BBQ Chicken Pizza

So, Friday night I worked my domestic magic. While Mike and I were doing our daily Insanity workout, I was running into the kitchen, bringing pizza dough up to room temp, pre-heating the oven, etc...during water breaks. All in a sports bra with sweat dripping off my face. Hey Martha...stick that in your pipe and smoke it.

BBQ Chicken Pizza-the Super Mas Easy Way
Serves 2

Ingredients:
1 cup shredded chicken..you know like the kind from the Chicken Tortilla Soup...
1 cup BBQ sauce
1 cup mozzarella cheese
Pre-made pizza dough from Trader Joe's (Garlic and Herb baby!)
1/4 cup sliced red onion
Cilantro to sprinkle on top
Olive oil, granulated garlic and salt

Allow the pizza dough to sit out on the counter for about 20 minutes. This makes it a lot easier to work with.
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
If you're using a pizza stone (which I am not, most likely because I do not own one) remember to leave it in the hot oven for a good 1/2 hour or so to get it smokin' hot. Otherwise, spray your pizza pan with some Pam so you don't have to pry your delicious pie off the pan with a spatula and risk compromising the integrity.
Coat your hands with flour and start working with the dough. Get it into a nice big ball and then put in on the pan.
Using your hands, gently spread the dough towards the edges of the pan. Keep it as round as possible, but a little oddly-shaped pizza never killed anyone.
Once its spread out, pour the BBQ sauce on and use a brush to evenly cover the dough leaving a half-an-inch border of crust dry.
The chicken that came out of the leftover soup, wring out as much excess liquid as you can, or you'll end up with soupy pizza. And that's not a good thing. Place the chicken on top of the sauce.
Now top that with the mozz. If you have shredded, go nuts. I had a big log of it from Costco, so I made thin slices of it and casually placed them to get even coverage.
Throw the sliced onions on top of that.
Using a brush, or your fingers, coat the dry crust with olive oil, then sprinkle with the granulated garlic & salt. This gives the crusts some character.
Bake for about 12-15 minutes, depending on your oven, and how well-done you like the crust. The cheese should be nice and bubbly and the crust should be at the precipice of golden brown.
Cut the pizza into 8 small slices and serve with a big salad. Enjoy!!

Homemade pizzas are very near and dear to my heart. First off, it's simple comfort food. Secondly, it's easy to throw together in a pinch. Just about anything can go on top. Feeling a little crazy? Throw some salami and artichokes on top. Or whatever really. Be creative. Making pizzas at home is supposed to be fun, so go nuts.

Oh, and about crust. Short of making it from scratch in "Big Red"...my nickname for my KitchenAid Artisan Stand Mixer, Trader Joe's is, in my opinion, the best on the market. It's cheap, easy to use and delicious. I love their Garlic & Herb dough, but they also over plain and whole wheat.

One more thing...I'm serious about spraying with Pam kids. The very first time I cooked for Mike, I forgot and we ended up with "Franken-pizza." Of course I had talked up my cooking skills to him beforehand so I felt like a grade-A jackass. Luckily he thought it was cute and here we are a year and a half later. But please...please....please avoid this mistake. Not every guy out there is as forgiving ladies. So look like a goddess in the kitchen and spritz your pan!