Chicken and Artichoke Pizza with Capers and a Stuffed Crust

This has been my first and final attempt at a home-crafted "stuffed crust." It was not even my intention to make it that way, but I had lots of extra dough on hand as well as a deli drawer filled with countless cheeses. So I thought, "how hard can it be?" For me, it worked about as well as trying to write an essay with a pen that just ran out of ink.

Hence, this simultaneously became, "The Ugliest Pizza Ever." I was thinking of making that the title of this post, but opted not to so you can just see for yourself.

Be real. It looks delightfully tasty. You can be nice and say that the crust and general shape of it are "not that bad." Or you can be real and just admit that this is the Quasimodo of all pizzas. Either way, the whole thing got eaten.

Before I get to the ingredients and pizza assembly process, let me just brief you on what not to do when making a stuffed crust. I would provide "how-to" tips and tricks all about making a fantastic stuffed crust, but I'm not aware of any such information.

First, I made a ring of dough by piecing the leftovers together, Frankenstein-style. Then I topped it with havarti and mozzarella cheeses, folded it over to enclose the cheese, and pressed the edges with a fork to seal the deal.

Next, I attached the round of dough I had cut out for the original pizza to the cheese-filled ring.  Using more dough bits, I covered and reinforced any thin sections of dough so it would be as sturdy as possible for the transfer to the awaiting pizza stone.

Well then came the collapse. Right there in my kitchen, on top of a 500 degree pizza stone. I intended to quickly peel the stuffed-crust dough from the countertop and gingerly transfer it to the stone for a quick pre-bake. I may as well have hired the Hulk, removed his opposable thumbs, put a blindfold on him and asked him to do the job for me. It was that bad. Between expletive versions of, "Crap, crap, freaking crap!," trying to rescue my dough from a miserable burning death by pizza stone, and contemplating scrapping the whole project, I did not manage to get a snapshot of the whole ordeal.

I carried on anyway, reassuring myself that no one other than my husband and myself would see this mutilated za. It would be our little secret. I wasn't even going to blog about it! But I guess I got over my shame, or something like that.

Halfway into  putting together a pizza that could be mistaken for a salad and sweating blood in an attempt to open the jars of artichokes and capers, I received a text from my husband. "On my way home, Chaos is coming over for dinner." Crap, crap, freaking crap! I usually pride myself on my tasty, beautiful pizza creations. Now his friend is going to know the truth and he's going to tell everybody and no one will eat pizza from me again!

Okay, it didn't end up that way. The pizza was actually really good even though we had to eat it with forks and knives. And from the camera angles I used, you can pretty much tell it's a pizza!

Ingredients (for the pizza toppings, not for a stuffed crust too):

• 1 or 1-1/2 cups pizza sauce
• Roughly 8oz. marinated artichoke hearts
• Roughly 1/4 cup capers
• 1 chicken breast, cooked and shredded into small pieces
• About 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Instructions:

• Prepare your pizza dough and set it aside. God be with you if you want to attempt a stuffed crust because I'm not about to offer any help on that.
• Place a pizza stone into the oven and turn the temperature to 500 degrees.
• When the stone is hot, remove it from the oven and place the prepared dough on top of it. You can do a quick pre-bake (just 3 or 4 minutes) which will give you a slightly crispier crust, or you can just go ahead and start with the toppings.
• First, spread the sauce on top of the dough, working it all the way to the edges. 
• Sprinkle your artichokes and chicken on next, followed by the shredded cheese, and last, the capers. Capers are rather salty, so only put as many on there as you can handle of their salt level.
• Bake the whole thing until the cheese is melted and the edges of the crust turn golden-brown. If you've pre-baked you will do your final bake for about 5-7 minutes. If not, it will take a bit longer (about 10-12 minutes). 
• Remove it from the oven and let it cool for a few minutes before cutting. 

The toppings on this gourmet delight are rather water-saturated, and in the 500 degree oven, they get super hot and stay super hot for a longer than average time. So just wait a minute.

Maybe Seth Meyers can more clearly relay that message to you:

Okay, 'nuff clowning around.

Go have yourself a fine-dining experience that includes this homemade, cheese-covered delicacy.

Creamy Spinach and Artichoke Pizza

Happy New Year! I'm glad to say that the first pizza of 2014 is one I can brag about.

