Smart Ingredients are those that can open up dinner options without and extra trip to the store. There’s one Smart Ingredient that is not a common pantry item, yet its potential for dinner success is enormous. It’s yeast. To be able to whip up a loaf of homemade bread to accompany some soup, or especially a super-easy homemade pizza crust, your dinner options are suddenly multiplied.
In my family, anything on a homemade pizza crust equals a successful dinner. And with endless topping possibilities, I can always put one together with what I have on hand at home…. traditional red sauce and cheese, potatoes and cream sauce, goats cheese and roasted veggies, or in the recipe below, some leftover barbequed chicken.
RED STAR yeast is easy to find at your local grocery store, and comes in convenient single-serve packets or small jars. I find it very reliable for a great, easy pizza dough like this recipe with barbecue chicken on top…
Barbecue Chicken Pizza
Ingredients
pizza crust (see recipe below)
1 cup cooked diced chicken (leftover is great)
1/2-cup barbecue sauce
7 ounces shredded cheese (such as Mozzarella, Fontina, Pepper Jack)
1/2 green pepper, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon onion, thinly sliced
Prebake dough for 7 minutes. Spread barbeque sauce on prebaked crust. Arrange chicken pieces, green peppers, and onions evenly. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 350ĪF until cheese is melted, about 14 minutes. Let pizza stand 5 minutes.
Pizza Crust Recipe
Ingredients
1 1/4 cups flour
1/8 oz. dry yeast
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup very warm water (120-130ĪF)
1 tablespoon oil
In a medium bowl, stir together half of the flour, the yeast and the salt until well blended. Add water and oil. Mix by hand until almost smooth. Gradually stir in remaining flour to make a firm dough. Cover and let set for at least 15 minutes. Prick dough aggressively with fork. Generously grease a baking sheet, and roll out dough. Place in middle rack of oven. Prebake for 8 – 10 minutes or just until edges of crust begin to turn a light golden brown.
Visit OrganizingDinner.com for additional recipes using yeast such as easy bread recipes, potato pizza, and homemade bagels.
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About the Author
Kelly Donlea is a Barrington mom, chef, cookbook author the owner of Organizing Dinner, a company that brings sensible cooking solutions to busy people. She has published several cookbooks and one of her specialties is helping parents plan family meals with fewer trips to the grocery store. Kelly also offers cooking classes and demonstrations in your home or public facility. To learn more about Kelly, her recipes and her services, you’ll find her Facebook page by clicking HERE and her website at OrganizingDinner.com. Kelly is going to be sharing recipes, cooking tips and special features about chefs and popular menu items at area restaurants right here at 365Barrington.com.
Please join us as we discover local culinary treasures and new kitchen classics in our new, local and regular food feature here at 365Barrington.com called “Barrington Eats” with Kelly Donlea!
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