State of Origin Pizza BBQ style

Click here for recipe:

Maroon is our favorite color tonight, it's State of Origin , Mr. HRK is excited and dinner is his choice. It's kind of like Make it like a Man.  Well, it is actually traditional for us to make pizzas on State of Origin night, and he has excelled himself. They must be cooked in the BBQ oven, and the dough is thin and crispy, perfect. This is partly due to a gift I bought him recently, a pizza tray with holes in the base and slightly elevated. My homemade passata topping provides an aromatic and flavoursome addition. A glass of red or rather maroon wine, a nice Pinot Noir and we are set for the game.

Our BBQ has been utilised in a variety of ways today. Mr. HRK has roasted his coffee beans to perfection in his homemade coffee roasting drum. I chargrilled some of our homegrown eggplants, blackened the skins, in preparation for making my Baba Ganoush. This was followed by the pizza.

Pizza dough recipe:

400g (14oz/2 2/3 cups) plain flour
14 g (1/2 oz/1 tablespoon) dried yeast
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
250ml (9 fl oz/1 cup) lukewarm water
3 teaspoons olive oil

1. Place the flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a bowl and make a well in the centre. Combine the water and olive oil and add to the flour mixture. Use a wooden spoon and then your hands to  mix a dough.
2. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 minutes or until smooth and elastic.
3. Place the dough in an oiled bowl and turn to coat lightly in the oil. Cover loosely with a clean, slightly damp tea towel or plastic wrap and set aside in a warm, draught-free place for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
4. Knock back the dough by punching your fist into the centre of the dough. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 2-3 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Use immediately as directed.

Add your favourite toppings to the pizza. Allow approximately 10 minutes cooking time in the BBQ with the hood down. As you can see there is a lot meat on this pizza because it's football tonight. However add lots of other toppings such as capsicum and mushrooms if you wish.

TIP:

For a crispy base, sprinkle grated mozzarella cheese over the base first, then add your homemade aromatic passata or bought tomato sauce and place in blobs over the cheese. 

Then add the remainder of your favourite toppings, remembering simple is best with pizza, including lots of home grown oregano and basil and you are on your way to the traditional Pizza Margherita.

(The dough recipe is taken from "Make me pizza", published by Murdoch books.

Variations to the dough:

Wholemeal pizza dough:

Replace the plain flour with 400g (14 oz/2 2/3 cups) wholemeal flour and add an extra 50 ml (1 1/2 fl oz ) lukewarm water

Rosemary pizza dough:

After kneading in step 2, add 2 teaspoons very finely chopped rosemary and knead for another 1 minute to incorporate.

Parmesan pizza dough:

After kneading in step 2, add 40 g (1 1/2 oz) finely freshly grated parmesan cheese and knead for another 1 minute to incorporate.

Warm wishes, 

Pauline