I've been rather down with the sickness since Christmas. Apparently spending the holidays among droves of children can lead one to contract an illness rather easily. So after plenty of bed rest, gallons of chicken noodle soup, and just enough Tylenol and Robitussin to give me a good night's sleep, I'm more or less back on my feet and doing things around the house (but not ready to do things around the gym just yet).

All this sickness has deprived me of my usual appetite for the past week or so, and now that it's coming back, I decided I wanted something good and hearty. Something that sticks to the ribs. Some sort of comfort food. Yes, pizza is all of those, usually; but I really wanted it to be rich this time. And that's when I thought of spinach artichoke dip. It ranks high among my guilty pleasures, even when I make a "healthier" version of it (because let's be honest, you can only be so healthy with a cream-cheese based meal).

And alas, I developed the Creamy Spinach and Artichoke pizza. Basically, it's topped with what you'd find in a spinach-artichoke dip, but it sits deliciously atop a round of fresh dough and pizza sauce, topped with shredded, melty mozzarella.

For this culinary delight, you will need:

• 1-2 cups pizza sauce
• 1/2 medium onion, diced
• 1/2 8-oz package of cream cheese
• 1-2 Tablespoons half and half
• 2 cups fresh spinach leaves, chopped
• 1-2 Tablespoons garlic powder
• 1-2 teaspoons black pepper
• 1-2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 6-oz jar marinated artichoke hearts, sliced

Of course I used the cream cheese with a wee bit less fat (so I can feel a wee bit less guilty about eating it). If you'd like to use heavy whipping cream in place of the half and half, that would work too. (Half and half was just a little cheaper at the grocery store for me this time around). It's a good idea to leave these ingredients on the counter for a little while so that they reach room temperature before you begin cooking. Stuff just turns out better (usually) if it's near the same temperature before you begin.

Now grab your fancy apron, and get started.

First things first: your oven and your pizza stone. Turn that machine to 500 degrees with the stone inside. Make it all nice and hot.

Next, heat a skillet over medium heat with a small bit of oil on it. Dice your onion, and toss the pieces into the skillet, stirring until slightly browned. Remove from the skillet and allow to cool slightly. 

Chop the spinach and set it aside. 

In the bowl of a mixer, place the cream cheese, half and half, garlic powder, and black pepper. Mix it on up until it's well combined. Add more half and half, slowly, if you prefer a thinner consistency. 

Next, mix in the sautéed onion pieces, followed by the chopped spinach. It should just look like a big creamy, oniony mixture with spinach in it. Yum.

Mmm. Onions n stuff.

Next, slice up the artichoke hearts. The ones I buy are already chopped into pieces, but I prefer to make those a little thinner so they're easier to eat and I can spread more of them around the za.

Now given that your dough and sauce are ready, your pizza is ready to assemble.

Remove the pizza stone from the hot oven and place it on a stable, heat-proof work surface. Hot pads on the counter serve me just fine. Place the prepared dough on that and spread as much pizza sauce as you care for on top of your dough.

Next is the creamy, oniony, spinachy mixture. Using a teaspoon, scoop up spoonfuls of the stuff and drop them evenly around the pizza in little globs. It's okay if there are spots that you missed or if the globs aren't quite equal in size. That will all even out when it goes back in the oven. Once you've used all the creamy mixture, sprinkle shredded mozzarella all around on top of that. Finally, place the sliced artichoke hearts on top. If you'd like a little more mozzarella (or noticed that you missed a spot), now is the time for touch-ups with that cheese.

Now pop the whole thing back in the oven and set the timer for 10 minutes. You will be delighted at the results.

Delightful, no?

This za lends itself to many different flavors and options to "dress it up." You could add some red pepper flakes for some spice, parmesan cheese for more of a bite, or any other herbs and spices that you like. Cream cheese is rather plain and takes well to many sweet, savory, and spicy variations. I just kept it simple (partially because I didn't want to irritate my sore throat and sinuses any more, partially because I was lazy), but it was definitely the perfect meal with just enough of each flavor element to bring me out of the sickness and back into the pizza eating frame of mind.

Deluxe Greek Pizza

If you're thinking this za looks familiar, then you're probably remembering my recent Mini Greek Pizza. No need to be confused and no need to be alarmed. I am not a pizza repeater. The Mini was a grand and tasty thing, but this Deluxe truly lives up to that title.

