Gourmet Pizza Recipes

The very thought of "Pizza" makes me hungry. What is the first thought that comes to your mind when you think of pizza or hear somebody talking about pizza? Is it its crusty base or the melted pool of cheese over the toppings? Are you aware, pizza is only an open sandwich that could be mashed up at home? You can use leftover chicken, ham, bacon or even the baked vegetables and top it with Swiss or Parmesan cheese instead of mozzarella.

Wondering what a "Gourmet Pizza" is all about? Gourmet means unique or high quality. The pizzas made at home with leftover meat and vegetables give a unique taste to the pizza. You need only need five things to make a gourmet pizza. They are: the pizza base known as crust, a sauce of your choice, topping (vegetables or non-vegetables) and cheese. One thing that needs to be kept in mind is not to add too many toppings, as the pizza would lose its flavor. Did you known pizza is originally an Italian food? Many around the world favor Italian pizzas.

Tips to Remember

Keep in mind these tips, while baking a gourmet pizza.

• Even if it is your favorite sauce, spread it sparing enough to cover the dough; else the pizza would have the flavor of the sauce.
• For the topping, decide on a main topping and one extra topping. For instance, cooked chicken pieces would go well with black olives.
• Use only one or two types of cheese. Do not use diet cheese, as it would not melt quickly or well. Though mozzarella cheese is the most favored one, you could try using Cheddar, Swiss, Parmesan or Monterey Jack cheese.
• You can use a pre-baked pizza base or make the base at home.

Gourmet Pizza - Grilled Chicken with Broccoli

Using pre-baked crust saves time. Here is a simple recipe to make a grilled chicken pizza.

Ingredients
1 Large pizza crust
2 Cups grilled chicken (shredded or cut into small pieces)
1 Cup broccoli (sliced)
1 Tsp olive oil
1 Cup Mozzarella cheese
½ Cup Swiss cheese
Salt and pepper as per taste

Preparation
Start preparing by pre-heating the oven at 400 degrees F. Smear oil on the crust of the pizza and lavishly sprinkle the grilled chicken over it. Now arrange the broccoli above the grilled chicken. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese over the broccoli and bake it for 8-10 minutes. When the cheese starts to melt, remove the pizza from the oven and sprinkle ½ cup of Swiss cheese. Bake the pizza for 5 to 6 minutes or until the cheese turns brown. Serve hot with chili flakes or oregano powder.

Note - There are many different ways to grill chicken. You could choose the one that best suits your taste.

Gourmet Pizza - Ham and Feta Cheese

Ingredients
1 Large pizza crust
1/2 Cup pizza sauce of your choice
1 Cup Feta cheese
1 Cup Mozzarella cheese
1 Cup sliced ham (you can also use leftover ham)
½ Cup mushroom (sliced)
½ Tsp each of crushed oregano, red pepper and basil
Salt to taste

Preparation
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. On a greased pan, place the pizza crust. Smear the pizza sauce over the crust. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese evenly over the pizza and arrange the sliced ham over the cheese. Sprinkle the mushroom slices. Over the mushroom, sprinkle the feta cheese evenly. Sprinkle salt, oregano, basil and pepper over the cheese and bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until the cheese turns brown and the crust is crisp.

If you are a vegetarian, you could replace the ham, bacon and chicken toppings with vegetables.