If you’re in the mood for a fresh tasting pizza and have the time to fuss just a little, then I hope you’ll try this out. It’s a “Semi-Homemade” Pizza that makes a great mid-afternoon pick-me-up, or appetizer…or lunch, or movie-snack, or…..Well, I’d like it any old time!!
Ingredients:
- 1 Udi’s Frozen Gluten-free Pizza Crust- Defrosted. (I used Udi’s but you may prefer another brand)
- 2 Roma Tomatoes
- A few Eggplant slices-peeled (If you buy a small eggplant, that’s fine) Or
Use 1 Zucchini, peeled and sliced if you prefer that - 1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil ( I like “Light” here)
- A drizzle of the same Oil for use later
- A few Slices of Fresh Mozzarella
- A few Fresh Basil Leaves
- ½ cup Marinara or Meatless Tomato Sauce
- Some Grated Parmesan or Romano Cheese
- S & P to taste
- A Dash of Oregano Flakes
I began this by slicing 2 Roma Tomatoes( eliminate the center stem and most of the seeds) and some small Eggplant slices ( peel the eggplant first), and then coated them in a bit of EVOO, pinch of Salt & Pepper. Just place about 1/3 cup of the Oil, S & P in a shallow bowl and gently turn the vegetables over so each side is coated.
Place on a baking sheet and place in a 375 degree oven for about 10 – 15 minutes. Keep checking. You don’t want them to bake so much that they shrivel up. Remove from oven and place on a plate.
To make this a Semi-homemade item, and save some work– who doesn’t appreciate that?– I used an Udi’s Gluten Free Frozen Pizza Crust. They are sold 2 per pkg, so if you don’t need to make both, you can remove only 1 and retain the 2nd in the freezer for another day. They even package them in a “zipper-like” bag! This recipe’s ingredients are provided for 1 crust. Double everything if you’re making both pizza crusts.
In that 375 degree oven, you’ll be baking your Fresh Tomato and Eggplant pizza. But first, let’s dress it!
On a flat baking sheet ( of course, if you’re lucky enough to have a pizza stone, by all means use it) place the crust.
Spoon just a small amount of plain Marinara sauce or meatless tomato sauce. It’s mainly intended as a base upon which we’ll build the other ingredients. Perhaps you’ll be using ½ cup. A pinch of Salt & Pepper goes on top of this sauce. And a dash of Oregano.
Now, place the roasted Tomato and Eggplant slices alternating as I did in this photo. Place slices of Fresh Mozzarella, a few fresh Basil leaves, and lastly a sprinkle of Grated Italian Cheese, either Pecorino Romano or Parmesan. Drizzle just a small amount of the Oil on top of everything.
Bake in the 375 degree oven until the cheese melts. Since ovens vary in temperatures, and some ovens aren’t accurate, please keep you eye on it.
It may be 15 minutes, it’s difficult to provide an exact time here. The thickness of your cheese slices also comes into consideration for the melting.
Since Fall and eventually Winter will be upon us, and you won’t mind lighting an oven, it’s a nice little lunch or snack food. I was hungry at 4:00 pm for something, and since it was too early for dinner, I made this as an appetizer. It hit the spot!!