This pizza is loaded down with tangy flavors and fresher than fresh toppings. It was one of those so-good-out-of-the-oven-you-burn-the-roof-of-your-mouth tasty ones. It's a pizza I've been wanting to make for quite some time now but never seemed to have all of the ingredients at home all at once. But suddenly that all changed and the Deluxe Greek became a very delicious reality.

Pizza toppings:

• 1-2 cups pizza sauce
• 1 medium tomato, chopped
• About 1 cup chicken breast meat, chopped
• Handful of Kalamata olives, sliced in half
• Handful of marinated artichoke hearts, roughly chopped
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• About 3 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
• Half avocado, diced
• Half cucumber, diced

There are really two "sets" of toppings for this pizza: the ones that go on before the pizza goes into the oven, and the ones that go on after the pizza comes out of the oven, just before it is served.

Instructions:

• Preheat the oven to 500 with a pizza stone inside.
• Prepare your crust - roll it out on a lightly floured surface and cut it into a circle that is the same size or just smaller than your pizza stone. Let it sit there while the oven preheats and you prepare the rest of your toppings.
• The rest of the prep work is really nothing more than just chopping up ingredients. I used some leftover oven-baked chicken seasoned with tomato basil pesto as a topping, but if you don't have that on hand already like I did, that's the only cooking prep you'll really have to do. (Spread the pesto over the chicken and bake at 350 for about 25 minutes.)
• Chop the chicken, tomato, artichoke hearts, and olives into bite-sized pieces and set them aside. (These are the toppings that go on first.)
• Chop the cucumber and avocado and set those aside separately. (These are the post-bake toppings.)

• When the stone is completely hot, take it out of the oven and place it on your work surface. Place the prepared dough for the crust on top of that.
• Spread your desired amount of pizza sauce on the crust, and spread it out evenly, going as close to the edges as you can. Then add on the first set of toppings, sprinkling them around evenly to the edges (chicken, tomatoes, olives, and artichokes).
• Top it off with your two cheeses (mozzarella and then feta on top) and carefully place it back in the oven. Bake it for 10-12 minutes or until the crust is golden on the edges and the cheese is melted on top.
• Take it out of the oven and place it back on your work surface. Immediately sprinkle the last two toppings on it - the cucumber and avocado pieces. Let it sit and cool for a few minutes before slicing. 

One thing I wish I'd used more of on this pizza were the Kalamata olives. These are not the puny, pathetic little black olives that you typically see atop the pizzas from major major pizza chains and subs from franchised sub shops. These are different. They are larger, full of flavor and downright excellent. And they just want to share all that flavor with you and your taste buds. Sadly, I only had about half a jar of these in my fridge. I suppose they were just so tasty I never even noticed how quickly they had been disappearing! 

Another thing I'd recommend is red pepper flakes. Sprinkle them all around! Spice is good. I actually sprinkled a bit over the whole za as soon as it came out of the oven, and then more onto my individual slices. It really brings all the flavor flaves together - salty feta, tangy olives, creamy avocados, fresh and crunchy cucumbers, savory pesto chicken and artichokes, and then there ya go with that spice. 

Chicken, Artichoke, Feta, and Tomato Pizza with a Beer Crust

Let me guess, the "beer crust" got your attention? No doubt you've seen recipes for a crust made of cauliflower, zucchini, cheese, ground meats, egg whites, twigs, dirt, and other low-carb edibles. But beer? How is that even possible?

Well friends, thanks to the interwebs, I have found one recipe for a beer-infused pizza crust. And thanks to the current beer graveyard that is our vegetable crisper, this pizza was made possible. First and foremost regarding the flavors of this za, I must say, you must try this crust. I'm not one to divert from my go-to pizza crust recipe all that often, but this was well worth it. And also, it was super easy to make. I didn't use any rosemary because I didn't have any on hand, but I did use garlic powder and Blue Moon Agave Nectar Ale. Off da chain delish. Like, whoa. Click up on that recipe link and see for yourself.

