Friday night pizza - malaysian style

Before the economy went into the tank, we used to order in pizza every friday night. Now in an attempt to tighten our belts and save a little money we make pizza, and it has evolved into a fun family ritual. I use a ready made crust - usually Pillsbury Classic in a can - but the fun part is the toppings. Though my heathens are definitely more on the traditional side - turkey pepperoni and lots of cheese - I try and find some more interesting ones for myself and The Other Half.

I have had this recipe in my arsenal since my days living at 331 in Cerro (more than an address it's a lifestyle...) but I have only recently been able to pull it out and dust it off at home because I was able to find a workable substitute for the peanut butter. Try Sunbutter - sunflower oil butter if you have the same issue. It has the same creamy consistency as peanut butter with a similar taste and because of the strength of the other ingredients you don't notice the slight difference in aftertaste.

The original recipe was in a Cooking Light magazine. It is super fresh and full of flavor and there are never any leftovers. As I progress in this process I will try to take and post some photos but for now the words will have to do.

Malaysian Chicken Pizza

• 3/4 cup rice vinegar
• 1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger or 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger (1/4 teaspoon if you like things spicy)
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter (creamy or chunky works fine - the chunky adds a nice texture)
• up to 3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper, depending on how hot you like your food
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• a dash of olive oil
• 1/2 pound boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces (rotisserie chicken works great in a pinch)
• at least 1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded reduced-fat, reduced-sodium Swiss cheese*
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese*
• 1 pizza crust
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions

* I am pretty liberal with the cheese because we like cheesy pizza

Prepare oven and crust per package directions.

Combine first 8 ingredients in a bowl; stir well with a whisk.

Heat a nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium heat. Add chicken, and sauté 2 minutes. Remove chicken from pan.

Pour rice vinegar mixture into pan, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook mixture 6 minutes or until slightly thickened. Return chicken to pan; cook 1 minute or until chicken is done. (Mixture will be consistency of thick syrup.)

Sprinkle cheeses over prepared crust, leaving a 1/2-inch border, and top with chicken mixture.

Bake on bottom rack in oven per the crust instructions. Sprinkle with green onions.

Place pizza on a cutting board; let stand 5 minutes then cut and serve.

We like to have it with a green salad with sesame ginger dressing.