Whole Grain and Cream Cheese Pesto Grilled Pizza

Last night we got a glimpse of the coming Fall weather, here in the Rocky Mountains. Rain showers, fog and a brisk chilly breeze were present most of the day and into the night. It was sweater weather for sure and way to early in the season for my liking. I'm still wearing my flip flops and shorts and cringe when I think that I'll be shoveling snow in just a few short weeks. I'd forgotten how quickly summer passes in the mountains after living in Florida for five years.

As a lover of all things bright and sunny, I'm holding on the last vestiges of summer and enjoying as much outdoor cooking as I can manage, even if it's raining and cold outside!

While living in the mountains, my family has had the wonderful opportunity to see wild life, up close and personal. Elk, deer, chipmunks, skunks, and a myriad of birds live in our yard. My neighbors tell me that they've had close encounters with bears and mountain lions too, but I haven't had the pleasure of seeing any...yet!

One of our very favorite daily visitors is a fox my children have fondly named, "Ponderosa". She visits us every morning and evening, each day of the week. Her inner animal clock is on a perfectly synchronized schedule, 6 am and 3 pm. Some times she stays all day, sleeping and lounging about and other days she's seen dashing through the yard after a tasty chipmunk or mouse. We've grown so accustom to seeing her, she's almost part of the family. Our dogs are still trying to decide if they like her and so far, she's not been interested in eating them.

Of course, it's illegal to feed wild animals, so we refrain from the overwhelming temptation of giving her food. Fortunately, she still visits us without fail.

Standing in the drizzle, I started up the grill and began to make one of my favorite summer dishes, Grilled Pizza's! Just as sure as the sunrises, Ponderosa came to visit, at her usual time and joined me on the porch. Together, in the mist I grilled pizza's and she watched!

I just recently entered two more cooking contests; the Real Women of Philadelphia, Cream Cheese "Appetizers, Make To Impress" and The Foodie Blogroll Royal Joust, "create a dish using, Whole Grains, Fresh Berries and Balsamic vinegar".

Eager to save time and money I decided to make just one dish that I could adjust to work well for both contests.

I made my pizza dough with Spelt Flour, whole Flax Seeds and whole Red Wheat Berries, with a dreamy, creamy cheese Pesto, fresh berries and herbed salad greens...the greens were dressed in a drizzle of fresh lemon juice, balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil and dusted with sea salt and pepper to taste.

I'm not fond of whole grain anything, so having to adhere to the Joust guidelines was a struggle for me. Luckily, I've had the chance to eat pasta made with Spelt flour and to my surprise I liked it very much. I decided to use the Spelt flour for my pizza dough and crossed my fingers and hoped for the best. The pizza crust was crisp but tender and had a lovely nutty flavor.

I've also linked to a wonderful "Blog Hop" called Two for Tuesdays newly renamed....Hearth and Soul Blog Hop... amazing recipes and great fun...http://amoderatelife.com/hearth-and-soul-blog-hop/ go check it out, you wont be disappointed.

The Pizza Dough:

¾ plus 2 tablespoons warm water

1 envelope active dry yeast

1 teaspoon sugar

2 cups Spelt flour plus more for dusting

¼ cup whole red wheat berries

½ cup whole flax seed

½ teaspoon sea salt

extra virgin olive oil

Method:

In a large bowl, mix together the water with the yeast and the sugar and let stand until the mix is foamy, about 5 minutes. Add the 2 cups Spelt flour and stir with a wooden spoon until dough forms, add the flax seed and wheat berries and knead into dough just until all seeds are incorporated, pour onto a
floured surface and knead dough until elastic about 5 minutes.

pour a small amount of olive oil into mixing bowl and return dough to bowl, turn the dough to coat with oil, cover and place in a draft free area until doubled in size, about 1 ½ hours

With your fist, punch dough down and form into a ball, cut the ball into 4 equal pieces or 12-2 inch balls, for smaller appetizer pizzas

Dough can be made ahead, wrapped in plastic and refrigerated for one week or frozen for up to one month. Allow cold dough to return to room temperature and rise according to directions

rub a small amount of olive oil on both sides of shaped dough, heat grill on high for 10 minutes then lower to medium, place pizzas on the clean, well oiled grill, cook the first side for approximately 5 minutes or until brown and crisp on the bottom, flip over

Coat cooked side of pizza with 2 tablespoons prepared cream cheese pesto and cook for additional 5 minutes, remove from grill, add toppings and serve immediately

Toppings:

red raspberries, blackberries, herbed lettuce mix, shaved Parmesan cheese, salt and fresh ground pepper

Dressing:

½ teaspoon olive oil, ½ teaspoon balsamic vinegar and ¼ teaspoon lemon juice, toss herbed lettuce to coat lightly

Cream Cheese Pesto:

4 ounces Philadelphia Brand Chive and Onion Cream Cheese (½ tub)

1 cup Italian parsley

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

3 large cloves garlic

½ teaspoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon sugar

sea salt and pepper to taste

Method:

using small electric chopper, add cream cheese, parsley, lemon juice and garlic and blend for 30 seconds, add olive oil, sugar, salt and pepper and blend till smooth

remember to check out the Hearth and Soul Blog Hop

http://amoderatelife.com/hearth-and-soul-blog-hop/

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