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Quick Cooking

'Pizza pantry' reduces turnaround time

Home-baked, fresh-tasting pizza is a treat that busy cooks may rule out on weeknights, thinking that preparation is too time consuming. But shortcuts help, and the recipe on this page is a 30-minute wonder that can happily solve mealtime crunches for hungry families.

First set up a "pizza pantry," a collection of ingredients that can help make a tasty pizza come in handy on short notice.

Here are some tips:

Use packaged, frozen bread dough from your supermarket's frozen food section, or refrigerated pizza dough from the refrigerated case with the cans of biscuits. Thaw frozen bread dough completely before use by leaving it in the refrigerator for 10 to 24 hours, then stretch the dough to fit a lightly greased pizza pan or cookie sheet.

Carefully follow the directions on the package for baking.

The directions for both frozen bread dough and refrigerated pizza dough usually specify baking the dough first for several minutes, then topping it with sauce, cheese and other ingredients.

Finally, return the pizza to the oven until it is brown and bubbly.

An even faster option is to use a prebaked pizza crust, available at your local supermarket. With these, just top, heat and serve.

Items for your "pizza pantry" can include:

VARIED CHEESES: Mozzarella, feta, Cheddar, Monterey Jack, Swiss and ricotta. Also, spiced and flavored styles of Cheddar and Jack. Four ounces of cheese equals 1 cup of shredded cheese.

SAUCES AND SPREADS: Pizza sauce, Alfredo sauce, pesto sauce, olive tapenade, hot sauce, barbecue sauce, ranch dressing.

VEGETABLES AND FRUIT: Fresh or canned tomatoes, olives, mushrooms, artichoke hearts, corn, green chilies, jalapenos, bell peppers, sliced pineapple.

MEAT AND SEAFOOD: Cooked chicken, roast beef, shrimp, bacon and sausage. Also, pepperoni, salami, ham and Canadian bacon. Leftovers can be great for topping pizza. Chop or slice leftover chicken, turkey, roast beef or pork. (You can freeze leftovers and then quickly thaw them in the microwave while preparing the crust.)

A bread pizza can make a tasty, quick alternative. Here's how:

Slice a round loaf of French bread in half across the middle to create a round no more than an inch high. Top with your favorite ingredients and put under the broiler (on a baking sheet) until the cheese melts.

1 12- or 14-inch pizza crust

2 cups (8 ounces) mozzarella, shredded

1 cup (4 ounces) feta, crumbled

1 cup prepared pesto sauce

1 cup spinach, chopped

1 cup canned tomatoes, diced and drained

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Spread pesto sauce on partially baked crust and top with chopped spinach. Sprinkle mozzarella evenly over sauce, then top with tomatoes and feta.

Bake about 15 minutes, or until the mozzarella is melted and the crust is crisp and golden.

Chicken Pesto: For a heartier version, replace the spinach with 1 cup cooked chicken (shredded or cubed). Continue with cheeses and tomatoes.

Chicken Mushroom Pesto: Mushrooms make it even heartier. Replace the spinach with 1 cup cooked chicken (shredded or cubed) and 1 cup canned mushrooms (sliced and drained). Continue with cheeses and tomatoes.

Source: Recipes from California Milk Advisory Board.

[Last modified August 2, 2005, 10:00:34]