Cajun Shrimp Pizza

For this Super Bowl theme week, Wednesday was reserved for the location of the Super Bowl...NEW ORLEANS! Unfortunately, I didn't have a ton of time, so I had to go with something quick! Therefore, no crawfish dish or jambalaya....

So, this recipe is super yummy and quick! And, I used Creole seasonings instead of Cajun seasoning only because I forgot we had any Cajun seasoning left.  It was just one of those nights...at least dinner got on the table...you all know what I mean!

Cajun/Creole Shrimp Pizza
Ingredients
1/8 purple onion, diced
1/8 green pepper, diced
2 T. Creole/Cajun seasoning
12 or so raw shrimp
pizza sauce
pizza crust (I used Boboli original pizza crust)
(I also used some of the leftover crab meat from Tuesday night's meal)

Step by Step Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Season both the shrimp and the veggies with the seasonings.

2. Saute the peppers and onions. Remove the veggies from the heat.

3. Cook the seasoned shrimp until they are no longer pink.

4. Top the pizza crust with sauce, then the veggies, cheese, and then shrimp.

5. Bake for 8 minutes.
Enjoy!

Another Deep Dish Pizza Variation

As I was grocery shopping this evening, I couldn't pass up the smell of freshly baked Italian bread....call it a weakness...so I just HAD to purchase a loaf.

As you know, fresh baked Italian bread is only good for one night...and yes, you know this! Therefore, I had to do something with it...yes, I made a deep dish pizza a week ago, but I LOVE pizza...and there are endless possible topping combinations...so you could follow my recipe (which ended up with amazing flavor) or you could use your own favorite toppings....all you need to follow is how to set up the bread and the time and temperature...(I didn't mean to sound biased, but it was SO GOOD!)

Here's an "inside" look....

Bread Bowl Deep Dish Pizza

Ingredients
*1 loaf of fresh Italian bread
*pizza sauce or spaghetti sauce (enough to cover the bottom of the bread bowl)
*1/2 sliced roasted red pepper
*1 chicken breast
*chicken stock
*1 minced garlic clove
*fresh basil leaves
*mozzarella cheese
*oregano

Step by Step Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Create a "bread bowl" out of the loaf of bread. (not sure what I am going to do with the left over bread...I WAS tempted to eat all of it...thank goodness I didn't)

(yes, I sprayed the cookie sheet with PAM spray)

3. Meanwhile, diced the chicken breast and cook on the stove top in the chicken stock.

4. Spoon sauce into the bread bowl. Don't be afraid to add a bunch if you like sauce...I made sure to cover all of the bread that was poking out of the bottom of the bowl. And, make sure the sauce gets into the ends.

5. Spoon in your "toppings"

6. Cover with cheese. (and I added extra basil) If you want the top to truly be covered with cheese, you need to pack the cheese in. I didn't and when it baked the cheese dropped down into the bowl.

7. Bake uncovered for 15-20 minutes. This one was in the oven for about 17 minutes.

Deep Dish Pizza at HOME!

Only recently have I been interested in the idea of making my own deep dish pizza...I don't really like deep dish pizza...but the Pizza Hut commercial with the girl holding the frying pan made me wonder...could I do this on my own?

As Barney would say, "challenge accepted!"

Deep Dish Pizza Bake

Ingredients
*pizza dough (I got mine from Wegman's...I wasn't about to make my own from scratch)
*pizza sauce
*cheese
*your favorite pizza toppings
*garlic salt and oregano
*PAM spray

Step by Step Directions
*the dough should be at room temperature for at least an hour*

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Place a baking sheet on the lower rack of the oven while it is preheating.

2. Spray the pan with PAM spray and spread the pizza dough on the bottom of the pan. Spear it with a fork a few times. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, get your pizza toppings ready.

4. Spray the pizza crust with PAM. Cover with sauce (I also added some garlic salt). Then, cheese and toppings.

5. Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes. Check the crust. It may need a few more minutes. Move to the top rack for an additional 5 minutes.

**Don't try and cut the pizza in the pan...it is really messy! Put it on another surface to cut into wedges!**

There are endless ways to make this more delicious...this being my first time trying it...if I try it again...I will definitely try different ways to make the crust more flavorful...

Chicken Enchilada....PIZZA!

If you couldn't tell, I LOVE to put different toppings on the pizzas I make. However, when we actually get a pizza...it's always a cheese pizza. And, just as a quick add-in...boy do I miss Mario's Pizza in Clearwater, FL...they were the best! So, if you're ever in the Clearwater area...make sure you check them out!

Anyway, back to my newest topping endeavour....

Chicken Enchilada Pizza

Ingredients

*1 chicken breast, cubed
*half red pepper, sliced
*half green pepper, sliced
*half small yellow onion, thinly sliced
*cilantro
*1/4 c. Goya Sofrito Tomato cooking base (use enchilada sauce if you can't find this)
*fresh tomato, diced
*chili powder
*pizza sauce
*pizza crust (I used the red pepper one again!)
*shredded mexican cheese blend

Step By Step

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
2. Cook chicken over medium heat. Season with chili powder, cilantro and salt and pepper.
3. Remove chicken from heat. Use the same pan for peppers, onions, cilantro and Sofrito sauce.
Cook the veggies until they are soft. Also, with the cilantro, add in some of the stems..they have the MOST flavor. (I remove the stems after the veggies are cooked)

4. Add chicken back in and mix together.

5. PAM spray the pizza crust. Spread pizza sauce over the crust.
6. Add chicken and veggies over the sauce. Then, top with cheese.

7. Add diced tomatoes and cilantro on top of the cheese. Add more chili powder if desired.
8. Reduce the heat down to 425 degrees. Bake the pizza for 7-8 minutes.

We furthered the "spice" and topped the pizza with red pepper flakes before eating...

A few side notes...
First, I truly feel the freshly diced tomatoes REALLY made this pizza. It made the freshness of the ingredients really jump out.

Second, while I was home the other day, I stocked up on a local favorite...I love when I'm in Altoona the Delgrosso sauces are usually $1.00 a piece! We definitely took advantage and the transportation by car is MUCH easier than transporting them by suitcase back to Florida. So YUMMY!

http://www.delgrossosauce.com/