You know what goes well with a slowly roasted, deliciously sweet red pepper? Everything. Need to add more flavor to your one-dimensional pasta dish? Add some roasted red pepper. Searching for something to stuff your couscous into? Try a roasted red pepper. Want to make your dull cereal taste less like cardboard? Throw a roasted red pepper in the bowl, guaranteed to turn your milk a peppery-red.

Okay, maybe that’s a bit far. But do you know what else a roasted red pepper makes so much better? BBQ Chicken Pizza on a Garlic Bread Crust. A thick, cheesy, garlic crust topped with mountains of chicken, sweet red onion, roasted red pepper and a generous sprinkling of cheese – so so good.

Roasting peppers is very simple. Pre-heat the oven to 400°F/200°C, wash your whole red pepper, place it on a baking tray and put it in the oven, turning it every 15 minutes or so. Roasting time varies according to size, but for a 1-portion pepper, you’re looking at about 40 minutes. Remove the pepper from the oven, and pull the stalk off, which should create a small hole. Shake out any remaining juice and seeds and you’re done!

I was going to attempt a thin and crispy base for this BBQ chicken pizza, but I couldn’t get the idea of a garlic bread crust out of my head, so I ditched the thin and crispy and went full steam ahead with a thick and chewy crust loaded with a cheesy garlic topping.

I’m so glad I did. I’m not sure what it is about garlic but as soon as the tiny vegetable (It is a vegetable, right? I’ve counted it as one of my ‘five-a-day’ for as long as I can remember!) goes anywhere near heat, it releases one of the most beautiful smells in the world. Add the garlic to the cheese and butter needed to create the crust topping and I promise your nose will think it’s in heaven.

In case you’re wondering, this is (apparently) what my Official Treat Taster’s “yummy pizza face” looks like.

BBQ Chicken Pizza on a Garlic Bread Crust

Pizza crust adapted from How Sweet It Is

Ingredients

Crust:

2 ¼ teaspoons yeast

¾ cup warm water

1 cup whole wheat flour

¾ cup all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon honey

½ tablespoon olive oil

½ teaspoon salt

3 cloves crushed garlic

3 tablespoons grated cheese

½ teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon onion powder

½ teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons butter

Toppings:

¼ cup BBQ sauce

½ cup shredded chicken

½ cup diced red onion

¼ cup diced roasted red pepper

¼ cup grated cheese

Recipe

1. In the bowl of your electric mixer with the dough hook attached, mix together the warm water, yeast, honey and oil.

2. Leave to rest for about 15 minutes until foamy then add the flour and salt. Mix on a low speed until just combined then increase the speed to medium and mix for 5-6 minutes.

3. Grease a large bowl and add the dough. Leave to rise in a warm place for about 90 minutes.

4. When risen, punch down the dough and place onto a greased pizza-baking tray. With a rolling pin or your hands, roll the dough so it covers the baking tray, making the dough thicker around the edge of the tray, almost like a shallow bowl. Stab the dough all over with a fork to encourage even baking.

5. Preheat the oven to 400°F/200°C and combine the garlic, cheese, garlic and onion powders, salt and butter in a bowl. Place in the microwave and cook until melted – this will be one of the best smells you’ve ever experienced. Remove from the microwave and spread all over the pizza dough.

6. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until the dough is just turning golden brown. Add all your toppings and bake in the oven for a further 15 minutes or until the crust is a deeper brown and the cheese is melted.

Here are the link parties I take part in.
Come and join the fun!