Back in October 2012, I posted one of my favorite original recipes of all time: THE SWEET AND SPICY CARAMELIZED ONION BBQ GRILLED CHEESE. It still holds the #1 spot in my ranking of sandwiches, and I’m not alone. With over 343,000 pins (and counting), it’s my most popular recipe to date.
Sometimes I wonder whether I will ever match its glory, beauty, and epic flavor combination. The sweet and tangy caramelized onions. The spicy zing of the pepperjack. Hmmmmmmnggggghhh.
I finally decided that rather than trying to top it (because, please, who could ever do that?), I would use it to make other delicious dishes.
And what better way to start than with a crispy homemade pizza?
The only curveball you’ll see here is that I also added in some pancetta. Because, well, it’s a form of bacon and frankly I can’t resist bacon in any of its forms.
But if you’re not into bacon, you can replace it with chicken, or not use it all. Then you can immediately escort yourself to the doctor and have your taste buds examined because SERIOUSLY, who doesn’t like bacon?
In any case, if you’ve never tried my grilled cheese recipe before, I implore you to go buy the ingredients, make it immediately, then turn the leftover ingredients into this pizza. And you can die full of cheese. AKA happy.
Enjoy!
- 1 lb Pizza dough (I used store bought – Trader Joe’s has some for $1!)
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
- ⅓ c BBQ sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray’s – THE BEST)
- ¾ c sharp cheddar cheese
- ¾ c pepper jack cheese
- ½ c pancetta (optional – can sub in chicken or more veggies if you want!)
- ⅛ c chopped flat leaf parsley (optional)
- Remove pizza dough from fridge, let come to room temperature (about 20 min).
- Melt 1 tbsp of butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the sliced red onion and stir occasionally until color changes to slightly brown and taste is sweet, about 10-15 minutes. Remove onions from skillet and set aside.
- Preheat oven to 475.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out pizza dough to about ¼ in thickness. Transfer to a baking sheet. Spread BBQ sauce evenly, leaving a little bit of space around the edges for the crust. Sprinkle half of the cheese evenly. Add caramelized onion and pancetta. Top with remaining cheese.
- Bake for 15 min. Remove from oven, let cool for 2-3 minutes. Top with chopped parsley, slice, and serve!
Source: ringfingertanline.com (defunct blog)
