SAN DIEGO — San Diego has some great pizza joints and I've worked at a few. Palermo's in La Mesa now gone, Pernicano's in El Cajon, and Square Pan Pizza to name a few. The thing I love about pizza is once you have the basics down you can go any direction you want, and this recipe takes the heat out of the kitchen for summer.
Grilled Margherita Pesto Pizza
- 1 lb. pizza dough, Trader Joe's
- ¼ cup Basil pesto, 2 cubes from our Pesto recipe
- 2 Roma tomatoes, sliced
- ½ lb. Mozzarella cheese
- fresh Basil leaves
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese
- 2 tbsp. Olive oil
- ½ cup flour
Preheat your grill to medium high on one half and low on the other half. With the lid down the temperature on the inside should reach at least 500°. Now were ready to start to make the pizza and you can use any topping you like this is just a guideline.
I'm using Trader Joe's pizza dough, but any will work. While the dough is still firm and cool, sprinkle some flour on the surface where you'll press the dough out with your fingertips, you can also use a rolling pin. You should be able to get a 12" - 14" circle out of a pound of dough.
Lightly oil one side and place the oiled side on the grill, rotating the dough to cook evenly, about 2 -3 minutes. Keep a close eye on the dough so it doesn't burn. Brush lightly with oil and turn over to the other side of the grill, place topping on the cooked side and close the lid. Check in 3 - 4 minutes to see how things are cooking, look at the dough on the grill side as well as on top. Total cooking time after the turn will be 7-9 minutes depending on the temperature inside.
WATCH RELATED: Cooking with Styles | Taco Tuesday