Roasted Vegetable Personal Pizzas
Once upon a time there was a girl.
A blazing, fierce red head with vigor, passion and spirit. This girl, the most beautiful one in all the land (ha ha), could have anyone she wanted. But you see, she didn’t want just anyone. In fact, what she loved wasn’t a “one” at all. Her love, the thing that made her heart skip a beat? Food. But not just any ol’ food, you see. She had a love affair with a pizza pie. Not just to eat one, though, to make one. Many say she went mad in her tower, spending night after night trying to construct the worlds very best pizza. Until one, warm muggy night. After many delicious, albeit failed, attempts to create the perfect pizza, she finally had it.
“I’LL MAKE MY OWN SAUCE, WITH MY OWN SPIN!” She proclaimed, startling her little fuzzy companion. Of course, how had she not thought of this before? So, with her mind running faster than her body could react, she chopped, sliced and peeled an assortment of delicious vegetables she had acquired from the castle garden (Wegmans). She then tossed them in magic oil, some spices and salt and set them to roast until absolute perfection for 40 minutes.
Once the vegetables had filled her home with such an incredible aroma, the girl pulled them out and dumped 3/4 of them into a food processor, to which she also added some diced tomatoes and some special herbs. Then she tapped her magic wand to the processor and pulsed the sweet smelling mixture until it was a thick, and chunky sauce.
After tasting a few spoonfuls (read 8) of this mind-blowing sauce, she set it aside and prepared her go-to quick pizza dough. She mixed, she kneaded, she sang while she rolled. This pizza was it, that she knew.
After cutting out personal size crusts from the dough, she placed them with care on top a greased pizza pan. She then slathered each crust in the magical sauce, topping each one with the remaining roasted vegetables and fresh mozzarella. She baked them with love for 10 minutes, until the she could no longer handle the drool-inducing smell. She removed then and topped them with chopped fresh basil. Even the sight of them made her heart a-flutter.
She could no longer wait, the anticipation was killing her. She called down to her knight in shining armor “dinner is ready, you better hurry or I’ll eat it all!” Then, like a ravenous beast, she sunk her teeth into the soft, moist dough and took a bite. The taste nearly brought her to tears. The roasted vegetable sauce was robust and bold, pairing so wonderfully with the fresh mozzarella. Each bite of this pie gave her something incredible, like a roasted whole clove of garlic or a slice of eggplant. She chomped and chewed her way through more than one pie in complete and utter bliss.
So what came of the girl who created the perfect pie? Well, she still sits in her castle, working to perfect it even more. One day you’ll see her, in the town square, selling her pizzas for all. Until then, though, she’ll continue her work to create a pie even more perfect.
Which may be hard. How can you top that?
Roasted Vegetable Personal Pizzas
Yields about five 4 – 6 inch pies.
Ingredients:
- 1 regular homemade pizza crust (use THIS recipe)
- 1 can diced tomatoes, 3/4 the way drained
- 1 small eggplant,sliced
- 1 yellow squash, sliced
- 1 medium bell pepper, chopped
- 1 medium onion, sliced
- 7 cloves of garlic, peeled
- 3 tablespoons oregano
- 1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
- 2/3 tablespoon white sugar
- Liberal dashes of salt and pepper
- 3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese
- Fresh basil leaves
- Freshly grated parmesan (optional)
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place all vegetables in a 3 quart glass baking dish and cover with sesame oil, salt and pepper. Bake for 20 minutes. Then, using a spatula or spoon, stir vegetables around so each side bakes evenly. Bake for an additional 15 – 20 minutes longer, or until vegetables are very soft and fragrant.
- Once vegetables are done roasting, pour 2/3 of them into a food processor. Add the diced tomatoes. (*Note. You want some liquid so only drain the tomatoes 3/4 the way so you still have some juices). Add in the oregano, sugar, chili powder and more salt and pepper. Pulse on low until mixture is combined. (It will be a little chunky). Add more salt, pepper, or chili powder to taste.
- Roll out your pizza dough. Using a cereal bowl (or if you have a 6 inch cutter) cut out personal size pizzas. Place on a greased pizza pan or baking dish (2 to a sheet). Slater liberal amounts of sauce onto each piece of crust. Cover each pie with about 2 ounces of fresh mozzarella and an assortment of the remaining vegetables.
- Bake pizzas for 10 – 12 minutes, or until crust is golden brown and cheese is melted. Garnish with fresh basil, parmesan and enjoy!
Nutritional information per 1/2 pizza:
Calories: 200
Fat: 4.5 grams
Fiber: 1/25 grams
Protein: 10.4 grams
Carbohydrates: 30 grams
Weight Watchers Points: 5
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