Today’s guest post is from Chung-Ah at Damn Delicious. I got to say…her Jalapeno Popper Pizza really does look damn delicious! Doesn’t it?! :)
So with this pizza, the marinara is substituted with a cream cheese base. So much better, right? Then we top that off with my favorite jalapeño monterey jack cheese from Trader Joe’s, fresh jalapeños, shallots, and of course, crumbled bacon. You can’t go anywhere without the bacon, right?
No, but really, I’m amazed as to how just 3 ingredients and 2 types of cheeses can create such a delightful pizza. And once you have all the pizza dough ready to go, it takes as much as 5 minutes to add the toppings and another 20 to go in the oven. I’ll be sure to make plenty of pizza dough for the freezer next time so I can make this again during the work week.
So here’s how you make this. The oven should be preheated to 475 degrees F.
Go ahead and start crisping up some bacon.
Just look at all of that gorgeous bacon fat.
Toss a couple of jalapeños and shallots with some olive oil. Be sure to wear gloves when handling jalapeños. I cannot tell you how many times I’ve burned my eyes and nose after touching jalapeños. Yikes!
I had some leftover pizza dough sitting in my freezer so I thawed it in the refrigerator for 24 hours. Once it’s nicely thawed, roll it out into a 10 or 11-inch diameter, or as thin as possible. My dough wouldn’t go past 8 inches.
Transfer the dough to an oiled baking sheet or pizza pan. Spread some softened cream cheese evenly over the top, leaving some room for the crust.
Here comes the good stuff, Trader Joe’s jalapeno monterey jack cheese. This is some amazing stuff, guys. I could seriously eat a block of it on its own.
Cheese heaven, right? I just want to run around this mound and jump on it barefoot. Or would that be entirely weird?
Go ahead and sprinkle this stuff on top of the cream cheese. I used about a cup and a half but feel free to use more or less. I’d say more.
Top the cheese off with the jalapeños, shallots and crumbled bacon. Super easy, right?
Pop this into the oven for about 15-20 minutes, or until the crust is a nice golden brown and has crisped.
Jalapeño Popper Pizza
(adapted from Heather Christo Cooks):
Yields 2 servings
INGREDIENTS:
- Olive oil
- 4 slices bacon, chopped
- 2 jalapeños, sliced
- 1 shallot, sliced
- 1/4 cup semolina or yellow cornmeal
- 1 ball Fail-Proof Pizza Dough
- 6 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1 1/2 cups grated jalapeño monterey jack cheese
DIRECTIONS:
- Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F. Lightly coat a baking sheet or pizza pan with olive oil.
- Heat a small skillet over medium high heat. Add the bacon and cook until brown and crispy, about 6-8 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.
- In a small bowl, combine the jalapeños and shallot with 1-2 teaspoons olive oil.
- Working on a surface that has been sprinkled with semolina or cornmeal, roll out the pizza dough into a 10-inch-diameter round. Transfer to prepared baking sheet or pizza pan.
- Spread the cream cheese evenly over the top, leaving a 1-inch border.
- Top with jalapeño monterey jack, jalapenos, shallots and bacon.
- Place into oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the crust is crisp and brown on the bottom and the cheese is melted on top.
- Cut the pizza into wedges and serve immediately.
Thanks for sharing this terrific recipe, Chung-Ah!
Visit Chung-Ah at Damn Delicious and follow her on Twitter and Pinterest!
I would love this pizza. I always have crushed red pepper on my pizza and love Jalapeno poppers…it just seems like a no brainer!! Yum!! Thanks for the recipe!
Yum! This looks great! I’m going to make this very soon:)
This Pizza sounds great and I am planning on trying the recipe this weekend…….always looking for new pizza ideas.
My son will love this! Thanks for the recipe!
Oh my gosh this looks amazing! Is it bad I want to eat it for breakfast?!
Oh Heavenly Days that looks GOOD!
Makes me want it for lunch! YUM!
Oh my - I think everyone in my house would LOVE this.
This recipe sounds so freakin’ good! Our readers over at Mr. Food would freak over this pizza! We’d love for you to submit a similar recipe to The Search for the Ultimate Weeknight Meal, offering a grand-prize to one lucky blogger who will tape a segment to air on national TV! If you’re interested, check out our contest page for more details. http://www.mrfood.com/Editors-Picks/Search-for-Ultimate-Weeknight-Meal-Blogger-Contest