Summer is back!
Yesterday was the hottest day we’ve had since last year.
It was nearly 90 degrees, some friends went to the beach, and I worked in my apartment dying of sweat without our AC installed yet. Yesterday reminded me of how much credit I give people who live near the Equator and have to experience this level of heat (and far worse) on a daily basis. It’s amazing how the body can adapt, but it takes time and isn’t necessarily a fun process when you are in the middle of it.
If you do catch a not-so-muggy-hot day to be outside (like today for example), I recommend doing the all American activity of BARBEQUING! There are plenty of awesome ways to enjoy a beautiful sunny day, like going to the lake with your dog, hanging in a hammock in the forest, taking a hike with your significant other, but for those who want to just hang out, getting a outdoor blanket and a few simple foldable chairs is the way to spend it around a BBQ making delicious food.
This is a recipe I discovered last year when we got into a pizza making craze. And wow was I certainly NOT disappointed!! BBQ PIZZA! How epic does that sound!? I’ve only ever made pizza in my oven, and I’ve drooled over the thought of owning a brick oven for pizza. But if you want the next best thing, you’re gona want to try this Vegan BBQ Pizza idea!
You can cater it around your favorite toppings. Want to make a white spinach pizza? No problem! Go pick up a packet of ‘Follow Your Heart’ feta cheese or any cheese you like, and sprinkle it together with some fresh spinach and garlic! If you are in the mood for traditional pizza, pick up some vegan pepperoni or sausages to cut up, and pour it on top of your Daiya Cheese and Tomato Sauce mixture! Or if you are feeling really fancy, perhaps you can make your own Cashew Cheese sauce topped with fresh Figs, Artichokes and olives for a Greek Pizza. No matter how you do it, you can’t go wrong.
Time to Vacation Again
As CO-VID started dying down, restrictions on quarantining in NYS subsided and my family and I went on a vacation to Arizona! It was my first time ever being in that state, and was I glad we didn’t travel during the summer months. The crowds were already intense, with tourists filling up the Grand Canyon and being stuck in standstill traffic to get there.
But the landscapes were like no other. Distant red rocks stuck out of the ground in all different shapes and sizes. There were soo many cactuses, each looking different from the other.
All in all I really enjoyed Sedona the most for the wide range of hiking spots and good food that tiny city had to offer. March/April was the perfect time to go temperature wise, as we had just missed a snow storm and not yet received the dreaded summer heat!
Happy Memorial Day!
I hope you guys get a chance to try this out at your next BBQ! I know I will be, matter of fact I might just break out the grill this week pre-Memorial Day to get some practice in 😀
Happy Memorial Day this weekend everyone. All the best! <3
Ingredients
- 2 Cups - All Purpose Flour
- 1 Packet - Instant Yeast
- 1.5 tsp - Sugar
- 1 tsp - Salt
- .5 tsp - Garlic Powder
- 2 Tbsp - Olive Oil
- 3/4 Cup - Warm Water
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add 1 cup flour, instant yeast, sugar, garlic and salt together.
- Then add in your olive oil and warm filtered water. Stir well!
- Add in another cup of flour (a little at a time) until you get a good doughy consistency. It should be like an elastic ball, but if it's too sticky you need more flour.
- Form the dough into a round ball and place it back into your mixing bowl. Cover it with plastic wrap and allow it to rise in a warm area for 30 minutes.
- When it has doubled in size, use your hands or a rolling pin to create 12" circles on a cutting board sprinkled with flour.
- Drizzle olive oil neatly over the pizza and use a fork to poke a few holes in the center so it doesn't bubble too much when it goes into the heat!
- Get your grill ready until it's hot - hot enough that you can't hold your hands over the grate for more than 2 seconds.
- Then, placing the dough onto a floured down cookie sheet or pizza tray, gently let it slide off onto the grill. Allow that to cook for 2 minutes or so.
- Check the underside with a spatula, that it seems to be golden underneath. If it looks good, then flip it over and place back onto your cookie sheet or pizza tray, and prepare your toppings! You can add a little more olive oil overtop to bring back some moisture.
- Once your toppings are in place, carefully place it back onto the grill for another 2-3 minutes. You can close the lid if you have one, but we let ours cook for a little longer with the lid off. If you are using a gas grill, reduce the heat a bit. If you have a charcoal grill like we did, close the vents while it cooks.
- When the pizza starts to golden and bubble, and your cheese has melted, it's time to take it off o the grill! Using the spatula, place it back onto your cutting board and when it has had time to cool off, dig in and enjoy!
Notes
If you want to get a premade pizza dough, skip steps 1-3 and go straight to step #4!