Chicken Bacon Ranch Pizza

This pizza is one of the best things I've ever eaten and as most pizzas are, it's incredibly simple. Ranch dressing is an amazing accompaniment to the smoky bacon. Just a heads up: this pizza doesn't have any tomato sauce on it, just in case you thought you read the recipe wrong.

While there is no such thing as "bad" pizza in my world, I have yet to jump on the thin-crust bandwagon that seems to be taking over these days. The crust is one of the best parts of the pizza. A nice crust that can stand up to a lot of toppings is my preference. I like the simplicity and ease of the Canadian Living dough recipe from May 2007, but everyone has their go-to dough recipe, so use your favorite.



It is incredibly sinful and over the top, but just before serving, drizzle with Japanese mayo for a delightful tang and creaminess. Try it once and you'll fall in love. Japanese mayonnaise is made with apple cider vinegar or rice vinegar and a small amount of MSG, which gives it a different flavor from American mayonnaise made from distilled vinegar. In Japan many fried dishes are served with mayonnaise for dipping and it's also common to put it on pizza there. By the way, I didn't know that prior to my own experimentation. It just sounded good in my head, lol. Kewpie (Q.P.) is the most popular brand (clear plastic squeeze bottle with red lid, Kewpie doll logo).





Chicken Bacon Ranch Pizza
14" Pizza | Dough from Canadian Living, May 2007

Dough for 1 pizza - homemade or storebought

1 cup cooked chicken (chopped) - I used cooked ground chicken this time
1/4 cup ranch dressing
1/2 cup tomatoes, seeded and diced
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped bacon
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 small onion, thinly sliced (I like red onions)

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees F. Roll pizza dough out to a 12-14" round. Bake crust (no toppings) for 8-10 minutes. Prepare toppings during this time.

2. Combine the chicken, ranch dressing, tomatoes, pepper and bacon in a mixing bowl. Evenly spread mixture over warm pizza crust. Top with mozzarella then scatter onions on top. It will look like a lot of onion but the onions mellow out and turn sweet and fragrant in the oven. Cut back on the onion if you like though.

3. Place topped pizza back into oven for another 12-15 minutes until nicely browned and cheese is melted. Remove pizza and lightly sprinkle with parmesan (and Japanese mayo!)

Papa John's Chicken Club Pizza and Pizza Crescents

My 3 year old started preschool last week, right after his third birthday. I've now got to pack him lunch (aww!!!) This might sound odd, but paking lunch makes me feel like a 'real' mom. I love waking up early to put an ice pack and juice box into his insulated lunchbag along with a little treat - fruit snacks or mini brownies or a smartie cookie. I'm sure the novelty of packing lunch will wear off eventually but for now I'm loving it. It makes grocery shopping even more fun looking at things he might like to eat and all the little "snack packs" of his favorite foods.

I had a little ball of extra pizza dough which I made into mini pizza crescents for Zach's lunch. He loved them! And so did I. Just roll out the dough thinly into a circle, spread lightly with pizza sauce, sprinkle with cheese, cut into wedges, roll up and bake.



In my opinion, the sauce can make or break the pizza. It's so easy to go wrong with sauce as I know personally. Too sweet, too sour, too tangy, too thick, too thin, too bland, too salty. However, I am happy to announce that as of today, my search is over! I have tried so many different recipes out there from America's Test Kitchen to Wolfgang to Cooking Light. They all were missing something and I had to keep looking. This recipe is perfect in taste and consistency. I double the batch and freeze it or use as dip for breadsticks.



Papa John's Pizza Sauce
1 cup

1 (10 3/4 ounce) can tomato paste or puree
1/4 cup water
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp olive oil
1/4 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp oregano
1/8 tsp basil
1/8 tsp thyme
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder

Combine ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Freezes well.

Papa John's Chicken Club Pizza
Toppings for 1 - 14" pizza



1/3 - 1/2 cup Papa John's Pizza Sauce
1 cup Grilled Chicken Breast, chopped (or rotisserie chicken breast)
1/2 cup Crumbled Bacon
1/2 cup Ham, chopped
1/2 cup Diced Tomatoes
2 mushrooms, sliced
2 cups Mozzarella Cheese

Spread sauce on semi-baked pizza dough. In a bowl toss all topping ingredients together and sprinkle evenly on top of pizza crust. Bake on a pizza stone (if you have one) at 450 degrees F until cheese is melted and crust is golden brown, 8-10 minutes, maybe more.

