Pesto Parmesan Pizza

A little taste of summer amidst a grey PNW day! We were nearly out of groceries, and definitely out of motivation and inspiration, so an easy meal was key. I happened to have some pizza dough I bought from a local store in my fridge, so this whole meal came together in 15 minutes flat. Lots of small pizza joints will sell you their homemade dough, which takes a lot of the work out of pizza night. If you don’t have access to fresh pizza dough, here is a recipe I often use for homemade.

Feel free to change this and adapt it to your taste, but this is a great basic recipe that I guarantee you’ll love!

PESTO PARMESAN FLATBREAD
INGREDIENTS:
- 12 to 16-oz of pizza dough
- 3-4 T prepared pesto
- flaky sea salt, to taste
- 2 inch chunk of fresh parmesan
- 6-8 cherry tomatoes
- 1 T balsamic glaze
Balsamic glaze is so simple to make! Take 2 cups of balsamic vinegar, and a half a cup of brown sugar. Stir in a saucepan over low heat for roughly 20 minutes, until the glaze is thick and coats the back of a spoon. Keep it in the fridge in a glass container.

DIRECTIONS:

1.) Preheat oven to highest possible temperature (use convection if available). Preheat pizza stone or sheet pan while oven reaches temperature.
2.) Allow your pizza dough to rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
3.) Roll dough out with your hands. Pinch the sides, and flatten the dough from the inside out. Finish once the dough is around 1/4-1/2 inch thick, and lay on top of parchment paper.
4.) Spread pesto sauce all over dough, leaving a crust around the edges.
5.) Sprinkle on flaky sea salt.
6.) Slice tomatoes in half lengthwise, and lay seed side up all over pizza.
7.) Thinly grate parmesan over entire top of pizza.
8.) Once oven is heated, gently lay pizza on top of preheated baking sheet. Bake for 9-12 minutes, until top is browned and dough is cooked through.
9.) After pizza has cooled for a minute or two, drizzle balsamic glaze over top. Slice up and enjoy!