Smoked Scamorza & Green Chile Pesto Pizza

If you have sampled cheese with me, you may have noticed I like to talk about grilled pizza, a lot! I would like to share one of my absolute favorite recipes for your summer grilling pleasure.

Use Slow Dough's handmade pizza crust for a lovely crunch that is perfectly thin. Pizza should never be over piled with toppings and should showcase the star ingredient; the cheese! This spicy pesto paired with Smoked Scamorza is rustic, simple and really, really good. Enjoy!

Slow Dough pizza crust
Terra Verde Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 roasted green chilies, seeds removed and chopped
(or use 2 cans roasted green chilies)
1 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1/3 cup toasted pumpkin seeds
4 oz SarVecchio, about 1/2 cup coarsely grated
Crushed red pepper, to taste
Salt & pepper, to taste
1 ball Smoked Scamorza, sliced
Grilled chicken (optional)

* Yields enough pesto for 4 pizzas

Directions:
Prepare grill. Roast whole green chilies over open flame until skin is black. Remove from grill and place in a sealed plastic bag to make the chilies sweat. If adding grilled chicken, prepare now and set aside for pizza. Once chilies are cool to touch, scrape off blacked part of the skin, remove seeds and chop. Place the chilies, cilantro, pumpkin seeds, and SarVecchio in a food processor. Add spices to taste. While processing, slowly add about 1/2 cup olive oil until you achieve a pesto consistency.

Brush pizza crust with olive oil on both sides. With grill at medium heat (about 350) grill both sides of crust before adding toppings just until slightly golden. Remove from grill, spread on pesto in a thin even layer and add slices of Scamorza and chicken. Grilled until cheese is melted and bubbly. Slice and serve.