Pizza Hut Pan Pizza

I have a little obsession with pizza. Me and a lot of people I suppose, as there is a whole Pizza Making Forum where they discuss different pizza styles: New York, Chicago, Italian, Thin Crust, Pan Crust, you name it! They also talk about different pizza making equipment like pizza stones and various pans. Come to think of it, I don't think I've actually had a really bad pizza - hard to go terribly wrong with bread, tomato sauce and cheese, right?

My son and I had a lot of fun making these pizzas. I made the dough this morning before work, let it rise in the fridge and then rolled it out and topped it when we got home after picking him up from daycare. We also sang the song "Je Suis Un Pizza" or "I am a Pizza" which I remember singing in my own elementary school classes as a kid. Aww... this mommyhood thing is getting more and more fun as time goes by and as Zach begins asking more questions and interacting more with me. When they were done he quickly scrambled up onto a kitchen chair and yelled at the top of his lungs "DINNER! PIZZA'S READY!" Aww, he melts my heart.

This pizza is a copycat of Pizza Hut's deep dish pizza. I must say, it is pretty close! It might seem like a lot of oil to put in the pan, but it's not too oily once it's baked and it helps the crust not stick. I baked these in my 9" cake pans. The original recipe says you can make 3 pizzas but I could only get 2 out of the recipe.

Pizza Hut Pan Pizza
Makes 2 - 9" pizzas

1 1/3 cup warm water (105F)
1/4 cup dry milk powder
1/2 tsp salt
3-4 cups flour
1 tbsp sugar
1 pkg (2 1/4 tsp) active dry yeast
2 tbsp vegetable oil (for dough)
6 tbsp vegetable oil (3 tbsp per pan)

8 oz. grated mozzarella cheese
2/3 cup pizza sauce
toppings of your choice

Put yeast, sugar, salt, and dry milk in a large bowl. Add water and stir to mix well. Allow to sit for two minutes. Add oil and stir again. Add flour and stir until dough forms and flour is absorbed. Turn out on to a flat surface and knead for about 10 minutes. Divide dough into two balls. In 2- 9″ cake pans put 3 tbsp oil in each making sure it is spread evenly. Using a rolling pin, roll out each dough ball to about a 9″ circle. Place in cake pans. Cover with a plate. Place in warm area and allow to rise for 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Prepeat oven to 450 degrees F. Spoon 1/3 cup sauce on each pizza and spread to within 1/2 inch of edge. Distribute 1 oz. of shredded mozzarella cheese on each pizza. Place toppings of your choice in this order – pepperoni or ham, vegetables, meats (cooked ground sausage or beef) Top with 3 oz. mozzarella cheese. Cook until cheese is bubbling and outer crust is brown – about 15 minutes.

Pizza Buns

There's just something about the smell of cheese and tomato sauce baked together that is simply mouth-watering. Even if I'm not hungry, the smell of pizza gets my stomach growling. These muffin-sized pizza buns definitely induced that reaction while they were baking. The dough is a little airier and lighter than pizza dough. Definitely a great snack that lets you fulfill your pizza craving without ordering a whole pie. You could easily throw in some cooked bacon and onions or chopped up pepperoni for even more pizza goodness.

Pizza Buns
Makes 12 | Adapted from King Arthur Flour

1 1/3 cup warm milk
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
3-4 cups flour

3/4 cup pizza sauce
1 cup grated cheddar cheese

1. Combine milk with yeast in stand mixer bowl and let stand until foamy, approximately 5 minutes.
2. Add olive oil and stir to combine. With mixer on low using dough hook, add 1 cup flour, sugar and salt. Add the remaining flour as needed to reach the desired consistency. The dough should be soft but not sticky. Lightly oil the top with additional olive oil or butter. Cover and let rise until almost doubled, about 1 hour.
3. Gently punch down dough and roll out into a large, thin rectangle.
4. Spread pizza sauce over dough and sprinkle with cheddar cheese. Roll up starting from long end, pinch to seal the seams and cut into 12 rolls. Place each into a greased muffin tin. Cover and let rise for 30-45 minutes, until almost doubled. Sprinkle with additional cheese if desired.
5. Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 mins until golden brown.