My kitchen is officially {almost} finished, and I am already hooked on it. I love working with all that counter top and the scads of cupboard space which means pans are not haphazardly stacked weapons waiting to escape when I open a door.
One thing I always struggled with making on my confining counter space was pizza, since rolling out pizza dough while your rolling pin hits your toaster/tap/kettle/everything in sight is really an exercise in pretty extreme frustration. There are few nights better than pizza night, and I really wish I made homemade pizza consistently every single week. Our whole family loves it every time, but it doesn’t happen as often as I’d like, so I’m hoping to change that with my new found space!
It should also be an easy change now that I’ve perfected my pizza crust recipe to be everything I want in a pizza crust – not too thin, not too thick, not too crispy, not too soft, and super easy to work with when rolling, stretching, and picking up. Tall orders, I know, but this crust really does meet all the criteria, and has received rave reviews from various taste testers.
Yes, you have to know you want to make pizza a couple hours before you actually want pizza, but this crust is worth it.
And obviously, shrimp, bacon, garlic, Parmesan cheese, and Caesar dressing make for a pretty amazing combo on top of any crust, so feel free to throw the toppings on a store bought crust and enjoy pizza night in record time!
- CRUST:
- 4 cups all-purpose or bread flour (I use 2 cups all-purpose flour and 2 cups multi-grain bread flour)
- 1 envelope instant (quick rise) yeast
- 1¾ cup warm (110 degree) water
- 3 Tbsp olive or canola oil
- ½ tsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 2-3 Tbsp cornmeal
- TOPPING (for 2 pizzas):
- 1-2 cloves garlic
- ½ cup Caesar dressing
- ⅓ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 6 slices bacon, roughly chopped
- Approx. 1 lb peeled, deveined shrimp
- 4 cups Monterey Jack cheese, divided
- ¼ cup thinly sliced red onion
- ⅓ cup chopped fresh parsley
- FOR CRUST:
- Spray 2 pizza pans or baking sheets with cooking spray and sprinkle lightly with cornmeal. Set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine flour and yeast. Add in water, oil, and sugar. When dough is starting to pull together, add the salt and knead the dough on low speed until it forms a smooth, elastic, firm dough, about 6-8 minutes.
- Pull the dough out, lightly oil the bowl (I spray it with cooking spray), and place the dough back in. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 2 hours, or until doubled in size.
- Punch dough down and divide into 2 equal portions. Transfer to a large, lightly floured surface and roll out to desired size/shape for 2 pizzas.
- Gently pick up rolled crust and transfer to prepared pans. The dough should have a fair bit of give/stretch, but, if it tears, simply stretch the dough when it's on the pan to patch any holes.
- SHRIMP & BACON CAESAR TOPPING: Roast garlic at 400 degrees for 30 minutes, or until soft.
- Meanwhile, cook bacon to desired crispness, draining fat and adding shrimp for last minute or two of cooking. Cook just until shrimp are opaque, then remove from pan and set aside.
- Turn oven temperature to 425 degrees.
- Mash garlic with the flat side of a large knife blade and mix with Caesar dressing and Parmesan cheese. Spread evenly over pizza crusts.
- Divide 3 cups of Monterey Jack cheese evenly over 2 pizzas. Top with red onion, bacon, and shrimp, then sprinkle on remaining 1 cup of cheese.
- Bake at 425 degrees for 15-20 minutes, until cheese is melted and bubbly and crust is golden brown.
- Remove from oven, sprinkle with parsley, and let cool for a minute or two before slicing and deVOURing. Enjoy :)
Crust recipe mainly adapted from Sophistimom.
What a delicious pizza. Loved the addition of bacon.
Used my own dough and Caesar dressing, so good.
This is MY kind of pizza! Perfectly thin with the shrimp and melting cheese on every bite. Just gorgeous!
This pizza looks so great. I love having shrimp on top of my pizza, but it’s just too expensive when you eat out. Now I can make this at home with as many shrimps as I want! :)
Wow, what could be a better pizza topping combination?! My husband would just love this combination with bacon and Caesar! Yum!
love the chicken version
Oh, wow! Such a great treat!
I’m totally drooling here! The 2nd photo is gorgeous! You really make me want a slice of this pizza, and I can’t have one. Do you deliver? 5 Stars!!
Looks delicious! I’m with Katy though and will try it with chicken. Glad you are enjoying your new kitchen :)
This sounds wonderful. I looooove pizza. Add shrimp, and I’m totally on board!
Mm that looks delicious. Anthony would love the shrimp version but I think this would be so tasty with chicken. I’m just not a shrimp fan; I’ve tried. I’ll have to come over soon to admire your new space!
It is so tasty with chicken – I usually do one of each too to keep everyone happy :) I always bake my chicken with the garlic beside it to roast, kills two birds with one stone!
Hey Anna. I’m making this but am just wondering: if you just roast the chicken in the oven with the garlic how exactly do you do that? :) Just want to make sure it cooks properly. Nothing worse than over cooked or unevenly cooked chicken. Thanks!
Sorry Katy, my internet has been patchy all day! I preheat the oven to 425 and put the chicken on a baking sheet. I wrap the garlic loosely in foil with a smidgen of olive oil drizzled on it and put that packet beside the chicken. Usually both will be done after about 30 minutes, or until done.
Those big, juicy shrimp, that bubbling Monterey Jack cheese, and the perfectly proportioned thin crust…this is The perfect pizza!
(Also, I’m kind of jealous of your new-found counter space!) :D