Pizza Friday is something we look forward to each week, it’s always the perfect ending to a long week at work. While the toppings typically vary from week to week, I usually use store bought pizza dough because it’s easy. And who doesn’t want an easy dinner on Friday night? {You can see my entire collection of pizza recipes I’ve shared on the blog HERE} The only other time I didn’t use a traditional crust was almost two years ago when I made THIS cauliflower crust, which was delicious!


But, in the spirit of healthy eating, I made the traditional caprese pizza with a quinoa crust and wow, was it good! I used an 9 inch round cake pan to make them more “personal pan” size. And although this is healthier than traditional pizza, the personal pan slices allow you to limit how many slices you consume 😉 And although I didn’t use many toppings on this pizza, the crust is pretty durable so feel free to dress this healthy pizza like you would regular dough. 


**I will say that the crust does really taste like quinoa. If you don’t care for quinoa, know that the baking and toppings {at least the toppings I used} don’t really mask the quinoa taste. It’s pretty tasty if you are a fan of quinoa like me though!**


Overall, an easy and delicious substitute for regular pizza dough. It is a little more time consuming than the store-bought version {what wouldn’t be!} but it is definitely better for you and more filling! Check out the recipe below.

for the crust:

3/4 cup quinoa

2 – 2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup water plus more for soaking

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

for caprese toppings {per individual pizza}

1/4 – 1/2 cup pizza sauce

1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

6-8 cherry tomatoes, halved

3-4 fresh basil leaves, roughly torn

{directions}

Soak the quinoa overnight with water covering the quinoa by at least one inch. When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a 9 inch round cake pan with parchment paper and drizzle 1 – 1 1/2 tablespoons of the olive oil into the center, spreading the oil around with your hands to make sure the parchment paper and sides of the pan are covered. Rinse the quinoa that has been soaking overnight with cold water and transfer to a food processor. Add 1/4 cup water, baking powder, salt and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Blend until the mixture is smooth. Pour the mixture into the prepared cake pan and bake for about 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and flip the quinoa crust. Bake for another 10-12 minutes, or until the edges are just brown. To make caprese pizza: top with sauce, cheese, tomatoes and basil and bake for another 12 minutes, or just until the cheese has melted. Allow to cool for 2 minutes in the cake dish before transferring to a cutting board. Slice, serve and enjoy!

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This post is linked up with: Tasty Tuesdays | Tickle My Tastebuds Tuesday | Two Cup Tuesday | Weekend Potluck  | SITS Girls 

I’ve been wanting to try grilled pizza for quite some time. And although I have been super intrigued by the concept, I have also been a little nervous. On Food Network, I have seen the chefs just put the pizza dough right on the grill and it seems to work perfect for them. I’m a little to cautious for that and decided that for the first time grilling pizza, there should probably be a pan involved. I used THIS pizza pan from Pampered Chef and it worked perfectly. It’s even dishwasher safe 😉

When it comes to pizza, I usually don’t discriminate: I’ll take it anyway I can get it! But I have to say this is my new favorite way to make pizza. The crust was so crunchy {complete with grill marks on the bottom!} and the cheese melted perfectly. I have a feeling I’m going to have a hard time going back to pizza in the oven once the temperatures get cold and grilling isn’t an option!

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This post is linked up with: Tasty Tuesdays | Tickle My Tastebuds Tuesday | Two Cup Tuesday | Weekend Potluck |  

Today’s post takes it to a whole new level of crazy. I made this cauliflower pizza crust last Friday for our weekly “Pizza Friday” and I think my husband was confused {correct me if I’m wrong, Richard! 😉 } I kept talking about the cauliflower pizza crust all week and how I was so excited to make it, but I think he thought we were have the cauliflower as a topping and not a crust. And I sensed that he was skeptical when he found out the cauliflower was actually part of the crust. And frankly, I was too. I couldn’t image the texture of cauliflower as a pizza crust, even if it was ground in a food processor!


I have seen several recipes for healthier ways to make pizza — especially gluten free options that seem to be great alternatives to the traditional pizza dough. As you may know, I love to incorporate healthy and “hip” foods into our weekly meals, so I’ve been thinking about this cauliflower crust for sometime! 

The result? It was DELICIOUS! Even my skeptical husband said it was in the top 5 pizzas I’ve made 🙂 I decided to keep it relatively simple with the toppings, since the crust was the star. And, I didn’t want anything too heavy because I wasn’t sure how much the crust could hold {this is definitely an eat with a fork kind of pizza — although that’s all pizza for me, but I think it’s probably a necessity with this crust!}. I used my regular caprese pizza recipe for the toppings of the pizza and it was the perfect compliment to this flatbread-like crust! 

Today I am sharing a very outside the box kind of pizza for me. It’s very rare to have meat on a pizza that I make. Not only do all vegetable pizzas seem easier, they also seem to take a lot less time to prepare. But last Friday, I decided to mix things up and I am so glad that I did! Richard said this is one of his favorite pizzas yet, so I will definitely be incorporating it into the rotation! The only thing that could have made this better was the green onions. I could have sworn I bought them at the grocery store a few days earlier, and after spending 10 minutes searching the refrigerator for them, I gave up. So, if you remember to buy green onions at the store, they would be a great addition to this delicious pizza! 

