garlic chicken pizza with arugula salad

i posted this on my blog but i thought that this crowd might appreciate it as well.
there aren't many things i love more than homemade pizza, and since moving to california it has become a ngarupe dinner staple. as i was making last night's garlic chicken pizza with arugula salad, i started documenting the process and thought i'd make it into a post.

the dough: makes 4 pizzas
i adapted this recipe from food and wine and made it so that it is kitchenaid friendly. no need for kneading.

1 packet of yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1/2 tsp of sugar

put everything right into your mixer; less dishes. mix together with a fork, and let it sit for five minutes, until yeast is foamy.

add to that:
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 1/2 tsp's kosher salt
4 heaping cups of flour (the recipe calls for four, but adds more during kneading. since i don't need i just add more here.)

turn the mixer on slow to let the flour incorporate, otherwise you will have flour all over your kitchen.
keep adding little amounts of flour until the mass of dough doesn't stick to the bowl anymore.
sprinkles some flour around the dough, so it doesn't stick to your hands and lift it out of the mixer.
place in a bowl that has been brushed with olive oil.
brush the top of the dough with olive oil.
let rise. the recipe calls for overnight, but it really isn't necessary if you have the time. if you have the forethought to make this ahead, you can let the dough rest in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. if not, just let it rise until it's about double in size which is between 1 1/2 and 2 hours.
*if you make the dough the night before, it'll just sit in your refrigerator all day and be ready when you come home from work. also, since this makes four pizza's i usually freeze the others and then just take them out in the morning when you leave to work.

once the dough has risen, punch down and cut into four equal parts. roll into balls, and place on a tray or parchment paper.
*this is the point where i put the dough in the fridge/freezer if i'm saving it for later.

let rise another 45 mins. to an hour.
*if using a pizza stone preheat oven to 500 and put the stone in the oven to preheat as well. it needs to done about an hour before cooking. (i have a pizza stone and don't use it, because it's just kind of a hassle sometimes.)
*if you can't wait that long it's not really that big of a deal. the pizza will be fine. also as you're doing this you can preheat your oven, and place the dough on top of the range so that they heat speeds it up.

preheat oven to 500.
flour a surface. i use a large cutting board because i find it easier to clean than having flour strewn about the counters.
roll out dough very thin, like 1/8 of an inch thin.
place rolled out dough on baking sheet and add toppings
bake for about 10 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling and the edges of the crust are browning.

garlic chicken pizza with arugula salad: makes 2 pizzas

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4 tbsp butter
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 tbsp chopped green onion
1 tsp dried basil
1 roma tomato, diced
mozzarella cheese
grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper

cook the chicken breast how you like. i like to roast mine, which involves a 425 degree oven, olive oil, salt, and pepper on both sides, and covering them with foil to bake. it makes the best tasting chicken, ina garten knows her stuff. you could simply grill yours, or whatever, just cook them.
meanwhile, in a small skillet over medium heat, melt the butter with garlic, onion and basil. pour into a chilled dish to cool, refrigerate, to let it set, if you have time.
spread butter mixture onto rolled out dough with the back of a spoon
cover with sliced or shredded mozzarella cheese (original recipe calls for ricotta, but i didn't have any last night, and so i used mozzarella and i really liked it, but honestly you can substitute whatever you want. that's what is so great about pizza.)
sprinkle with chicken, tomatoes and parmesan cheese.
add salt and pepper and bake in the oven until cheese is browning and bubbly, and the edges of the crust are browning.
arugula salad: THIS IS THE BEST PART, and i don't use caps very often so i must be serious.

1/4 cup good olive oil
the juice of half a lemon, more to taste
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
a package of baby arugula (our package is 5 ounces)

whisk together the olive oil, the lemon juice, salt and pepper.
dress arugula, just before you serve. a little goes a really long way. i use half of the recipe for the package of arugula.
transfer salad to the top of the pizza.
Cut, serve, and eat.