Pizza to be Thankful for
I love that my better half loves food and cooking as much as I do. It's something we can enjoy together, but it also helps us come up with some great ideas for dinner! I didn't realize some other pizza shops such as Grottos had a Thanksgiving pizza, but we decided to make one. Some folks celebrate Christmas in July, but maybe Thanksgiving in July could catch on.
Chris made smoked turkey breast a few days earlier and we had just a bit leftover. I mentioned making pizza with ground Elk on top, and as we discussed pizza toppings Chris mentioned putting the turkey and leftovers from that meal on a pizza using gravy as the sauce. Thats just what I decided to do!
I stretched out the pizza dough, struggling to make a circle. The dough was made a few hours prior and to everyones surprise it was just as good as what my Dad makes a day or two in advance. I ladled some gravy on top and spread it out, sprinkled some of the turkey (now diced into bite size pieces), crumbled stuffing over top, we didn't have my Mom's delicious homemade stuffing, but we had boxed, so we used that, and topped with mozzarella and parmesan cheese. After we grilled it on the Kamado Joe, we put slices of cranberry sauce on top as we dug in! I was grateful for Chris's genius idea, and he was thankful I made it happen. My parents and Chris fought over the leftovers!
Next time you have Thanksgiving leftovers, give Thanksgiving pizza a try! You can always get pre-made crust, but homemade is worth it!
Pizza dough recipe (Found at: https://jaketparasuthangat.blogspot.com/2020/03/the-authentic-italian-pizza-dough.html)
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F)
2 teaspoons sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons (1 package) active dry yeast or instant yeast
3 1/2 to 4 cups bread flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
**Keep in mind we grilled our pizza so I did not follow the baking instructions, instead we preheated the Kamado Joe to about 600 degrees and then put the pizza stone on it to heat up before sliding the pizza on, we also used indirect heat.
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F)
2 teaspoons sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons (1 package) active dry yeast or instant yeast
3 1/2 to 4 cups bread flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
Instructions:
Place a pizza stone in the oven if you have one. Preheat oven to 500 degrees F (or 475 if that's as high as your oven will go) while preparing the pizza dough so it can be completely hot when you are ready to bake the pizzas.
Combine warm water, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl. If using active dry yeast, let it proof for 5 minutes until foamy. If using instant yeast, there is no need to wait for the yeast to proof.
Add flour, olive oil, and salt and stir well with a wooden spoon or mix in a stand mixer with a dough hook until combined.
Knead for 5 minutes using a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment or 6-7 minutes by hand until smooth and elastic. The dough will be tacky and slightly sticky, but should still be manageable to work with.
Drizzle a clean bowl with a little olive oil, then place the ball of dough in the bowl and turn it to coat in the oil. Cover with plastic wrap or a clean cloth and let rise for at least 30 minutes (or up to 1 1/2 hours) until doubled in size.
Divide the dough into 2 or 3 balls (or more if you want to make personal-size pizzas).
Roll, pat, or stretch the dough out until it is roughly 1/4" thick, then top with 1/4-1/2 cup of pizza sauce, freshly grated mozzarella cheese, and other toppings.
Bake for 5-10 minutes until the cheese is melted and the crust is golden brown and crispy around the edges.
Cool slightly before cutting and serving
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