Pizza before cooking and ready to eat...yummy!

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again…I really do love pizza. Whoever invented it has my eternal gratitude. It’s so versatile, easy and fun to make. Whether savory or sweet, fully cooked in the oven, or a cooked crust with “raw” toppings, it’s all good. I mean, what’s better for a quick and tasty meal than concocting a sauce—or no sauce at all—customizing your toppings to taste and cheese…must….have….cheese—then popping it into the oven and only minutes later, pulling out the finished product? Okay, eating it…eating it is better.

Th finished sauce should be regular red pizza sauce consistency.

You’ve seen my most favorite of pizza concoctions in the form of the Pizza with Prosciutto and Arugula from the Cheater Pizza post, but this is another fave that I resurrected last night after having forgotten about it for a while. My quirky version of a “white” pizza has a very delicate sauce by comparison to the traditional garlic sauces I’ve tasted. Because of this, you should only use a plain crust because a whole wheat one can be overwhelming to the flavors, unless it is very, very light. I don’t remember how I came up with this recipe, but I suspect it was one of those “what do I have in the fridge” moments! Hope you’ll enjoy it.

Roasted Chicken Pizza with Shallot-Thyme White Sauce

Note: Do as I say and not as I did in the picture above. Don’t use a whole wheat crust!

Sauce:
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 large shallot minced
1 Tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, minced
1/3 cup creme fraiche
1/4 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese, divided
Salt and pepper to taste

Pizza:
1 Pre-cooked 14 inch pizza crust, plain, not whole wheat
1/2 breast of roasted chicken, torn into bite sized pieces (about 2 cups)
1 large tomato, sliced thinly and patted dry
4 ounces small mozzarella balls, cut into quarters
1/8 cup shredded fresh basil leaves

Preheat oven to 450F degrees. Heat the olive oil in a small saucepan over medium low heat. Add the shallots and cook, stirring frequently, until they are soft and lightly caramelized. Add the fresh thyme and stir to release it’s essence, then add the creme fraiche and lower the heat to low. Stir until the creme fraiche has melted and the mixture is just about to simmer, season with salt and pepper and turn off the heat. Stir in half of the Parmesan cheese (about 1/8 cup) until melted.

Spoon 3 heaping tablespoons of the sauce onto the crust and spread evenly, leaving 1/2 inch of border around the crust. Layer the remaining ingredients evenly in the following order: the chicken, then tomatoes, basil, mozzarella and the remaining 1/8 cup of Parmesan cheese. Place in a 450 degree oven on a pizza stone and cook for about 12 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly on top. Cut into six wedges and serve.