This was our Friday night pizza.  I’ve made it before, but it had slipped my mind, but Hot Dog Pizza is just a hot dog, deconstructed into pizza form.   Why not?  It tastes great and kids (of all ages) love it.  It’s perfect for the weekend, for kid or adult sleep-overs, and Super Bowl Sunday!  Are you sensing a theme here?  This is incredibly simple and surprisingly tasty.  Why not make a pizza with hot dog fixings?  Just think outside the “pizza box” a bit and you’re here.  You can add some chili, or chiles or caramelized onions, or use brown mustard and hot ketchup, diced dill pickles…you get the idea.  This also makes a great appetizer.  Just cut the pizza into small squares, maybe put a jalapeño slice on each piece….

I’ve given the list of ingredients I used, rather than specific amounts…use all of them, part of them or none of them.  Use whatever you would normally put on a hot dog; you just simply put it on a pizza.

I usually make my own pizza dough.  If you have a bread machine it’s really simple, but feel free to purchase some from a pizzeria or the supermarket; it’s usually in the refrigerated section near the deli or the cheese section.  It’s easier to work with room temperature dough, so you might want to let the dough sit on the kitchen counter for 20 minutes or so.

To assemble the pizza:  Put a very thin film of oil, 3-4 teaspoons, in a pizza pan.  Drop the dough in and carefully push it to the edge.  Set the pan aside to rest for 5-10 minutes.  While it rest, you can mince the onion, slice the dogs, etc.  Squirt ketchup and mustard, just the plain old ball park-type, randomly over the crust.  Don’t drowned it, just squeeze it here and there.  Scatter some relish, either sweet or dill or both, randomly around and now the onions.  You can use dried chopped onions that you reconstitute, but I used red onion that I minced.  It has a Jackson Pollock look about it, doesn’t it…see not quite as random as you thought, huh?

Next comes the bacon pieces and the hot dog slices to cover the pizza.  Are you still with me or have you decided that I truly have lost it?  Now look at that and tell me that doesn’t look good.

I put some extremely well-drained sauerkraut.  The Latin Lover detests sauerkraut and I adore it; so I just put it on part of the pizza.

Grate some really great sharp cheddar and put a good amount on…come on, don’t be stingy with the cheese.  You want this all melty and good.  You could absolutely use some cheddar Jack, if you like a bit of heat or some pickled jalapeños…whatever you like on a dog, put on the pizza.  We went for the more traditional toppings.

Now place the pan on the bottom-most shelf in the preheated oven and bake for about 10-11 minutes.  This one baked for 10 minutes, but, it wasn’t quite as brown on top as I like it.  So, I turned on the broiler and slid it under for about 1-2 minutes.  Remember, don’t ever walk away when  you have something under the broiler or you may end up with bits of charred, cardboard for food…not good…not tasty.  And that’s it.  Take it out of the oven, let it sit for a couple of minutes, then cut it up and enjoy!  We did….