Butternut and Yellow Squash Pizza

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Cut the butternut squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Place the halves face down in an 8×8 baking dish and add a 1/2 inch of water to the dish, enough to cover the edges of the squash. Cook the squash by microwaving it for 15 minutes. The squash is ready when the skin is easily poked through with a fork and the flesh is very soft. Scoop out all of the flesh (which should amount to at least 1 cup) and place it aside.

Place the almonds in a food processor and blend on high until they turn to fine powder (be careful not to blend too much and make almond butter!). Remove and set aside.

Peel the garlic and cook it slightly by microwaving for 30 seconds, until fragrant.

Pour the butternut squash into the food processor and blend until smooth. Add the almond powder, garlic, sage, salt and basil. Blend on high until the herbs and garlic are chopped into bits and evenly distributed throughout. Set the mixture aside for now.

Using a sharp knife, very thinly slice the yellow squash (if you have a mandolin slicer, use that, by all means!).

Slice the shallots rather thick, about 1/4-inch. Heat the olive oil in a pan and saute the shallots on medium heat until soft, about 5 minutes.

Roll out your pizza dough into the right size and shape for your pizza pan. Spread the butternut squash mixture on the dough. It is the sauce. Next, lay the thin slices of yellow squash on top of the sauce. Now, bake the pizza for 10 minutes with just the sauce and yellow squash. Remove the pizza from the oven and add the shallots. Bake the pizza for 5 minutes more or until the crust is done. Enjoy!

A note about the pizza dough: I use half a recipe of A Sweet Pea Chef’s Honey Whole Wheat Pizza Dough. See her recipe box for the recipe – it tastes great and is the perfect amount!