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts {about 1 lb.} {I used the tenderloin version, but both work}

Store-bought pizza dough

About 1.5 cups barbecue sauce {I used Sweet Baby Ray’s}

4-6 ounces shredded mild cheddar cheese

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Olive oil 

Non-stick cooking spray

Optional: 2 green onions, diced

Preheat oven to 400 degrees {or follow the directions for your store-bought dough}. In a large skillet, heat 2-3 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Cook chicken on each side until golden brown and the juices run clear. For my chicken tenderloins, it was about 4 minutes on each side. {I like to use the tenderloin version because it cooks a lot quicker!} Once cooked, transfer the chicken to a cutting board and slice into small cubes. Transfer cubed chicken to a large bowl and pour about 1 cup of the barbecue sauce over the chicken, mixing well to combine. Add more barbecue sauce if needed; you just want enough to coat the chicken. To assemble the pizza, spread about 1/2 cup of the barbecue sauce over the pizza dough, creating the “sauce” layer. You can use as much barbecue sauce as you would like, but I used just enough for a base. Sprinkle the cheddar cheese over the sauce, followed my the cubed chicken. Top with cilantro {and the green onions if you have them!} Bake according to dough package directions, or until cheese has just started to melt and the crust is golden brown. Serve and enjoy! 

1 red pepper, sliced

1 yellow pepper, sliced

1 Hungarian/banana pepper, seeds removed & sliced

About 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1/4 – 1/2 cup pizza sauce {I used Classico pizza sauce}

1 pizza dough {I have been using this lately}

5-6 basil leaves, chopped

5-6 thin slices prosciutto

2-3 tablespoons Parmesan cheese

Olive oil

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. On a pizza pan that has been oiled or sprayed with cooking spray, spread the pizza dough out to desired thickness. Cook in the oven, without the toppings, for 8 minutes {these directions are on the pizza dough packaging too}. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat and add the sliced peppers, cooking under tender and brown, about 10 minutes. To assemble the pizza: place the sauce on the dough, followed by the shredded cheese, peppers and slices of prosciutto. Garnish with the basil and Parmesan cheese. Bake the pizza for 8-10 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown. Serve and enjoy!

Today I am sharing a pizza recipe I made for New Year’s Eve {hence why it’s just a little more unhealthy than the buffalo chickpea pizza I made last week 😉 }  This past weekend, I was watching one of my favorite shows on Food Network, “Beat Bobby Flay” and asked Richard what my signature dish would be if I was on the show. For those that don’t know, {“Beat Bobby Flay” has two contestants that go head-to-head to make the best dish and the winner gets the opportunity to face Bobby Flay making the contestants signature dish.} We agreed that it would definitely have to be a pizza! 

I am not a huge fan of prosciutto, but it’s one of Richard’s favorites so I decided to incorporate it into the pizza of the week. Actually, I cannot take complete credit for this recipe, it was Richard’s idea to combine the peppers and prosciutto {not surprising since those are two of his favorite foods!}. And I have to say, it turned out perfectly! Just a heads up, the Hungarian/banana peppers I used for this pizza were fresh, as opposed to canned, and they were SUPER hot. Our grocery store, Wegmans, has a huge section of peppers and I just grabbed one, without reading the description, to add to the pizza. The flavors were amazing, but a little spicy in case you like to stay away from the heat 😉 

Thanks for reading!

1 pizza dough {I have been using this lately}

5 tablespoons Frank’s RedHot Sauce

1 15.5 ounce can garbanzo beans {I used organic}, drained & rinsed

1 red pepper, chopped

1 small red onion, chopped

1 1/2 cups arugula

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

4 tablespoons Ranch dressing {I used low fat} 

Olive oil or cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. On a pizza pan that has been oiled or sprayed with cooking spray, spread the pizza dough out to desired thickness. Cook in the oven, without the toppings, for 8 minutes {these directions are on the pizza dough packaging too}. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix the garbanzo beans with about 2 tablespoons of the Frank’s RedHot Sauce, just enough to cover the beans. Remove the dough from the oven and spread about 3 or more tablespoons {depending on how much heat you want!} of the Frank’s RedHot Sauce over the pizza to create the “sauce.” Add the mozzarella cheese in an even layer, followed by the arugula. {The arugula will look overwhelming, but it shrinks in the oven!} Place the chopped red pepper and red onion on top of the arugula, followed by the chickpeas. Place the pizza back in the oven for 8-10 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown. Remove the pizza from the oven and starting in the center of the pizza, continue a circle of ranch dressing until reaching the outer layer, almost to the crust. Serve and enjoy!

January 2nd. The day most Americans begin their New Year’s resolutions, most of the time, having something to do with eating healthier or working out more. In honor of the conclusion of the holiday season, I am sharing a healthy version of one of my favorite foods. As you may recall, I hate chicken. But, there is something about buffalo chicken that I am absolutely in love with {maybe it’s the breading haha 😉 }.

One of our traditions in the McCarthy household is Pizza Friday. I’ve made some not so healthy {but ridiculously delicious} pizzas in the past, but this one is definitely not on that list! The best way to describe this pizza is a vegetarian version of a buffalo chicken salad. {Side note: you could also make this vegan if you omit the cheese!} The delicious flavors of the arugula and chickpeas combine with the classic buffalo sauce to create the most delicious, healthy version of a buffalo chicken pizza. Here are some other suggestions for changes to this recipe that would also be amazing: use blue cheese dressing instead of ranch, use spinach instead of arugula and add celery and/or carrots to your toppings! This pizza will be a new Pizza Friday favorite in our house! 

Thanks for stopping by and have a fabulous weekend!