BBQ Chicken Pizza

I have a quick and easy recipe for BBQ Chicken pizza. Rather than spend $12-14.00 on take out, I can make mine from things I have in my pantry and garden. My pizzas are not only “homemade” but I’ve even heard guests toss around the word: “gourmet.” This is my go-to recipe that is always a crowd-pleaser at dinner…or even at cocktail parties (when cut into squares).

I use Boboli Pizza crust, although you can also use Pillsbury Pizza dough or even buy pizza dough from your local pizza place. I personally think Boboli is the easiest. I also like the thin crust as well as the whole wheat Boboli pizza crusts. You save over ½ the calories and fat if you use the thin crust, and wheat is always the best health option (try switching to whole wheat pastas, pizza crusts, breads etc. and you’ll find you cut out almost half the calories, fat and sugar).

First, cook one to two boneless skinless chicken breasts in the oven at 350 for ½ hour. I salt and pepper my chicken and put in an oven safe dish. *** I also usually make this pizza with left over chicken. Great way to reinvent last night’s chicken meal! Once cooked, cut into bite size pieces.

Next, I slice up a red onion. I leave them in bigger pieces instead of chopping it up. In a saute pan, I pour a little bit of olive oil in the pan to coat the bottom. Once the pan is sizzling hot (or the oil shimmers), I add the onions. Turn the heat down and let them caramelize.

While your onions are caramelizing, I pour out some BBQ sauce (you choose!). I’ve tried spicy, mild, sweet, and tangy – whatever you like. It really is a personal choice. My son doesn’t like the spicy, so I tend to go with a sweeter BBQ when serving to children, and then kick it up when serving adults. I’ve never measured the amount of BBQ sauce either. I pour a bit on, take a spoon and cover the surface of the crust/dough. A little goes a long way – especially if you’re using a spicy BBQ sauce. Cheap shortcut: Save sauces from McDonald’s or other fast food places – use them here! I always ask for a couple “extras” when ordering chicken nuggets.

To the BBQ sauce I then add cilantro. In the summer I grow my own herbs so I’ll just go clip a bit, do a rough chop and sprinkle it on. In the winter, however, I’ve found that the “fresh” herbs at the grocery store are not all that fresh and are also expensive and do not last. Instead of using “dried” herbs, I found tubes of my herbs in the produce section of my grocery store. These tubes last a long time, and are worth the cost. I squeeze a dime to quarter size amount of cilantro paste onto the crust/dough and mix it in with the BBQ sauce.

Another version of this is Artichoke Chicken Pizza. I put a bit of olive oil and basil on my crust (enough to coat). I then add on cooked chicken, canned artichoke hearts, black olives and cheese (I prefer a white cheese).

This is a great recipe. My son loved it so much that he told me I should be on the Food Network. Love it!