Artichoke, Tomato and Spinach Pizza...

I very much missed our homemade Friday Pizza Nights! We didn't find any spectacular pizza this last trip in Charlotte, but we may have not searched around as much as we should have. We'll have to do better next time! Jumping right back into routine, for this week's pie, I tried out a recipe for this Artichoke, Tomato and Spinach Pizza.

Using the pound version of our go-to whole-wheat pizza dough (surprise!), once it had rested from being hammered in the food processor, we stretched the smooth dough into a rough rectangle rather than the traditional round. Instead of a tomato-y sauce, we smeared the rectangle with a light combination of extra-virgin olive oil, several cloves of minced garlic and a bit of fresh parsley. I know the amounts may look absurd to just put down over the dough, but we won't use all of it there - you'll see where the rest goes shortly!

Ragged strips of just-shredded mozzarella cheese get scattered over the slick now-garlicky dough, along with a couple tablespoons worth of Parmesan cheese. Quartered artichoke hearts (which were given the "evil eyebrow raise" by Jeff...), halved grape tomatoes and tender leaves of chopped baby spinach were then strewn over the top, but just before that, they were thrashed around the bowl holding the rest of the oil mixture. Be a little fussy here as you want the ingredients fairly evenly distributed - you don't want to get a square with all artichokes and none of the sweet tomato rounds or earthy spinach bites.

A bit more sharp Parmesan was scattered over, readying the pizza for the oven. Because we shaped this pizza into a large rectangle, and our pizza stone happens to be round, to try and get the same effect, when we turned the oven on to a fiery five hundred degrees, we set an inverted sturdy baking sheet on the wire rack. It won't be the end of the world if you don't do this, but it does help the bottom crust crisp.

While Jeff was a little uncertain about the artichokes (he convinced himself they would end up slimy or spongy - you know, his excuse for not enjoying mushrooms and whatnot), he surprised me with just how many pieces he ate! I think he enjoyed how they seemed to bring a meatier weight to the pizza - both of us found this medley addicting and had a hard time stopping when our bellies told us to! I didn't add any this time, but I may add a smattering of crushed red pepper flakes for a poignant kick when we make this again!

Recipes
Artichoke, Tomato and Spinach Pizza