BBLT Pizza

I haven’t been cooking a thing lately but I’ve been cracking my knuckles a ton, unless you count slathering crunchy peanut butter and raw honey on Dave’s Killer Bread [which has been breakfast AND lunch lately — no shame]. It’s been eat out, eat out, eat out.

A ham and smoked gouda waffle taco from Flavour Spot? Check.

Plates of sushi from Samurai Blue? Check.

Herbed French toast from Radar? Check.

That doesn’t include the nachos, bagels, fresh juice, pasta with meatballs, abundance of froyo, and handful of breakfast burritos and tacos I’ve eaten. Seriously. I’m sensing a pattern.

We were at the library the other day — been reading books left and right lately — and Andrew hands me Pizza on the Grill. “Here, you’re getting this.” He’s subtle.

So we busted it out tonight. There are some gems in here, as well as others that make you scratch your head a little bit, but you can’t win them all. I see a lot of pizza in my future.

They make premade pizza dough at the store for a reason. Who am I to deny convenience? I am so easily convinced. It gave me more time to deal with all the other subtle aspects to this blue cheese, bacon, lettuce, and tomato. I’ll just say it now:

Grilled. Romaine. Hearts.

So damn good. I haven’t grilled any since last summer, but this pizza more than makes up for it. I splurged on a good blue cheese. It had a subtle tang, and wasn’t overly pungent in smell. It pooled into little lakes between the sweet chunks of heirloom tomatoes and crumbled bacon. Oh yes, the crumbled bacon. It was such a good combination. We destroyed the entire pizza in one sitting [no one is shocked, right?], which was necessary. The middle of the pizza will get soggy if you don’t jump on it. The tomatoes will get ooze all kinds of juice despite draining them prior to grilling. The recipe says you can let it stew in the fridge overnight, but who has that kind of time? Not I. My stomach needs food ASAP after work.

Inspiration: Pizza on the Grill

Ingredients

• 1 ball of pizza dough, room temperature
• 1/4 cup cornmeal or grits
• 1lb (about 2 medium) heirloom tomatoes, diced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 4-5 basil leaves, chopped
• 8 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 6oz blue cheese, crumbled
• 1 romaine lettuce heart
• salt and pepper
• chile flakes
• fresh sprigs of rosemary

Preparation

Preheat the gas grill on high for 10 minutes. Turn down to medium after that.

In a bowl, mix together the tomatoes, garlic, one tablespoon of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Set aside.

Cut the romaine in half length-wise. Brush [or spray] the romaine lettuce with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place on the grill for two minutes, flipping until all sides have grill marks. Set aside.

Sprinkle the cornmeal on a large flat surface. Roll out the dough, or spread it with your hands for a more rustic look, until it’s about 1/4-1/3″ thick. I tried to make mine a rectangle. It’s definitely anything but. Drizzle both sides with olive oil. Place one side down onto the grill and shut the lid. Let it grill for 3 minutes, or until the bottom has nice, dark grill marks. Pull it off onto a rimless baking sheet, grilled side up. Turn off your middle burner if your grill has three burners, or turn all the heat down to medium-low.

Drizzle a little more olive oil onto the unbaked side. Sprinkle some chile flakes and rosemary. Drain the tomatoes and mix in the fresh basil. Spread the tomatoes onto the pizza dough. Cover the with the bacon and blue cheese. Place back on the grill for 5-7 minutes until the cheese melts and the bottom is crispy.

Remove from the grill, and slice the grilled romaine into pieces lengthwise. Place the lettuce on top of the pizza. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Slice into pieces and eat immediately.