Something like the Marty

Last night's dinner was intended mainly to dispense with the leftover lemon balm pesto from the pasta dish I made on Thursday.  I had a couple of disks of pizza dough in the freezer and toppings already on hand, so after picking up a block of mozzarella I was ready to go.

This pizza is something like one they had at Hunter-Gatherer for a while that was called the "Marty" after a red-headed waitress of theirs named Marty.  Basically, it was a red sauce and all the (veggie) toppings were red in color.  Last time we went there, Marty was still working there but the pizza was no longer on the menu.  Guess it wasn't a big hit?

Anyhoo, here's my variation.  Maybe I should call it the Christmas pizza because of the green and red?

Nah, don't want to leave anyone out...

Interfaith Holiday Pizza (in August):
1/2 recipe pizza dough
1/2 recipe lemon balm pesto (2-2.5 cups lemon balm leaves, 1/4 cup olive oil, 4 cloves garlic, 1/4 cup pine nuts, 2 tbsp lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste)
8 oz. low-moisture part-skim mozzarella, shredded (not to cheap out, but because the dryness helps keep the crust from getting soggy compared to the "real" mozzarella that's packed in water)
1/2 medium tomato, diced
1 small jar diced pimientos

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.

Smooth out pizza dough evenly on a non-stick 12" pizza pan (or a well-greased regular pizza pan), being careful not to tear holes in it as you work the dough to the edge of the pan.  Spread the pesto evenly across the dough with a spoon, bringing it closer to the edge for less crust (or not, depending on your crust preference).  Scatter the mozzarella evenly over the sauce and then add the toppings.

Bake for 20 minutes, remove from oven and allow about 3-5 minutes to cool.  Slide the pizza off the non-stick pan (if using) and then cut into slices.
***
I'm a pretty spicy girl, so I enjoyed this with crushed red pepper.  Steve liked it pretty well without the added heat.

I was afraid that the amount of fat I ingested from 3 of the 8 slices last night would trip me up on this morning's speed workout, but it actually went pretty well!  Just a couple of mile repeats with a half-mile jog in between, but my times on the miles were actually pretty close to my old race times.  Hooray for pizza - and in a few minutes I'll be enjoying the leftovers for lunch!

I never thought 90 degrees could feel so much like spring, but it really does after the heat we've had to endure most of this summer.  Make time to enjoy this lovely weather while it lasts!