On one sunny day, I was cruising down the boardwalk  by the beach, and overheard something shocking. This guy walking with his friends, who slightly strongly resembled “The Situation” from Jersey Shore, called pizza, “za”. As in “Hey, who’s hungry? Let’s go get some Za!”

No. Let’s not.

Apparently, that abbreviation is like nails to a chalkboard, for my ears. So, I zoomed away as fast as my little feet would carry me, to be sure that I wouldn’t be exposed to that word again.

Maybe it’s the pure-bred So Cal in me that was the reason behind my strong objections to anyone taking pizza’s name in vain like that, or maybe my opinions on the matter are not so far off track and that guy was really taking crazy pills [and thus he knows not what he hath done. Amen.]. I am ok with either explanation.

So… if you ever run into a hooligan of this sort, please relay the following message.

It’s called Pizza. Not “pizz”, not “za”, just plain old Pizza will do, thank you.

Lauren and I created the most layer-ific Pizza. The flavor was wild. I think our “go-to” veggie pile pizza was slightly disgraced by the new sherif in town, the Greek Pizza with Roasted Garlic Sauce.

Here is the artful preparation:

Slow Roasted Tomatoes: slice 2 cups of grape tomatoes, in half. Peel and smash 6-8 garlic cloves. Toss onto a foil-lined baking sheet drizzle liberally with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper, to taste. Let roast in the oven at 250 degrees F for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Reserve the garlic cloves and spoon some of the olive oil into a small bowl. Pour  2-3 Tbsp more of olive oil, some salt and pepper, into the bowl and with an immersion blender, break down the big garlic chunks and mix for about 20 seconds; this will be the sauce for your Greek Pizza! So simple!

Chop the cooked chicken, bell peppers, red onions, olives, and crumble the feta.

Roll out the Garlic & Herb Pizza Dough, on top of  a handful of cornmeal, to prevent sticking to the pizza stone and allow for a nice crispy crust. Bake the dough, alone, at 425 for about 5-7 minutes. Remove from oven and spread the Roasted Garlic Sauce on the top of the dough. You can wait for it to cool slightly, if its too hot to handle.

Start the layering.

Feta cheese crumbles.

Shredded Raw White Cheddar Cheese (or Mozzarella).

Red onions.

Slow roasted grape (or cherry) tomatoes.

Olives. We used black olives for a more mild taste, but you can use any olive that you would like! (such as, kalamata, green…colossal green olives stuffed with garlic…eh hem)

Greek-seasoned grilled chicken. Grill marks, complements of the awesome, the amazing, the George Foreman. Who doesn’t have one of these? I would REALLY like to know.

Sliced green bell peppers.

Oh, definitely top with more shredded cheddar cheese, or even feta. Don’t be shy. Sprinkle with some dried oregano. Then place in the oven to bake at 425 degrees F for about 15-20 minutes, or until desired melty-ness and crispiness.

Grab your plate, if you want a slice before it’s gone!

Please note the extremely crispy cheese patch, serenely sitting on the crust. Just like it’s waiting to catch a bus or something. Lauren was lucky enough to get that piece. If only I could be so lucky…

See all of you local San Diegans out at the Taste of Little Italy today, May 25, 2011, from 5-9PM.

Greek Pizza with Roasted Garlic Sauce

Ingredients:

pizza dough, we used TJ’s Garlic and Herb

2 cups grape tomatoes, halved

6-8 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed

4 chicken tenders, or 1 1/2-2 chicken breasts

Greek seasoning (to season chicken)

1 tsp oregano

1/2 green bell pepper, thinly sliced

1/4 medium red onion, thinly sliced

1/2 cup black olives

3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

1 cup shredded raw white cheddar cheese, or mozzarella

salt and pepper

cornmeal, for bottom of crust

Directions:

1. Slow Roasted Tomatoes: slice 2 cups of grape tomatoes, in half. Peel and smash 6-8 garlic cloves. Toss onto a foil-lined baking sheet drizzle liberally with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper, to taste. Let roast in the oven at 250 degrees F for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

2. Reserve the garlic cloves and spoon some of the olive oil into a small bowl or glass pyrex measuring cup.  Pour  2-3 Tbsp more of olive oil, some salt and pepper, into the bowl and with an immersion blender, break down the big garlic chunks and mix for about 20 seconds; this will be the sauce for your Greek Pizza!

3. Chop and slice onions, bell peppers, and olives.

4. Season chicken with olive oil and Greek seasoning (salt, pepper, garlic powder, and oregano would work too). Grill until cooked through. Let sit for a few minutes before slicing the chicken, so it doesn’t lose all of the juices.

5. Sprinkle a little handful of cornmeal on the pizza stone (or greased baking sheet), and spread the rolled out pizza dough on top.

6. Bake the dough, alone, at 425 for about 5-7 minutes. Remove from oven and spread the Roasted Garlic Sauce on the top of the dough. You can wait for it to cool slightly, if its too hot to handle.

7. Layer on the following items: Feta, most of the shredded white cheddar, onions, Slow Roasted Tomatoes, olives, grilled Greek chicken, bell peppers, the rest of the shredded white cheddar cheese, and sprinkle with oregano.

8. Place in the oven to bake at 425 degrees F for about 15-20 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown.

From The Little Yellow Kitchen,

Chrissy