slice and serve.




(Adapted from Vegetarian Times)


Linked to: Delightfully Dowling, Midnight Maniac, This Chic Cooks, Somewhat Simple, Day 2 Day Joys, Sumptuous Spoonfuls 

9 comments:

  1. love it we normally have salad with pizza with this we can have them together come see me at http://shopannies.blogspot.com and see what I shared

    ReplyDelete
  2. Very nice pizza! I love grilling pizza. It seems to bring out the best flavors. Wonderful combination of toppings!

    ReplyDelete
  3. That pizza with all those yummy looking veggies is making me drool. Yum! I wanted to invite you to come over and share your recipe at These Chicks Cooked Recipe Spotlight today. Have a great day :)
    Katie

    ReplyDelete
  4. We are going to make this on Friday, but hopefully try a gleten free dough, you have a gluten free recipe? Thanks again for participating in Healthy 2day Wednesdays & I appologize for not commenting sooner, there was a malfunction with my commenting, not even able to comment on my own blog. Anyhow, hope to see you in the link up tomorrow!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Rachel, I do not have a gluten free recipe, but I do have a friend that uses Bob's Red Mill gluten free pizza crust mix and really likes it.

    ReplyDelete
  6. This just looks SO delicious ... it's definitely going in my "things to make" recipe file! Thank you for linking it up to the Pizza Party!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I'm so excited to see this recipe. I've always wanted to try grilled salad and I love the idea of grilling it on a pizza crust. Yum! We have a garden full of all kinds of lettuce and I have just about run out of new things to do. This is perfect. Question: Do you grill the pizza on the cookie sheet first then move it off the cookie sheet and to the side with coals? Or is the cookie sheet just for coating the bottom of the pizza with cornmeal? I'm confused. Thanks so much for this recipe and so many others of yours I have made and enjoyed.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, the cookie sheet pan acts as a pizza peel if you don't have one. The pizza gets cooked directly on the grill grate, not the cookie sheet pan. I hope you like it! :)

      Delete
  8. Looks different type of pizza, I'll try. Thank You!

    ReplyDelete