Quick & Easy Weeknights: Margherita Pizza

I love to meal plan. It means I only grocery shop once every 3 weeks, I spend less, and I have quick meals planned for those nights you don't feel like spending a lot of time in the kitchen. This recipe is adapted from a cooking light recipe, uses refrigerated pizza dough, and fresh ingredients. 

Quick Margherita Pizza (Adapted from Cooking Light)

What you need
1 (10-ounce) can refrigerated pizza crust dough
Cooking spray
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, halved
5 plum tomatoes, thinly sliced (about 3/4 pound)
1 cup (4 ounces) mozzarella cheese, sliced
1/2 cup thinly sliced fresh basil
Salt & Pepper, to taste
Baking Sheet
Rolling pin
Pizza cutter

What you do
Preheat oven to 400° F. Unroll crust dough onto a baking sheet coated with cooking spray; roll out to the edges of baking sheet using floured roller. Bake at 400° for 8 minutes.

Remove crust from oven, and brush with 1/2 teaspoon oil. Rub crust with cut sides of garlic. Arrange tomato slices on crust, leaving a 1/2-inch border; top with mozzarella slices. Bake at 400° for 12 minutes or until cheese melts and crust is golden.

Sprinkle pizza evenly with sliced basil, salt, and pepper. Cut and serve.

Wine Pairing: Make it an Italian night with Barbera - a red wine with some acidity to cut the fattiness of the mozzarella cheese.

Bacon, Asparagus, & Cherry Tomato Flatbread

This recipe is perfect if you're cooking for two, as each flatbread makes a personal "pizza" for each eater. Simple, fresh ingredients make this recipe a keeper. I'm always looking for new ways to enjoy my vegetables, and what better way to enjoy anything than to serve it on top of crusty bread with bacon and cheese? In the future, I will try this with different cheeses such as gouda or goat cheese.  This dish is very versatile in its wine pairings. If you make with mozarella, any Italian white wine will make a great pair. Or, if you use gouda, chardonnay is a must. Goat cheese pairs well with riesling. Enjoy!

White flatbread pizza

Naan bread, olive oil, ricotta, mozzarella, basil, garlic powder. Can you handle this 15 minute recipe? I think so. Forget waiting 45 minutes for a $15 dollar pizza when you can get a personal pizza at home in less than 15 minutes with simple ingredients you can get at any grocery store.

My idea for this recipe was originally from an issue of Wegman's magazine (Wegman's is an awesome Northeast grocery store) and ever since trying their naan pizza recipes, I've been hooked on my own version of white naan pizza. See more naan pizza recipes from Wegman's here.

Naan is a South Asian flatbread that is commonly seen in Indian and Pakistani restaurants in the US. And of course, it's complete natural for us (Americans) to take a century old recipe from ancient civilizations, cover it in cheese and salt and call it a pizza. Mmmmm, pizza.

You can find Naan bread at most grocery stores now, pre-packaged and ready to use in a number of recipes. I bought Tandoori Naan, and I particularly like the garlic flavor for this recipe (it also comes in original and whole grain). Find out if this is available at your local grocery store. The size of the naan is perfect for a personal pizza, so take this in consideration for serving sizes if you plan on making only this flatbread recipe with no sides.

This mild, garlicky, and herb-y white pizza will pair well with almost any white wine from Champagne to Sauvignon Blanc, so I won't even name grapes - just pick up a bottle of your favorite white. If you prefer red, I almost always opt for an Italian Sangiovese or Chianti when eating mozzarella and ricotta cheese.