This pie has it all! Tender chicken, crispy bacon, a cheese-stuffed crust and a creamy garlic sauce. Who needs delivery now?
1 Pizza crust, store-bought or your favorite homemade recipe*
8–1 ounce mozzarella cheese sticks
For the Garlic Sauce:
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
1/4 tsp. salt (kosher, table or sea)
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
10 cloves garlic, minced
For Toppings:
5 slices thick cut bacon, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size chunks
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. black pepper
3 green onions, sliced
1 medium tomato, diced
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
1 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
Preheat oven to 475 degrees F. Brush a pizza pan with olive oil. Set aside.
To Prepare Garlic Sauce:
In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Whisk in the flour to create a roux to thicken the sauce. Let cook until light brown. Whisk in milk, stirring constantly to avoid lumps. Add salt, cayenne and minced garlic. Turn heat to low and let cook for about 10 minutes or until thickened, stirring frequently.
To Prepare the Bacon & Chicken:
In a frying pan over medium heat, cook bacon until crispy. Remove bacon to a paper towel to drain the excess grease. Reserve about 1 tbsp. of bacon grease in frying pan. Add chicken chunks and cook until almost no pink remains. Add minced garlic and black pepper to chicken and cook for another 3-4 minutes. Do not let garlic burn. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.
Putting it All Together:
On a lightly floured board, roll pizza dough out to about a 1/4-inch thickness. Center the pizza pan over the rolled dough to ensure about 1-inch of dough will hang over the pan’s edges. If not, roll dough out more. Place dough onto pan and line edges with the mozzarella cheese sticks. Using water and a brush, wipe a slight line of water next to the cheese sticks. Fold the overhanging dough over the cheese sticks and press down on the watered dough line to seal the cheese sticks in the dough. Use a fork to prick the center of the pizza crust all over.
Spread the Garlic Sauce over the pizza crust. Top with cooked chicken and garlic. Sprinkle bacon, green onions, and tomato over the chicken. Top with shredded mozzarella and parmesan cheeses.
Combine melted butter and garlic powder. Brush over the crust’s edges. Bake for 12 to 16 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown. Slice and serve.
*I consistently have great results using Tyler Florence’s recipe. His recipe calls for 00 flour, but I substitute with all-purpose flour. You will have enough dough to make 3 pizza crusts from this.
Find it online: https://gloveboxeats.com/?p=4378