Thai Chicken Pizza

I found this great herbed pizza crust at Trader Joe's and it has been a really long time since I made a pizza at home. As usual, it had to be different. No sauce and mozzarella cheese here!

I loved California Pizza Kitchen, and I use the past tense because I liked all the unusual pizzas they had and so many have been taken off the menu. So, I of course, have to start recreating these at home. I ran a pizza restaurant for a few years so I tried to get through this without having Vietnam style flashbacks about my days in servitude. 

I started by prepping my dough. It was frozen, so I let it defrost and proof on my counter for several hours before touching it. Then I cleaned the surface I would be working on, made sure it was dry, and poured down some cornmeal. When stretching the dough out, you'll want to use that or semolina, which is more expensive. Coat both sides and ensure that your ball is pretty round. Then stretch it out a bit, flipping it a few times to coat any sticky parts with corneal. Stretch the dough with your fingers and slide the dough in a clockwise, circular motion, keeping your palm off the middle. Keep stretching until you have a fairly good size dough. Then gently pick up the dough from the bottom with fists and shake off excess cornmeal. Lay down in a pizza pan or on a pizza stone. Preheat your oven to 500 degrees. 

Pour peanut sauce into a ladle and then onto the crust. For the recommended sauce, see my blog on Thai Chicken Pasta. Use the back of the ladle to spread the sauce evenly, paying more attention to the edges, because everything will pool to the center. 

Then add a can of chicken breast or some pieces of leftover or rotisserie chicken. Julienne some carrots and spread them on as well in the same manner. 

Then add your desired cheese. I used about 2 cups of a shredded cheese blend. Top with some chopped peanuts and bake for 8 minutes. 

If you like, you can top with sprouts when it comes out of the oven. Cut into six or eight slices, twisting your wrist at the end of each pizza slice with the cutter to ensure that the slices separate. 

Thai Chicken Pasta

Reflecting on my most recent blogs, I seem to be cooking very healthy and be on quite the veggie kick. While that is true and I'm watching what I eat, I've been neglecting my comfort food and dessert blogging for those interested. So, here's an indulgent meal that is one of my absolute favorites!

 

I've been obsessed with peanut sauce since I was a little girl and my father took me to La Piment Rouge in Montreal on a business trip. They served Chicken in Peanut Sauce and it was awesome!

I love Pad Thai! There's a restaurant in my childhood hometown, Out Of Asia, that makes the best one, in my opinion, because it's packed full of variety in the meat and you don't have to pick just one. And I love their sauce.

I used to swear by Thai Chicken Pasta at The Cheesecake Factory every time I went! The last time I went there, I was crushed that out of all things, they took this off their menu! I mean, they have a HUGE menu, of all things to get rid of! This type of thing happens to me a lot! I don't know if I typically just like the things nobody else does, but it's sad when it happens and I hate it. A waitress even tipped me off that they would sell me a bottle of the sauce like their salad dressing and I always took one home. So, I picked their recipe apart and made my own recipe to savor it at home.

I have been on a quest for the perfect peanut sauce. I hadn't found one until now so I usually made my own concoction. Mostly I find them too spicy and not so genuine, but I can tell you out of all the open bottles of it in my fridge used once, this is the winner. It's readily available on Amazon.

 

1/4 cup chopped onions

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tsp grated fresh ginger

1 garlic clove, grated

1 Tbsp peanut sauce

2 Tbsp soy sauce

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast

2 Tbsp Italian seasoning

1 Tsp Chinese 5 spice

1 Tsp onion powder

1 Tsp garlic powder

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

1 Tbsp butter

1 package sprouts

1/2 cup julienned carrots (2 stalks)

1 box your favorite pasta, cooked

chopped peanuts for topping

 In a saucepan, mix together onions, olive oil, ginger, garlic, peanut sauce, and soy sauce. Cook over medium heat until onions begin to caramelize (5-10 minutes).

Add in your chicken, browning on one side.

Add in Italian seasoning, Chinese 5 spice, onion powder, garlic powder, and mix thoroughly. Brown chicken on other side until the chicken is cooked through (10-15 minutes).

Add in the butter and chicken broth. Bring mixture to a boil. Add in julienned carrots and cook an additional 2-3 minutes.

Toss the mixture into the cooked pasta and mix thoroughly. Mix in as much additional peanut sauce as you would like as a pasta sauce. The broth will coat the pasta lightly enough for it not to stick but, I used about 1/4-1/2 cup for an entire pound of cooked pasta.

 

When serving this dish, scoop mixture out into plates or bowls. Then top with sprouts, as they will wilt and get soggy if they get warmed from the dish. You can mix it in before you eat it if you like. Then top with some chopped peanuts. I always serve with chopsticks! I hope you enjoy one of my favorite signature dishes!