This is one of our favorite pizzas. We originally had it from Papa John’s and of course I had to recreate it because I like to know what’s in my food and all that. Plus I don’t like eating out and we live so far out of town now that it really doesn’t make sense.
So I am figuring out how to recreate our favorite take out foods in a healthier and cheaper version which is always fun.
I feel like I am thwarting the big food chains.
This recipe does a pretty good job of recreating the BBQ Chicken Pizza, in fact I think it is better. I typically make the crust with whole grain flour, much to my husband’s dismay.
It tastes fine, he just wants pizza to taste like what he got in Italy. If made with white flour, this is pretty close but Italians just do not make pizza dough with whole grains. Once in a great while though, I will make it with white flour as a special treat.
My whole grain flours are quite tasty since I mill them fresh, if you have a grain grinder and want to follow suite, great! If you don’t have access to freshly milled flour and want to go with whole grain I recommend doing a half, half mixture to keep the texture light, you can certainly go whole grain with store bought flour, but it will much heavier.
For the Dough- 1 teaspoon Instant Or Active Dry Yeast
- 1-½ cup Warm Water
- 4 cups All-purpose Flour (OR 5 cups freshly milled spelt flour + 2 tablespoons gluten flour)
- 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- ⅓ cups Olive Oil
For the toppings and construction - 1 whole Recipe For Pizza Crust
- 2 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
- ½ cups BBQ Sauce
- Olive Oil, For Drizzling
- Salt For Sprinkling
- 16 ounces, weight Fresh Mozzarella Cheese, Sliced Thinly
- ½ whole Red Onion, Cut In Half And Sliced Very Thin
- 4-6 pieces of bacon, cooked
- Chopped Cilantro, to taste
To Make the Dough- Pour the water into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook or a food processor and then sprinkle the yeast over the top. Let stand for about 10 minutes, until foamy.
- Add the flour and salt. Turn the mixer onto low and drizzle in olive oil until combined with flour. Turn the mixer to medium low and allow it to knead the dough for 10 minutes.
- Coat a separate mixing bowl with a light drizzle of olive oil, and form the dough into a ball. Toss to coat dough in olive oil, then cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and set it aside for 1 to 2 hours, or store in the fridge until you need it.
- Note: it’s best to make the dough at least 24 hours in advance, and 3 or 4 days is even better. Whenever the dough gets fluffy you just punch it down and re-cover it.
- When you are ready to make the pizza, preheat your oven to 400˚ and grab the pizza dough (recipe makes 2 small crusts or 1 large) squeeze the dough toward the bottom to form a nice, tight, pulled ball. You can roll out the pizza with a rolling pin. When the crust is nice and thin, lay it on an oiled baking sheet or pizza pan. Drizzle a little olive oil on the dough and spread it with your fingers. Very lightly sprinkle some salt on the crust. Bake the crust for about 15 minutes, or until it has risen and is starting to get golden. Then remove from the oven and put the toppings on.
To Construct the Pizza - Preheat oven to 400˚.
- Salt chicken breasts on both sides, then place in an ovenproof dish. Pour BBQ sauce over the breasts and turn them over to coat. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, (I like to bake it for about 25 minutes and then finish it on the grill) or until chicken is done. Remove from oven and cut into a fine dice. Set aside.
- Sprinkle the onions all over the pizza, then the chicken and bacon, then the cheese. Drizzle all over with extra BBQ sauce.
- Sprinkle again with a little salt, then bake for 15 to 17 minutes, or until crust is golden brown and toppings are bubbly.
- Remove from the oven and sprinkle on plenty of chopped cilantro. Cut and serve immediately.
- If you made 2 crusts then do the same with the other crust and other ingredients, or save for another time.
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