Pizza Improvised

Last night pizza was on the menu. It was 96º outside. Turning the oven on would have made it stifling inside. I put on my thinking cap and turned Marine; did a little improvising.

1 loaf (16 oz) Everything Italian bread (bought on mark down at Wally world on a Friday afternoon and thrown into the freezer for later use)
1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
6-7 cherry tomatoes
5 fresh basil leaves
½ tsp garlic powder
1small onion
2 tsp Italian seasoning
½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
½ cup chopped green pepper
½ cup chopped pepperoni
1 cup mozzarella cheese
¼ cup parmesan cheese
1 Tbsp olive oil

Preheat heat grill and set to medium. Split bread lengthwise; brush with olive oil. Place, inside down, on grill for 2-3 minutes, to lightly brown bread. Remove from grill and turn temperature to low.

In food processor or grinder, combine tomatoes, basil leaves, 1 tsp Italian seasoning, and onion and chop/process until a paste is made.

In small bowl mix tomato paste, garlic powder, red pepper flakes and tomato/basil paste together and stir well. Spread on bread halves. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Top with pepperoni and green pepper. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and 1 tsp Italian seasoning.

Place bread halves on aluminum foil and cook on grill, covered for about 15-20 minutes. Be sure to check as some grills cook hotter than others and you don’t want the bottoms of the bread to burn. Remove from grill, slice and serve.



© Crackerberries 2009