For the pizza you will need:

• 1-2 cups pizza sauce
• 6 oz. jar of artichoke hearts, chopped (I like Progresso because they're already marinated)
• 1/2 onion, chopped and sautéed
• 1 chicken breast, chopped, seasoned and cooked
• 1/2 cup chopped grape tomatoes
• 3 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella
• Ground black pepper, to taste (optional)

Directions:

• Prep all toppings. Heat a skillet on the stovetop with a little olive oil. Chop the onions and sauté them until they're soft and slightly golden. Place them on a plate when done and then you can add your chopped artichoke hearts to that same plate. Chop your chicken, season it and cook however you like. My chicken was actually leftover from a Mexican meal earlier in the week. I had baked it in the oven with some garlic powder and ancho chile powder. The bit of warm spiciness went perfectly with this pizza though. 
• Slice up the grape tomatoes and crumble the feta cheese if you have not bought the pre-crumbled cheese. (I never buy the crumbled kind unless there's some great sale on it...more bang for your buck to buy a larger block and cut it yourself!)
• Place a pizza stone in the oven and heat that baby to 500 degrees. When it's all hot, take it out, place it on your work surface, and carefully place your prepared dough for the crust on top of that. 
• Spread as much sauce as you'd like on top of the crust, working it all the way out to the edges. 
• Topping time. Onions, artichokes, and chicken go on next. I topped mine with mozzarella at this point, then saved the feta and tomatoes for last. And then a sprinkle of pepper after that.
• Place that all back into the oven and keep an eye on it for about 10 minutes, making sure the cheese on top turns a little bit golden but doesn't burn. For me this cooked up in about 12. 

Re-purposing my leftovers

Now that is fresh. Phresh.

Not only was this pizza the highlight to our weekend eating events, but also, our friend Matt joined us for it with some professional-grade pizza supplies in hand.

Casting my once-adored Kitchen Aid pizza cutter aside, Matt swooped in with his recent haul from a Kitchen Collection outlet shopping spree: a wooden pizza paddle and a fancy pizza cutter similar to this one from Williams-Sonoma. Like a boss. That pizza was sliced and plated effortlessly in mere seconds. I'm thinking these fancy pizza supplies are worth the investment.

I hesitate to say that this has been my favorite homemade pizza so far. But then again, that's probably how parents feel when telling you which child is their favorite. So I'll go ahead and say it - this za was top-notch. Definitely in the top 3 of my pizza children, and of course it made the honor roll. The crust - usually not so noticeable compared to the toppings - was outstanding. The feta always adds just the right amount of saltiness and the marinated artichokes were the perfect compliment. I don't like the idea of being a pizza-repeater, but for a za like this I just have a feeling it's going to happen.

It's My Birthday!

It is true...this day, 27 years ago, I rolled into the world. And just look how far I've come with all my pizzas and exercise things. It nearly brings a tear to my own eye.

So let's get down to business. There aren't too many great restaurants in my small town, and of the handful of ones I like I really wasn't craving any of those for a birthday meal. Yes, despite the time and energy, I made my own birthday pizza because I wanted to. 

I found a recipe for "Antipasta Pizza" on Pinterest last week and decided I'd like to try this as a birthday meal. The basic idea of it is that it's covered with things you'd find on an antipasta platter...but it's on a pizza. It's so genius, I wish I'd thought of it myself. My pizza philosophy is that you can make any meal into a pizza. If you love mac & cheese, buffalo chicken, tacos, or stuffed mushrooms, you (or I) can think some way to top a pizza in those sorts of things. Instantly you have the best of both worlds. Your favorite food and pizza. Instantly! It blows my mind sometimes, I'm sure you just experienced that too. 

Antipasta Pizza toppings:

• 1-2 cups pizza sauce
• 1/4 cup pesto sauce
• 1 6-oz. jar of marinated artichoke hearts, chopped into smaller pieces
• 1/3 to 1/2 cup sliced black olives
• 1/3 to 1/2 cup pickled banana pepper rings
• 1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes, chopped into small pieces
• 6 to 8 slices of large, round genoa salami (Boar's Head at the deli counter is always good)
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella
• 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Directions:

• Preheat your oven to 500 with the pizza stone inside. 
• Chop all toppings into pieces that are a size you would like to eat. I chopped my artichokes and tomatoes pretty small because they're a little too chewy when they're left as-is. I also cut the salami into fourths because those pieces were sort of massive on their own. The banana peppers and olives came pre-sliced in just the right sizes.
• When the pizza stone is ready, take it out of the oven and place your prepared crust on top of it. 
• Spread the pesto sauce evenly around on that and then spread the sauce on. 
• Add all the toppings on next, starting with the veggies, then the salami, the mozzarella, and finally the parmesan. 
• Pop that stacked za into the oven for 10-12 minutes. Let it sit and cool for a bit when it's done because it is 500 degrees, duh. 

