Grilled Chicken, Hummus, & Spinach Pizza

MORE PIZZA! In this house, you can never have too much pizza. And we like to break away from the traditional red sauce now and then....

I'm a huge fan of cooking once, using twice. We had leftover grilled chicken (from the previous entry) and therefore go to make this delicious pizza for dinner last night & I again have to thank Laura Curlin. All you need is pizza dough, spinach, hummus, grilled chicken and cheese (blend) & maybe some rosemary. An easy 7-ingredient meal if you have things handy....seriously, you can roll/spread out pizza dough with your hands!

GRILLED CHICKEN, HUMMUS, AND SPINACH PIZZA

4-6 oz. (1/2 cup-3/4 cup) part-skim mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese

1/2 cup-3/4 cup cup plain hummus, preferably homemade; store bought is fine (see homemade hummus recipe below--the pizza will use about 3/4 of what is made below--I estimate)

2 cups packed baby spinach leaves, roughly chopped or julienne cut (I left them whole)
1-2 grilled boneless, skinless chicken breast-sliced (I used 1.5 big chicken breasts)

1 tsp. fresh or dried minced rosemary

1 ball refrigerated pizza dough (see this entry for an easy home-made pizza dough recipe)

Place crust on cookie sheet and spread out with your hands (it's fine to keep it rustic looking). Spread the crust with hummus. Then top with the grilled chicken.

Even spread the spinach on the pizzas follow that up by spreading the cheeses and rosemary over the pizza.

Bake at 425 for 15-20 minutes until your cheese is started to brown and bubble and your crust has gotten golden/brown.

I make hummus all the time but I don't use written proportions. I was happy to receive Laura's recipe because it tastes so much like mine & I actually have proportions this time! Woo-hoo!

Thanks for a great recipe--I love to add paprika and cumin too! I never thought about adding the smoked flavor and while digging through my cupboards, found this amazing smoked salish salt purchased from our culinary tour in Seattle's Pike Place Market (World Spice Merchants). So I used regular paprika and smoked salt with great success.


CURLIN FAVORITE HUMMUS--this is great!

1 (15 oz) can garbanzo beans, strain and reserve ¼ c. liquid
1/4 cup liquid from can
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 Tbsp. sesame tahini (sesame seed paste found at Whole Foods or other natural markets--ask your grocer about it)
2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1-2 tsp. minced fresh garlic (about 2 small cloves)
¾ tsp. ground white pepper (black seemed ok too)
¾ tsp. fine ground sea salt
¼ tsp. cumin
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/8 tsp. paprika, pref. smoked

Strain the beans, reserving portion of liquid.

Using a food processor or blender, combine all ingredients and mix until smooth, stirring to ensure even mixing consistency if necessary.

Spoon into covered container and refrigerate overnight before serving, if possible.

Store in refrigerator. Will last for 2 weeks. Hummus can be served alone or with pita chips and veggies.

Variations for Hummus: While blending hummus any of the following can be added to change the flavor: roasted red peppers, fresh basil, chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, pine nuts, artichoke hearts, fresh flat leaf parsley, black olives or olive tapenade, or sundried tomatoes.

Enjoy!!!!