Pizza with White Bean Puree & Fresh Tomatoes

I love the way this pizza tastes! My two oldest sons loved it too. It's nice to have a variety on pizza night. It reheats well, even though the crust loses its crisp; I like eating the leftover slices over the next couple days warmed up and folded over like a pita. Another thing I love about this recipe is the simple bean dip recipe it uses. I can get all my kids to eat hummus, but some hummus recipes are decidedly strong in flavor. This one is smooth, creamy, and the sage gives it just the perfect touch. I will file the dip recipe in its own place, since we'll be making it on its own often.

Pizza with White Bean Puree & Fresh Tomatoes

Ingredients

3/4 c. water

1 clove garlic, cut in half

1 15 oz can cannellini or great northern beans, rinsed (or 2 c. precooked beans)

1 T. extra virgin olive oil

1 t. finely chopped fresh sage or 1/4 t. dried rubbed

1/8 t. salt

freshly ground pepper to taste

1 pound prepared whole wheat pizza dough (or make your own: I used this)

4 T. freshly grated Parmesan cheese (I used the stuff in green can...hey what can I say?)

6 plum tomatoes, sliced

2 scallions, thinly sliced

1/2 t. crushed red pepper

1. Preheat oven to 500. My oven tends to smoke a lot (needs cleaned, no time), so I usually go with 450 when making pizza.

2. Combine water and garlic in saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Add beans and return to boil. Drain, reserving 1/4 c. of the cooking liquid. Allow beans to cool for a while, then puree in food processor with olive oil and enough reserved liquid to make a thick, smooth paste. Stir in sage, salt and pepper. (I still have yet to receive a food processor...I use this for almost everything instead).

3. Spread your dough out into your prepared pan , piercing with a fork a few times to prevent air bubbles from forming. The original recipe said to make 2 seperate 12 inch pizzas, but I made one big one in my trusty baking pan. Prebake crust until lightly browned, 5 to 6 minutes.

4. Spread the white bean puree over your crust, then sprinkle 2 T. Parmesan over it (if making 2 smaller pizzas, divvy up your ingredients over both). Arrange tomato slices over the top, and sprinkle the green onions, remaining Parmesan, and red pepper flakes on top. Lightly mist with olive oil spray (you could probably skip that...but I do happen to have one of these).

5. Bake pizza until bottom and edges of crust are browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Slice and serve!

Grilled Potatoes with Parmesan and Herbs

I started making this recipe before I realized it is intended for the grill (yes, I realize the word 'grilled' is in the title...I think the word 'Parmesan' blinded me temporarily). I couldn't convince the hubby to scrape snow off the grill cover to finish supper, so I improvised and turned on my oven's broiler instead. The potatoes turned out sooo good! Will definitely make them again using the broiler, and probably try them out on the grill, as well, once the birds start singing out there!

Grilled Potatoes with Parmesan and Herbs

Ingredients

3 lbs small red skinned potatoes (or whatever smallish potatoes you have on hand)

4 T. olive oil

1 c. thinly sliced green onions

3 T. chopped Italian parsley

3 T. grated Parmesan

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 t. fresh oregano (I used 1 t. dried)

Cook potatoes in large pot of boiling salted water until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain potatoes and cool.

Prepare grill (med. heat). Cut potatoes in half, transfer to a large bowl. Add 2 T. olive oil and toss to coat. Grill potatoes until golden, turning occasionally, about 5 minutes (this took about twice as long when I put them under my oven's broiler). Transfer to bowl. Drizzle 2 T. olive oil over and add remaining ingredients. Toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper and serve warm.