Skip to main content

Mediterranean Pizza

 
Another dinner I treated myself to in honour of my birthday last weekend was this thing of beauty.  It turned out awesome, partly because I found some spelt pizza dough at Whole Foods that produced a perfect crisp, chewy crust.  These dough balls are also smaller than the ones I usually buy so I was able to roll the pizzas thinner and I didn't get the food coma/hangover the next day that I sometimes get when I make pizza (which might also have something to do with how much of it I eat!).  In addition, I used less cheese than usual and realized I didn't miss it a bit thanks to the fabulous, flavourful toppings.  Adam loved this pizza too so I think I'll definitely be making it again.

Other tasty additions, should you desire, would be artichokes, feta cheese and/or red onion.

Enough (whole grain) dough to make 2 large pizzas (use whatever homemade recipe or store bought dough you like)

Mediterranean Pizza

Sauce

1 can tomato paste
1 cup water
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
Crushed red chili flakes, to taste (optional)
Salt and pepper, to taste

Toppings

1 300g box frozen, chopped spinach, thawed or 1 lb fresh baby spinach, chopped.
1 cup good quality black olives (kalamata or sundried are best)
1/2 cup julienned sundried tomatoes
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp dried oregano

200g shredded low fat mozzarella or non-dairy cheese of choice

Combine all the ingredients for the sauce in a small sauce pan.  Simmer for a few minutes over low heat until thickened.  Remove from heat.

Saute topping ingredients in a skillet over medium heat for about 3-4 minutes.  Remove from heat.

Spray your pizza pans (if using) with non-stick spray and sprinkle with cornmeal.  Roll out your dough to desired shape, size and thickness.  Spread sauce over entire surface of the dough, sprinkle with cheese and then divide toppings and make an even layer on top of cheese.  If using regular pizza pans (not a pizza stone), bake in oven at 500F for about 25 minutes, rotating pizzas from top to bottom racks half way through.  Makes 2 large pizzas.  Refrigerate leftovers for up to 4 days or freeze.
 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Japanese 7-Spice Kelp Noodles

I love trying new spices and seasonings, so I am very excited that the President's Choice Black Label line now has a bunch of new spice blends available.  My most recent find: Shichimi Togarashi, or Japanese 7-Spice blend. It's a combination of crushed red chili flakes, sea salt, Szechiuan peppercorns, black and white sesame seeds, poppy seeds, orange zest, wasabi powder and nori seaweed flakes. I make Japanese-inspired dishes all the time, but resort to the same old flavours most of the time: miso, soy, sesame, ginger and garlic.  I was so excited to be able to liven things up a bit. This dish is easy and tasty, although be warned that this seasoning packs punch.  I used 1 tsp, which ended up being too spicy for me, and I have a high tolerance for heat!  I recommend 1/4-1/2 tsp, or, if you don't like heat at all, make your own at home and omit the red chili flakes.  You'll get all the flavour without the heat. I served these noodles with a mix of seafood (

Blackfly Coolers: Product Review

Summer is over! Well, at least if you're a student. Officially it doesn't end for a few weeks, and it certainly still feels like summer. Yeah, I hate it. This f*cking hot, humid weather needs to end NOW! We made the most of our last weekend of the summer with our annual trip to the CNE on Friday, with a crowd of friends. It wasn't unbearably lot, thank goodness, and the girls and their friends had a blast on the rides.  Saturday I had to work, and Sunday was errand day. Monday we took the girls berry/apple/pear picking but didn't last long due to the heat. I organized the house to prepare for the construction workers starting back up yesterday, while Adam took the girls for a swim in our neighbourhood pool. Yesterday was the first day of school. Grade 2 and Grade 5. Yep, the girls are growing up.  We are fortunate that the girls don't have much anxiety about school, they are so much more confident than I ever was as a kid! But now, in the midst of our reno ch

How to Look Like a Celebrity

Okay, I know you're going to be interested in this post! I am sure virtually every woman in North America has wondered how Hollywood celebrities achieve such 'perfect' bodies.  Well, at CAN FIT PRO last week, one of Hollywood's top fitness trainers, Eric the Trainer , was there to tell us fitness professionals the secrets! Eric the Trainer, gave several presentations, and I caught the one on Celebrity Secrets, and it was most interesting!!!  I also found some of what he said rather disturbing. First off, he was very upfront about the fact that celebrities come to him for improve their appearance.  Not to improve their health or athletic performance.  To look their best.  He admitted that his approach then, is entirely dedicated to that end. Male and female celebrities are trained in completely different ways because Hollywood wants women to be lithe and thin and in his words, "look like they dropped out of heaven looking this way without every having ste