Good morning GUSblossoms! I'm finally being responsible and not kidnapped. I have pounds of cat fur to vacuum but have already a full line of clothes drying in the sun since 6 a.m. Many, many apologies for my absence. Incredible how work can be annoying and having to cook for someone for over a month really crimped my style of natural laziness.
Well, not all of May was a bad deal. I had a consultation with a wonderful cardiologist who thinks I just need to get back to exercise and return to my more healthy diet and my heart issue will be fine. She was thrilled I quit smoking and we talked about how and why and what support systems I use. She loves the GUS concept because of all the smokers she treats.
I told her we are on a liberal site but that the GUS diaries are not political -- just places to support a bunch of people who smoke, are trying to quit, quit. She's an amazing doctor and very encouraging -- yet another support. I do have to get the old cholesterol down which can be done if I put myself to work on diet and exercise. She said to always tell smokers my quit story and then move along because no one likes a lecture, but lots of people like success possibilities.
Now, let me offer an utterly cholesterol stupid recipe for pizza on the grill.
GUS (Gave Up Smoking) is a community support diary for Kossacks in the midst of quitting smoking. Any supportive comments, suggestions or positive distractions are appreciated. If you are quitting or thinking of quitting, please -- join us! We kindly ask that politics be left out.
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My buddy from Maryland made pizza on the grill when he was home so I said, let's try it at the lake -- a place that has a grill and outdoor double gas burner thingy. My joyful kitchen! He had used jarred sauce and no way was I tolerating that. So, I made up the following sauce which is so darned easy.
Pizza Sauce
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tblsp. olive oil
1 can crushed tomatoes (we'll use fresh when August comes around)
2 tblsp. tomato paste
dried basil and oregano -- this is a preference amount but I use about a tblsp of each
hot pepper flakes to taste (optional) I have super hot chipotle pepper flakes -- amazing
salt to taste -- pepper if you don't use hot pepper
Saute the minced garlic in the olive oil until golden. Add all the other ingredients and simmer for at least an hour, stirring occasionally. The sauce should thick -- not watery at all.
Pizza on the Grill
There are many excellent homemade pizza dough recipes but for practice sake, we bought the dough from the grocery store. It was really good. Don't worry about getting a round shape -- especially because you are putting it on the grill. DON'T USE A ROLLING PIN!!!! Let the dough come to room temperature and divide in half. Flour your surface but not too much. Press the dough into a disc shape then start pressing out from the middle to all the edges. Then either hold the edges and let gravity work, while you rotate or hang it over the edge of a table and rotate to stretch. The perfect approach is the video below.
Once you get the pizza stretched to some shape or other and the thickness is even and how you like it, place the dough on a hot grill -- you can just put it on with your hands or use a corn floured open cookie sheet like a peel. Keep checking so it isn't burned -- but you want a bit of a scorch. Remove the dough and put your sauce on the cooked side. Add your toppings and place back on the grill. It sounds counterintuitive, but trust me, you will have the crispiest pizza ever.
I cooked the sausage and pepperoni first to get the oils released. My buddy isn't into the veggie approach, alas.
Hand slapping pizza. This video is brilliant.
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