A little glimpse of sunshine

It’s not so much seasonal affect disorder around here as hourly-weather-affect-whatever.  Some people say that the seasons affect them, but I would gather that is true for everyone, hardly a unique disorder.   After continual gray and gloom, who wouldn’t be SAD.  My case is totally different, but I am no less affected by the weather and seasons. My disorder most definitely involves food.

If it is cold, I want soups, stews and anything roasted or braised. Cold weather drinks (whisky or rye for sure) are necessary too. When it’s warm rather, I want fresh, fresh, fresh – and tequila!

I am so dependent on the skies as a guide, I don’t even have a go-to drink (with the exception of bubbly – there is no wrong time for that!!). I place any order based on my mood, which is always related to the weather.

But why am I telling you all this? Because when a beautiful, warm day reared its little head, I wanted to pretend that summer was still around – and eat like it too!

I love pizzas, and eat them all year, but they particularly remind me of summer. In LA, we would often grill pizzas for Sunday-Fundays, and when it feels like summer in the fall, I can’t help but think of Los Angeles. So I grabbed some buddies, bought a few things from the market that are still holding on from the end of the summer and headed outside for a mini-fest.

This zucchini-goat cheese pizza is something I have been making for years, but it definitely got better looking once I saw this post on Smitten Kitchen in July.  Before that I can’t honestly say I was that decorative…

It is so simple and so delicious – just amp up a little goat cheese with lemon and herbs and slice some summer squash in thin little coins and that is all the work needed.  Of course, you can make your own dough if you prefer, but time was of the essence, so the Whole Foods refrigerator case would work for us.

We were enjoying the sunshine within 30 minutes of being home from the store (and only that long because my oven is slow to heat).  Sunshine, please come back soon – we really love you!

Zucchini & Goat Cheese Pizza with lemon and herbs

Preheat oven to 450ºF.  Take dough out of fridge (if buying pre-made) and let it sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes.

Mince garlic and sprinkle with coarse salt, using the back of the knife to create a paste with the garlic and salt.  The salt here acts as an abrasive, and when using raw garlic that will not be cooked, I prefer this method, so you don’t bite into raw garlic.

Combine goat cheese, herbs, garlic, chili flakes, lemon zest and juice.  Drizzle olive oil (up to 1 T., maybe less) into the goat cheese, to thin it out a bit and create more of a spread.

Divide dough in half, using each half for one pizza.  I like my pizzas really thin, and I find this way works great – otherwise my pizzas get overworked and too big to handle.  Sprinkle with a bit of flour and using your hands or a rolling pin, roll out the dough to your desired shape and thinness.

Top dough with goat cheese spread and squash.  Drizzle with a bit more oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Transfer pizza to a pizza stone, pizza pan or a lightly oiled cookie sheet.  Bake for 15 minutes, until crust and toppings are golden brown.

Sprinkle pizza with remaining herbs and you can definitely add a bit of parmigiano if you have it around.

This pizza can be served warm or at room temperature.

Yields 2 pizzas.