Santa Fe Chicken Pizza

Baz's Note:

A great recipe from The California Pizza Kitchen Cookbook. One of their pioneering pizzas, originally called Grilled Lime Chicken Pizza. Recipe makes one large pizza. A bit fiddly but well worth the effort - a real gourmet pizza.

• Total Time: 30 mins
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 10 mins

Ingredients:

Serves: 2-4

Yield: 1.0 pizza

Salsa

• 2 -3 firm red, ripe Roma tomatoes (1 cm dice)
• 2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
• 1 teaspoon garlic , finely minced
• ½ teaspoon minced jalapeno
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh coriander leaves (or cilantro)

Grilled Lime Chicken

• 300 g chicken breasts
• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
• ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 ½ teaspoons soy sauce
• ½ teaspoon honey
• 1 pinch cumin
• 1 pinch dried chili pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh coriander leaves (or cilantro)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Caramelised Onions

• 1 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 small red onion , peeled & sliced into 1/8 inch thick rings
• ¼ teaspoon red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce

Guacamole

• 1 large ripe unblemished Hass avocado
• 1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
• 1 tablespoon chopped spring onion (scallions)
• ½ teaspoon finely minced jalapeno

Pizza

• 1 plain pizza crust (or pizza base)
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander leaves (or cilantro)
• ½ cup sour cream

Directions:

1. TO MAKE SALSA: Combine salsa ingredients and set aside in refrigerator for 1/2 hour then place in a strainer to remove excess water. Set aside in refrigerator until ready to use.
2. TO MAKE GRILLED LIME CHICKEN: Prepare a hot grill or barbecue. Mix the marinade ingredients together and marinate the chicken breasts for 15 minutes. Cook the breasts for 5 to 7 minutes each side (discard leftover marinade). Remove the grilled chicken and cool. Cut the cold chicken into 1 cm cubes and set aside in the refrigerator.
3. TO MAKE CARALELISED ONIONS: Melt butter in small non-stick pan over medium-high heat and cook onions, stirring, until they just begin to brown - 3 to 4 minutes. Add vinegar; reduce heat to medium-low & continue to cook for 10 minutes, stirring to prevent scorching. Add soy sauce & cook 5 to 10 minutes longer, stirring. When done, onions should be quite limp & caramelised brown.
4. TO MAKE GUACAMOLE: Cut the avocado in half, discard pit and scoop the flesh away from the skin into a bowl. Using a fork, mash the avocado and then quickly combine with the remaining guacamole ingredients. Place cling film directly onto the surface of the guacamole and squeeze out air bubbles. Refrigerate until ready to use.
5. TO MAKE PIZZA: Distribute sauteed onions over the pizza base. Cover the onions with about 3/4 of the mozzarella. Evenly distribute the chicken pieces over the cheese and then sprinkle the rest of the cheese over the chicken. Transfer to the pre-heated Pizza Maker (or to a very hot oven) and cook until cheese at centre is bubbly and crust is brown (8 to 10 minutes). Sprinkle 1 tblsp of chopped coriander leaves over the hot cheese. Serve with salsa, sour cream and guacamole (either added to the pizza before serving or else as side dishes for people to add as they like).