Lunch Pizza or Pizza for Lunch

 

 

Faced with a tomato that has been sitting on the kitchen counter staring me down for the last week, I took the initiative and tackled lunches for the next 2 days. We had an odd assortment of ingredients to work with, but unfortunately no meat. I had leftover shallots from a risotto I made the other week, a red pepper intended for a pizza last weekend, and some asparagus that is to accompany some pork tenderloin later this week. This motley crew of ingredients, though disparate, turned into a nice vegetable based sauce that will make a delicious lunch.

 

Dough:

2 ¼ cups flour

1 cup warm water

1 tsp yeast

½ tsp Salt

½ tsp Sugar

 Mix together dry ingredients. Add yeast to warm water and allow to activate for 10 minutes. Add water to dry ingredients. Blend until a dough forms. Knead for 5-8 minutes. Let rest for 1 hr. Knock down dough and cut into 4 pieces.

Sauce Like Topping:

1 Tomato, Chopped

1 Red Pepper, roasted and chopped

2 Shallots, Sliced

2 cloves Garlic, chopped

1 Celery Stalk, Finely diced

5 stalks asparagus, roasted and chopped

1 ½ tsp Italian Seasoning

3 Tbsp Tomato Puree

A sprinkle of parmesan cheese

Salt + Pepper to Taste

Fry shallots over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, add in Celery, continue cooking for 3-4 minutes. Stir in garlic, cook for 1 minute. Add tomatoes, red peppers, tomato puree, asparagus and Italian seasoning. Simmer for 10-15 minutes. Add parmesan cheese and stir to combine

 

Pizza

2 cups shredded Mozzarella

Preheat oven to 475 degrees. Take piece of dough and form into small disc. Top with ¼ of sauce. Sprinkle over mozzarella cheese. Repeat with remaining dough and sauce. Bake in oven for 15 minutes. Switch to broiler and brown top of pizzas. Remove, enjoy or pack your lunch for the next day!