BBQ Chicken Pizza

While we love pizza all year round, it certainly seems to become more of a staple as the weather cools. Not only do we find ourselves ordering in more often, but pizza just seems like the reliable option when you’re sitting down to watch a football or hockey game. Even better is that there is now a yeast available for pizza crusts that doesn’t require a rise time so that you can have from-scratch pizza in two shakes of a lamb’s tail (more on that in a minute – the yeast, not the lamb). We have no idea how we went our entire life without having a BBQ chicken pizza. It’s fabulous!! This is an especially useful way to use up any leftover chicken you have in the fridge. Feel free to use our recipe below as a guide and add whatever ingredients you like – black beans, chopped tomatoes, and avocado would be great additions.

The yeast we used for this pizza is a new line by Fleischmann’s that was designed specifically for pizza crust. The Pizza Crust Yeast has been formulated in such a way that it eliminates rise time and the associated worry that for some reason it might not rise. We were pretty excited to try this. Even though we love our favorite pizza crust recipe perhaps more than life itself, sometimes you just don’t want to have to wait, and sometimes you just don’t want to drag out your mixer or food processor. This pizza crust yeast provides the reliable alternative. We mixed it in one bowl, with a wooden spoon and then kneaded on the counter, pressed the dough into a pan and topped it and baked it. Less than 40 minutes from when we began until we pulled the pizza out of the oven. It doesn’t get much better than that! On top of the convenience, we enjoyed the texture and flavor of the crust. It got crisp, but not too crisp and still had a bit of the chewy factor that pizza crust is known for. We know many people who are intimidated by from-scratch pizza due to the yeast factor, so we hope this new product gives some of you who may have been hesitant to try yeast-based recipes before the confidence to give this one a shot!

And now on to the giveaway! We're offering a $100 Visa gift card so you can host your own pizza party! One lucky reader, selected at random, will receive the card, which can be used anywhere that Visa is accepted. Now, for the guidelines:

Deadline: Thursday, October 22, 2009 11:59pm EST

Required: Your email address. You must fill out the email address portion of the comment form (it will not be published) or we will not be able to contact you should you win.

What are your favorite pizza toppings?

BBQ Chicken Pizza

Yield: 8 servings This from-scratch pizza is full of flavor

For the Crust:

• 1¾ - 2¼ cups (160 to 270 g) all-purpose flour
• 1 envelope Fleischmann's Pizza Yeast
• 1½ teaspoons (1.5 teaspoons) sugar
• ¾ teaspoon (0.75 teaspoon) salt
• ⅔ cup (166.67 ml) warm water, 120° to 130°F
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil

For the Toppings:

• 1½ cups (210 g) cooked shredded chicken
• ½ cup (143 ml) + 2 Tablespoons barbecue sauce, divided
• 4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
• ¼ (0.25) red onion, thinly sliced
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced
• 1 cup (113 g) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

• 1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
• 2. Combine 1 cup flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add water and oil. Mix together until well blended; about 1 minute.
• 3. Gradually add ½ cup flour until soft dough ball is formed; will be slightly sticky. Add additional flour if needed to form dough ball.
• 4. Knead on a floured surface, adding additional flour if needed, until smooth and elastic; about 4 minutes. With floured hands, press dough out to fill a greased pizza pan, or roll dough into a 12-inch circle and transfer to a greased pizza pan.
• 5. Mix together the shredded chicken and 2 Tablespoons of barbecue sauce.
• 6. Spread ½ cup of the barbecue sauce over the pizza dough. Top with chicken, bacon, onions and cheese.
• 7. Bake on the bottom oven rack for 12 to 15 minutes until the cheese is bubbly and the crust has browned.

Disclaimer: This post was sponsored by ACH Foods, makers of Fleischmann’s Pizza Crust Yeast

• Yield: 8 servings
• Prep: 30 minutes
• Cook: 15 minutes
• Total: 45 minutes

Ingredients

For the Crust:

• 1¾ - 2¼ cups ( 160 to 270 g ) all-purpose flour
• 1 envelope Fleischmann's Pizza Yeast
• 1½ teaspoons ( 1.5 teaspoons ) sugar
• ¾ teaspoon ( 0.75 teaspoon ) salt
• ⅔ cup ( 166.67 ml ) warm water, 120° to 130°F
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil

For the Toppings:

• 1½ cups ( 210 g ) cooked shredded chicken
• ½ cup ( 143 ml ) + 2 Tablespoons barbecue sauce, divided
• 4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
• ¼ ( 0.25 ) red onion, thinly sliced
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced
• 1 cup ( 113 g ) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Method

1. 1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. 2. Combine 1 cup flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add water and oil. Mix together until well blended; about 1 minute.
3. 3. Gradually add ½ cup flour until soft dough ball is formed; will be slightly sticky. Add additional flour if needed to form dough ball.
4. 4. Knead on a floured surface, adding additional flour if needed, until smooth and elastic; about 4 minutes. With floured hands, press dough out to fill a greased pizza pan, or roll dough into a 12-inch circle and transfer to a greased pizza pan.
5. 5. Mix together the shredded chicken and 2 Tablespoons of barbecue sauce.
6. 6. Spread ½ cup of the barbecue sauce over the pizza dough. Top with chicken, bacon, onions and cheese.
7. 7. Bake on the bottom oven rack for 12 to 15 minutes until the cheese is bubbly and the crust has browned.