Go as spicy or mild as you want with all those toppings. I used hot banana peppers, making this za very spicy and tangy. It was good. So, so good, and I'm glad I had it for my birthday. I also left it in the oven a little longer than I meant to, which is why the cheese on top looks extra golden. No biggie, as long as it wasn't burnt we're doing good.

Naturally, good friends and good conversation complimented the pizza too. We had our friends Farrah and Anne over to enjoy the meal with us and there was never a dull moment with those two. It's just further encouragement for me to keep making and sharing pizzas!

Look at those magical slices. You may not be able to tell by looking, but they are absolutely mouth-wateringly incredible. Pizza like this isn't dull or even average. It is so flavorful and exciting for your taste buds that it really does not take much to satisfy you. As good as it was I only had one slice with my dinner...never mind all the other stuff I ate. But even still, when it comes to cheap pizzas (or any cheap foods for that matter) you keep going back for more, just hoping and expecting that it will taste better with the next piece. But it never does. Actually, it only gets worse. So make this damn pizza already and experience some good satisfying food for once!

This-is-what-was-in-the-house-today Pizza

Thursday was a lovely day - one in which we ate too many wieners and burgers, had more than a "serving size" of chips and dip, drank too much beer, stayed out in the sun too long during the day and stayed up too late after the fireworks. That's right, it was the 4th of July! And what's more American than devouring enough calories in one sitting to feed a third-world country for a month? Nothing!!!

Okay, okay. I know it's oaky to indulge from time to time, as long as we're not doing every weekend to celebrate some holiday, birthday, funeral, long horrible week of work, short great week of work, casual get-together, etc. Believe me, I know that it is so easy to slip into that mindset where we make it okay for ourselves to eat crap and loaf around for countless hours time and time again. But try to stay on the bandwagon. Or at least if you fall off, realize that you can always get back on. And it doesn't have to wait until the new year or even until Monday. It can start with your next meal.

So even though I did eat mostly junk food on the 4th, I'm not ready to do another vegetable cleanse. Part of the reason for that is simply because I don't have too much in the fridge right now and I have even less motivation to go to the grocery store to correct that problem. But I do have a few things, and those happen to be enough to make a relatively healthy pizza. Here we go veggie pizza!

Pizza toppings:

• 8 baby portobello mushrooms
• 10-15 baby carrots
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinaigrette
• 2 cups of fresh spinach, chopped
• 1 6-oz. jar artichoke hearts
• 1/4 cup grated sharp cheddar
• 1/4 cup shredded Mexican cheese
• 1-2 cups pizza sauce  

My preferred artichoke brand right now is Progresso

Prepare those darn veggies like this:

• Preheat your oven to 425. Chop up the baby carrots into thin strips and toss them in the balsamic. spread them out onto a jelly roll pan and bake in the oven until they are tender, about 20-25 minutes. 
• Heat up a skillet with a touch of olive oil. Clean, dry, and chop the portobellos. Sauté those shrooms for about 5-7 minutes, adding in any spices you care for. Usually just some salt and pepper will do. Lots of water will come out of them. It's just what mushrooms do. Drain off the water or transfer them to a smaller dish, sans water.
• Chop the artichoke hearts into smaller pieces.

Okay. Your toppings are ready. Be sure you chopped that spinach a little bit too. Now...

• Place the pizza stone in the oven and turn the temperature to 500 degrees. If it's still at 425 from making the carrots, that's probably okay. If you could allow the oven to cool a bit, put the stone in, and then turn it to 500, that would be even better. Or you could just put the stone in when you make the carrots and continue heating it at this point. When you put the stone into a hot oven you run the risk of breaking it. Or rather, it will break all by its little ol' self in all that heat. It needs to gradually reach that temperature. Still not using a pizza stone? F-you. 
• Roll out some pizza dough and cut it to the shape of the pizza stone (or slightly smaller). 
• When the stone has reached 500 degrees, take it out of the oven, place it on your work surface, put the prepared dough on top, and spread the sauce around evenly on it. 
• On with the toppings! Roasted carrots, mushrooms, artichokes, and then all those lovely cheeses. I know I used a very random assortment of cheeses on this here za, but like the title of the post, it was what I had on hand. 
• Into the hot oven and set the timer for about 10 minutes. Could be done in 8, could be 12. Just keep an eye on it, especially with that spinach on there, because those leaves tend to dry out quick and even burn. 

