I hate to brag, but I literally made the most amazing pizza on the planet last night.
For my friend Taylor’s birthday dinner, I wanted to cook something healthy but delicious, and pizza is definitely a treat for the both of us. Since I knew we’d want to have dessert afterwards (obviously), I tried to keep this dish light with part-skim mozzarella cheese, a ton of veggies, and a whole wheat crust as the base. Instead of tomato sauce, I whipped up a batch of pesto with fresh basil from my new plant!
Just fyi, basil has incredible anti-inflammatory properties and is a great source of Vitamin A. See, pizza is basically good for you, aka eating a salad + wine = health on a plate, am I right?
For the Pesto:
1 1/2 cups basil
2-4 garlic cloves
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/3 cup olive oil
juice from 1/2 lemon
salt and pepper to taste
1. In a food processor, combine all the ingredients and pulse. Scrape down the sides and add water as needed. Blend until smooth.
For the Pizza:
1 whole wheat crust (I highly recommend the one from TJ’s!)
1/2 cup (or so) of pesto, homemade or store-bought
1 cup of fresh spinach
3-5 artichoke hearts, chopped
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 cup part-skim mozzarella
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. On a floured surface, roll out the pizza dough until desired thickness. Transfer dough to a pizza stone or baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. With a spoon, spread the pesto onto the dough in an even layer.
3. Top with spinach, artichoke, and cheeses.
4. Bake for 20 minutes, checking after 15 to make sure it hasn’t burnt. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Serve with wine! Or water 🙂
Have a great weekend, y’all!
xo Jordan