Weeknight Pizza

Preheat oven to 400 degrees, place oven racks on middle and lower shelves.

Prepare your vegetable while your oven is warming. The secret to success with this recipe is slicing your vegetables thinly so that they cook quickly.

In a small bowl, mix your tomato sauce with the pesto. Set aside.

Take either fresh or frozen (I keep a stash in the freezer, they take a couple extra minutes to cook, but so worth it) pita breads and spread them out on the kitchen counter, top each with 3-4 tablespoons (approx. 1 oz) of sauce.

Lightly top the pizzas with veggies and/or meats, but use a light hand as the baking time is short and less is definitely more.

Some of my favorite combinations : asparagus/prosciutto/onion; summer squash, red pepper, onion; spinach, mushroom, goat cheese; all of these include a light sprinkling of cheese.

Follow veg/meats with a dusting of shredded cheese. You want just a sprinkle so the other toppings get a chance to cook and the cheese gets to broil into crisp goodness.

Once topped, carefully place the pizzas directly on the racks of your hot oven, set timer for 4 minutes. After 4 minutes, use a spatula check the crusts for crispness, give an extra minute if needed.

When crisp, transfer the pizzas to the broiler portion of your oven for 2-3 minutes. Watch them carefully. The goal here is bubbly golden cheese and fully cooked veg.

Once toasted, transfer to a large wooden cutting board slice and serve. This goes great with a simple salad, wine/ beer and it’s even better the next day for lunch.