Soup, salad, and pizza for two!

And just look at how rustic that pizza turned out! Actually, I think "rustic" is just a nice way of saying, "deformed." I was definitely hungry to eat this one because I definitely burned my mouth on my first slice. After it cooled down a bit I could actually enjoy the tastiness. All in all, this was a very vegetabley dinner that was really yummy. I never used to think I could enjoy so many veggies all in one meal as much as I did with this one. Maybe it was the added cheese on top of it all. Hm. 

A fresh salad and some of my Nordstrom's tomato basil soup that I had leftover in the fridge went really well with the pizza too. The soup is actually made with lots of carrots, which is probably why it complimented the carrot-topped pizza so well. 

Go on, take a bite...

You may be thinking that the Mexican cheese on the pizza is out of place and slightly freakin' weird. Yes. That's sort of true. But believe me, it was good. It was a small amount of cheese so the few Mexican-ish spices in there were hardly even detectable. Even if you can taste them a bit, they add a hint of warm spiciness that just goes well with the other flavors. No, you don't have to use Mexican cheeses. You can use mozzarella, more cheddar, or whatever else you care for. 

Quick Mini Greek Pizza

Really the only reason for this pizza being "quick" was because I already had some prepared dough on hand for the crust. Start to finish, the thing took about 25 minutes to make. Not bad when I consider this a gourmet weekend lunchtime meal. I know, I'm so fancy.

Toppings you'll need:

• About 1 cup pizza sauce
• 1 6-oz jar of marinated artichoke hearts
• 1/3 cup sliced black olives (or other olives of your preference)
• 1/2 cup chopped chicken, cooked
• A handful of spinach, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
• 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

Typically I'm not a fan of olives on or around my food. But I'm finding that in the right quantities and with the right flavor combinations, they're not half bad. I happened to have this can of olives on hand, which partially led to the "Greek" pizza flavor decision. And it was a good decision. Since I usually also have artichoke hearts, feta cheese, and spinach in the house too, making foods with Greek flavors is an easy go-to for me.

When it comes to artichoke hearts, I can never get enough. I just love those little things. I've made many dishes with that food item including pastas, stuffed mushrooms, dips, casseroles and salads of many varieties, and of course, pizza. They add a nice hearty texture without feeling too heavy. If you're unfamiliar with artichoke hearts, you can find them in the grocery store in the aisle where you pick up your canned vegetables. I know, you can buy them fresh too and cook/marinate them yourself. But I'm a lazy cook and that is just too much of a time-consuming task for me.

How to make it:

• As always, pizza stone goes into a cold oven. Turn the temperature to 500 degrees and get the stone good and hot.
• Roll out the dough, and when the stone is hot enough, take it out of the oven and place the dough on top of that.
• Next, spread on the sauce.
• Sprinkle the toppings on top of that, distributing evenly. Chicken, artichokes, olives, spinach, mozzarella, then feta. 
• Carefully place that all in the oven, turn the timer on for 10-12 minutes, and find something to occupy your mind in the meantime. 

I spent that time making one very unimpressive salad. Just greens, carrots, sunflower seeds and some Greek vinaigrette dressing that I thought would nicely compliment the za. It did in fact go very well together. I'm repeatedly let down by salads served at pizza restaurants. I know the point of a pizza restaurant is not to make a good salad, it is to make a great pizza. But when I see that a salad is priced around $5 at a pizza place, I'd really like more than some week-old bagged lettuce with a package of Club crackers. 

I didn't season this pizza any more after it came out of the oven. However, I do believe that adding some black pepper, crushed red pepper flakes, or a drizzle of balsamic vinegar would liven up these slices. Up to you though how much you want to get pizza crazy. 

All in all, this lunch was tasty and satisfying. Definitely has those flavors I love and will return to again. Who knows, perhaps I'll spend more time one evening and step it up to make a gourmet Greek pizza dinner! Only time will tell.