Sundried Basil-Pecan Goat Cheese Pizza

If you know me, then you probably know that a pizza recipe is an unlikely inclusion on my blog.

Growing up, the promise of getting a class pizza party for selling the most chocolate bars, etc. in the school was never a very tantalizing reward for me. Needless to say, when it comes to pizza, I'm not exactly a fan. I know this makes me certifiable or something, but the typical marinara, mozzarella, grease combination is usually enough to make me gag. My first enjoyable encounter with pizza (and, until recently, my only enjoyable encounter with pizza) occurred my junior year during a school spring break trip to Europe: a Margherita pizza from some back-alley pizzeria in Monaco. It took traveling halfway across the world, but I finally realized that, with the right ingredients, there was no reason pizza couldn't be good.

Since getting married, my husband had been nagging me to make a pizza for him. Finally, last summer, I got around to opening up the Pizza Gourmet Cookbook I had received as a wedding shower present. There was a lot of interesting ingredient combinations (none of which I have tried yet). Instead, I felt inspired to make my own concoction of a pizza. Knowing how much I loved the ingredients in my Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken recipe (comin' atcha tomorrow!), I thought to myself, "Self, now wouldn't those ingredients taste spectacular on a pizza?"


As it turns out, I was right. My daughter loves this one as much as my husband and I. And, best of all, it doesn't pack in nearly as much fat as your typical pizza. Seriously, I have this theory that goat cheese makes everything better. I might just have to start putting it to the test.


Sundried Basil-Pecan Goat Cheese Pizza

Ingredients:

1 small package of fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced (about 1/2 C loosely packed or 2/3 oz.)
1 shallot, finely chopped
2-3 T of sundried tomato paste or pesto (or process some sundried tomatoes)
4 oz. of crumbled goat cheese
1/3 C chopped pecans
2-3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 12" pizza crust (I have been quite happy Mama Mary's pizza crusts. I did make a pizza crust from a recipe featured in the aforementioned pizza cookbook, but it turned out just as well as a Mama Mary's crust. Plus, buying a ready-made crust is a no-brainer time-saver)

a pizza pan

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Place pizza crust on a pizza pan.

1. Brush 1-2 T of extra virgin olive oil on pizza crust.
2. Brush 2-3 T of sundried tomato paste or pesto on crust.
3. Evenly scatter crumbled goat cheese over pizza crust.
4. In a skillet, add 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and heat over a medium heat. Add basil and shallots, stirring for 1-2 minutes, until ingredients are moist and the shallots and basil are slightly aromatic. Remove from heat.
5. Spoon shallot/basil/olive oil mixture evenly over pizza.
6. Evenly scatter chopped pecans over pizza.
7. Place on middle rack in oven and bake for 15 minutes.

Cut, serve, and enjoy immediately!

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