My husband and I are in love with spicy flavors and hot sauce.  I saw a recipe once where a restaurant used Cholula hot sauce as a way to marinate chicken for a pizza, which gave me a brilliant idea on how to make a delicious buffalo ranch chicken pizza.  This is now officially our favorite pizza.. I made it last weekend, and yes, we will probably make it again this weekend because it was so good.  My husband and I ate almost the entire large pizza ourselves.. I think there was two pieces leftover, which we devoured for breakfast the next morning.  This pizza has just enough spice, but not so much as to overpower the flavor of the other ingredients.

Ingredients:

Yields 1 large pizza

1 package of homemade or store-bought pizza dough ( I highly recommend Trader Joe’s pizza crust if you are buying a store bought crust)
olive oil
Original flavor Cholula hot sauce
Hidden Valley ranch dressing ( I used light)
1 large garlic clove
1/2 lb. Mozzarella cheese
1/2 lb. Provolone cheese
1 rotisserie chicken, shredded
1/3 c. ground hot or sweet Italian sausage (optional)
1 jalapeno, sliced (de-seeded if desired)
Kosher salt
fresh cilantro for garnish

Step 1: 30 minutes before making the pizza, place the shredded rotisserie chicken in a bowl (you will probably only need about half of the shredded chicken for one pizza). Drizzle a generous amount of Cholula hot sauce over the chicken and toss to coat. Cover bowl of marinated chicken with plastic wrap and place in fridge to marinate for at least 30 minutes. Dust pizza dough with flour and set on counter to soften.

Step 2: Grate the mozzarella and provolone cheese and toss together in a large bowl to blend the cheeses together.

Step 3: Sprinkle a pinch of corn meal on the bottom of the baking stone or baking sheet to prevent dough from sticking. Once the dough is ready to be handled, stretch it out onto a large baking stone or baking sheet.

Step 4: Brush the dough and edges of the crust with olive oil. Crush one clove of garlic onto the crust and spread with your fingers evenly.

Step 5: Pour out some ranch dressing onto the pizza crust. Spread over crust with a pastry brush evenly. Then drizzle some hot sauce over the pizza crust and spread with a brush over the ranch dressing evenly.

Step 6: Sprinkle on the cheese blend evenly over the pizza crust.

Step 7: Remove marinated chicken from the refrigerator and spread evenly over the cheese.

Step 8: Sprinkle sauteed sausage over the top of the pizza (optional)

Step 9: Add sliced jalapenos evenly over the pizza.

Step 10: Sprinkle some chopped fresh cilantro leaves over the top of the pizza. (I found out it is best to do this after the pizza is baked as a garnish… the cilantro’s flavor will be better rather than cooking it! Oops!). Then sprinkle a pinch of kosher salt around the outer edge of the crust.   Bake the pizza in the oven at 400° F for 18 – 20 minutes until the cheese is melted and the crust is golden brown and crispy.  Serve hot off of the stone!  Enjoy!!

There is one dish that I can almost never get tired of and that is Pizza.  I think I  make it almost once a week on a regular basis.  My tomato pizza has become such a hit in my house that I finally decided to take a snapshot before it was all gone and post the recipe on my blog.  I also added another favorite pizza recipe for you to enjoy.

Fresh Tomato pizza

Rachel’s Fresh Tomato Pizza:

1 pizza dough (frozen or fresh)
Olive oil (about 2 Tbsp.)
1 large clove garlic, crushed
2-3 vine ripened tomatoes, sliced
2 c. Mozzarella
1/4 c. Romano cheese
Pinch of dried oregano
Basil (fresh or dried)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Bring pizza dough to room temperature and dust with flour. Let it stand for about 30 min. before preparing the pizza.
3. Once dough is ready stretch out into a round large pizza size onto a baking stone.
4. Drizzle olive oil over the crust and brush until the entire layer of dough is covered in oil.
5. Add crushed garlic and spread over evenly around the crust
6. Add sliced tomatoes making a layer that covers the crust
7. Sprinkle on Mozzarella and Romano cheese over the top
8. Sprinkle on oregano and basil over the top of the pizza.
9. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until crust is cooked the whole way through and a crispy golden brown. Serve hot off the stone!

Sausage Tri-Pepper Pizza

Rachel’s Sausage & Tri-Pepper Pizza

1 Pizza Dough (frozen or fresh)
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1/3 lb – 1/2 lb of Hot Italian Sausage
2 c. Mozzarella
1/4 c. red bell pepper, sliced
1/4 c. yellow bell pepper, sliced
1/4 c. jalapeno, sliced (de-seed the jalapeno if you do not like spicy food)
Pinch of dried oregano
Pinch of dried basil

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Bring pizza dough to room temperature and dust with flour. Let it stand for about 30 min. before preparing the pizza.
3. Meanwhile, toss the sausage into a medium skillet over medium heat and cook through, breaking it up in smaller pieces as it cooks until browned and no longer pink. Drain on paper towels and set aside.
4. Add red, yellow, and jalapeno peppers to the skillet and add a drizzle of olive oil. Cook on medium heat until just tender, but not too soft. (you want a slight crunch still left in the pepper, but not raw or undercooked)
5. Once dough is ready stretch out into a round large pizza size onto a baking stone.
6. Drizzle on olive oil and brush over crust
7. Add mozzarella cheese and layer over the crust.
8. Sprinkle the sausage, and pepper mixture evenly over the crust.
9. Sprinkle on the pinch of oregano and basil
10. Bake at 400 for about 20 – 25 minutes until crust is baked through and a crispy golden brown. Serve hot off the stone!

I absolutely love the restaurant Pita Jungle.  I have one located right down the street from me near the Arrowhead mall in the same plaza parking lot as Babies R’ Us.  They have excellent hummus and many delicious entrees.  One of my favorites though is their Pesto Pita Pizza.  I loved it so much I went home and made my own version of what it tasted like and it turned out excellent!  Everyone loved it.. it was a lighter, fresher tasting pizza and much healthier than slabbing on a bunch of sausage, pepperoni, or salami.  There was no greasy mess and it filled you up with one or two pieces easily.  It was a very tasty and satisfying dish.  Try it for your next friday night casual dinner with your family or as an appetizer at a party! My version is not entirely the same ingredients as Pita Jungle, but it is a variation.  I added my own touch.

Chicken Pita Pizza – (Rachel’s version of Pita Jungle Pita Pizza w/ Chicken)

1 package of plain naan bread ( I bought mine at Sprout’s market, but you can also find skinnier loaves of Naan bread at Trader Joes)
2 Tbsp. Olive oil
2 Cloves garlic, crushed
4 Tbsp. pesto
Spinach leaves
Sliced white mushrooms
2 chicken breasts, grilled and chopped in chunks
1 large tomato, sliced
1 1/2 – 2 c. grated Mozzarella
Kosher salt
1 tsp. dried basil and oregano
Directions:
1. Remove two pieces of naan bread ( 4 if using the Trader Joe brand) and place on a clean prep surface.
2. Brush each with 1 Tbsp. olive oil, 1 clove crushed garlic, and 2 Tbsp. of pesto
3. Layer each piece of naan bread with fresh washed and dried spinach leaves until bread is covered.
4. Layer sliced tomato on each piece of naan bread
5. Sprinkle sliced mushrooms and chicken pieces over the tomatoes.
6.  Divide and sprinkle mozzarella over the top and a pinch of kosher salt, oregano, and basil.
7. Bake on a pizza stone or baking sheet in a preheated oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for about 15 minutes; or just until the bread has crisped and the cheese has melted.
8. Serve hot and cut into squares.