Loca-busy? Locavore?

Saturday, March 30, 2013

Leftover Pizza


No, I’m not talking about that nasty pizza that’s been left out overnight. I know your hungover self doesn’t care about the grease that’s congealed on the top or the fact that you aren’t sure if you just swallowed the bit of cardboard that’s missing under the piece you just shoved into your mouth.  

No.  

When I say “leftover pizza” I’m referring to pizza made home fresh with leftovers you can find in your [relatively] healthy collection.  I’ll leave the other kind of leftover pizza to be the weekend breakfast of college students everywhere.

I just found a couple of flatbread pizza crusts on sale at my co-op.  Tonight is the night before Easter, so I don’t want to burden myself with something elaborate, nor do I want to stuff my people so they aren’t hungry for that amazing feast I’m going to dream up for tomorrow.  The problem is, do I really have the ingredients for a pizza?  My mind goes through the classic list:  pepperoni?  Sausage?  Mushrooms? Onions?  Nope.  Neither do I have some of the more “exotic” flavors:  ham and pineapple, barbecued chicken.  [Ick.]  I always have some pizza sauce and some frozen shredded Italian cheese blend, so I could stick with a classic cheese pizza, but I open my fridge and gaze in, looking for inspiration.  I see a partially-used bag of wilting arugula (Blue Moon Farms), a swiss cheeseburger (Triple S Farms) left over from last night, a sad unfinished jar of marinated artichoke hearts I had used for a quiche.  I just bought some dried oregano in bulk, and I can smell it as I sweep the fridge door closed.  I spread some pizza sauce on the crust, then wash and throw on the arugula. Amazingly, my leftover cheeseburger patty cut into little pieces is enough for a whole pizza topping.  I cut up a few artichoke hearts, and then throw on the Italian blend cheese.  I add more oregano, because it just smells so good I can’t resist.  Fifteen minutes in the oven, and I’ve got a “gourmet” pizza, and I’ve cleaned out the fridge.  Now, if only my Easter menu would come together so easily…