copycat recipe | Johnny La Pasta

We all love pizza. We all love BBQ. Thus, it makes sense to combine these two marvelous genres of foods, right?? Right! Almost every American-style pizza place (alla BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse and California Pizza Kitchen) has some sort of BBQ Chicken Pizza these days, and it fantastic; you really can’t go wrong with ordering one. I and many of my friends love BBQ chicken pizza so much that we have taken to making these BBQ flavored pies in our own homes because it really is so simple to make something so good and so beloved.

My dear friend and former blogging partner from my Confessions of Two College Foodies days, Nicole, first taught me how to make BBQ Chicken Pizza. Her and her family made a version very similar to that of California Pizza Kitchen and it was phenomenal; it quickly became a staple in my own household; for that recipe click here. Since then, however, I have sought to make a recipe that is unique to me so that I am not thieving!

Here is a throwback to the classic version, sans bleu cheese and peppers.

When developing this new recipe, I thought about some of the ingredients and flavors I like to add to more traditional BBQ dishes. When it comes to BBQ burgers, my favorite cheese is bleu cheese; the pungent tang of the bleu plays perfectly off of the sweet richness of BBQ sauce. I also enjoy adding the freshness of red and yellow bell peppers to BBQ dishes as they seem to really brighten up a thick BBQ feast. So, I have added those few ingredients to my friend’s original BBQ Chicken Pizza recipe to make this unique Bleu BBQ Chicken Pizza.

The new Bleu BBQ Chicken Pizza! Could you resist???

This pizza is insanely easy to make, rather inexpensive, and completely delectable. This recipe is perfect for the summer months for those times when you need the texture and ease of a pizza but still want that summery, smokey BBQ flavor. I hope you enjoy!

Bleu BBQ Chicken Pizza

Servings: 3-4
Time: 30 minutes
Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients:

1 pound store bought pizza dough, plain or wheat (I like Trader Joe’s dough)
3/4 cup store bought BBQ sauce
2 cups cooked chicken breast, chopped into cubes
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup bleu cheese crumbles
½ medium red onion, sliced
½ red bell pepper, sliced into strips
½ yellow bell pepper sliced into strips
¼ cup parsley or cilantro, chopped

Directions:

Preheat the oven to according the directions on your store bough pizza dough.

Roll out the dough into a thin, oblong shape and place on an oiled baking sheet. (Pro-tip: sprinkle course cornmeal on the baking sheet to help prevent the pizza dough from sticking)

Pour half the BBQ sauce on the surface of the dough and spread with the back of a spoon or a pastry brush in an even layer right up to the edges of the dough. Sprinkle the mozzarella and bleu cheese crumbles evenly over the pizza.

In a medium bowl, toss the cooked chicken in the remaining BBQ sauce and distribute evenly across the surface of the pizza. Arrange the sliced red onion and bell peppers all over the pizza.

Bake for 15-20 minutes until the dough is cooked golden and the cheese is melted and bubbling. In the last few minutes of cooking, sprinkle with the parsley or cilantro. Remove from the oven and allow to cool a few minutes. Cut into rustic squares and serve!

Follow the directions for your dough, and make sure to put it on a floured surface.

Roll, roll, roll it out!

I like a rustic, perfectly imperfect shape.

Toss the chicken in the BBQ Sauce.

Colors and flavors!

Spread the remaining BBQ sauce over the pizza, as if it were pizza sauce.

Sprinkle with the CHEESE!

Arrange with the BBQ chicken.

Arrange with the onions and peppers.

Bake for 15-20 minutes until the crust is golden and the cheeses are gooey! In the last few minutes sprinkle with the herbs.

Slide onto a cutting board.

Look at that PIZZA!

Cut rustically and serve!

Chicken Bellagio

Years ago when I was a teenager, the cool thing to do for us youngsters was to go to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner before catching a movie. A favorite dish of my friends and I was their Chicken Bellagio; pesto spaghetti, breaded chicken, prosciutto, and a lemon arugula salad – simple yet completely delectable! It is so simple, in fact, that one night while scarfing down the dish before running off to an 8 o’clock film, I had a culinary epiphany: I could totally make this at home for probably less money and for more people. And so, two days later I called on my Italian ancestors to guide me and I created a Copycat Chicken Bellagio Recipe that is to this day a friend and family favorite!

When I was the co-author of my first foodie blog, Confessions of Two College Foodies, this copycat recipe was by far our most popular and most well-read; we even made it on a local access cooking show (which I will not link to here because the 20 year old incarnation of me is much more tragic than the 25 year old one). Anyway, people love this recipe because it is so tasteful and quite elegant despite utilizing simple ingredients.

Chicken Bellagio is a meal that gives you everything you need on one plate: carbs, protein, and greens. Rich and fresh pesto spaghetti is topped with a piece of tender and crunchy breaded chicken, which is then topped with slice of salty and delicate Prosciutto, which is then finished with a tangy and peppery arugula salad. All of these flavor profiles – the herbal freshness from the pesto and the arugula, the saltiness from the prosciutto, and the tanginess from lemon – make this such a magnificently balanced dish.

It is a little bit of work to time everything and get it all assembled, but once you’ve got the meal plated, it is really delightful and presents so beautifully. Furthermore, you can make this very elegant meal for friends and family for about $25-$35 for 4-6 people, which would easily run you over $100 when going out to eat; make this a winner in not only flavor, but in price.

This is going to be your new go-to when craving a restaurant quality meal, right in your own home!

Chicken Bellagio

Servings: 4
Time: 30 minutes
Difficulty: intermediate
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Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast tenders or cutlets
½ cup flour
2 tablespoons garlic powder
2 eggs
2 tablespoons cream or half & half
1 cup Italian seasoned Panko breadcrumbs
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese, plus another 2 tablespoons
1 pound spaghetti
1-1/2 cups store bought or homemade pesto (click here for a reliable homemade pesto recipe)
4 slices Prosciutto
3 cups arugula
Zest of 1 lemon
Juice of 2 lemons
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, divided
Salt and Pepper

Directions:

For the Chicken –

Pound the chicken breast tenders or cutlets until very thin. Season both sides with about a ½ teaspoon of salt and pepper each.

Create a breading station using 3 bowls. In the 1^st bowl, mix the flour, garlic powder and a pinch of salt and pepper each. In the 2^nd bowl, beat the eggs with the cream or half & half till completely mixed. In the 3^rd bowl, combine the breadcrumbs and ¼ cup parmesan cheese. One by one, dip the chicken cutlets on both sides in the flour making sure to shake off excess, then the egg mixture making sure to let excess drain off, then in the breadcrumb mixture being sure to coat completely.

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the breaded chicken cutlets. Cook for 3-4 minutes per side until the breading is golden brown.

For the Pasta –

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the spaghetti and cook until al dente, about 8-10 minutes. Reserve a cup of the pasta water. Drain the pasta. Place pasta in a large bowl and add the remaining 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese and the pesto. Toss to coat, adding pasta water as needed to thin out the sauce and make sure all noodles are perfectly coated in the pesto.

For the Arugula Salad –

Add the arugula to a salad bowl. Zest 1 lemon directly onto the lettuce. Mix the juice of the 2 lemons, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and a pinch of salt and pepper in a small bowl. Pour over the arugula and toss.

To assemble –

Place 1 serving (about 1/8^th to ¼ of the total) of spaghetti into a wide pasta bowl or onto a plate. Place 1 piece of chicken atop the post. Lay 1 piece of the Prosciutto over the chicken. Top the chicken and Prosciutto with a ¼ cup or so of the arugula salad. Sprinkle with additional Parmesan cheese and serve.