Recently, in a group of longtime friends, someone asked an intriguing question. If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be? Quite a few of the gathered group said tacos, including half of my family. I said pizza. Most anything can be put on it and with the veggie toppings that I typically prefer on my pizza, it has a blend of carbs, protein, & healthy fats, making for a balanced choice.

I am not alone in thinking of pizza as a perfect food. Pizza is one of the world’s most popular dishes. Oven baked bread with various toppings have been prepared since the Neolithic age across the entire globe. Pizza came to the US in the late 1800s with Italian immigrants. Lombardi’s, the first pizzeria in the United States, was opened in 1905 in Manhattan. By the 1930s, Italian-Americans were opening up pizzerias across Manhattan, as well as in New Jersey and Boston. The pizza business grew. The Chicago-style pizza was developed in 1943 when Uno’s opened. Pizza chains and frozen pizzas made the scene shortly afterwards.

While we don’t eat frozen pizza, we do have some favorite pizzerias. Typically, they are small independent ones that we find while traveling. We’ll frequent those places whenever we travel back to that destination. But if we are home on Friday Pizza nights, we are making the pizza. This one is on tonight’s menu!

Mushroom & Arugula Pizza (adapted from cookinglight.com) Active Time: 15 minutes, Total Time: 30 minutes, Makes: 4 2-slices servings

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon olive oil, divided
• 1 shallot, thinly sliced
• 12 ounces (about 3 1/2 cups) fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
• 1 pound pizza dough
• 1 – 2 ounces (1/3 – 1/2 cup) blue cheese, crumbled
• 3 ounces (about 3/4 cup) shredded mozzarella cheese
• 8 ounces (about 1 cup packed) arugula
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Preparation:

Place a pizza stone or baking sheet on the grill or in the oven. Preheat the grill to high (about 500ºF) or the oven (to 475°F), with the stone or baking sheet inside.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the shallot, and cook, stirring occasionally, until it is soft, about 1 to 2 minutes.

Add the mushrooms and garlic. Cook, stirring often, until the liquid from the mushrooms has almost evaporated, about 5 to 6 minutes. Remove the mushrooms from the heat. Sprinkle them with 1/8 teaspoon of salt, and set them aside.

Roll the dough into a 14-inch circle on a pizza peel sprinkled with corn meal or on a large piece of parchment paper. Sprinkle the desired amount of blue cheese over the dough. Spread the mushroom mixture over the cheese. Top the pizza with the mozzarella.

Slide (if using a peel) or transfer (if using the paper) the dough to the preheated stone or baking sheet. Bake the pizza for 8 minutes on the grill or 10 minutes in the oven.

Meanwhile, toss the arugula with the lemon juice and the remaining teaspoon of olive oil. Remove the pizza from the grill or oven and top it with the arugula mixture. Sprinkle the pizza with the remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt.

Return the pizza to the grill or oven for 1 minute to wilt the arugula. Let the pizza rest for 5 minutes before cutting it into 8 slices.

Pizza is my perfect meal!  ~Linda

Mushroom & Arugula Pizza (adapted from cookinglight.com) Active Time: 15 minutes, Total Time: 30 minutes, Makes: 4 2-slices servings

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon olive oil, divided
• 1 shallot, thinly sliced
• 12 ounces (about 3 1/2 cups) fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
• 1 pound pizza dough
• 1 – 2 ounces (1/3 – 1/2 cup) blue cheese, crumbled
• 3 ounces (about 3/4 cup) shredded mozzarella cheese
• 8 ounces (about 1 cup packed) arugula
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Preparation:

Place a pizza stone or baking sheet on the grill or in the oven. Preheat the grill to high (about 500ºF) or the oven (to 475°F), with the stone or baking sheet inside.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the shallot, and cook, stirring occasionally, until it is soft, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and garlic. Cook, stirring often, until the liquid from the mushrooms has almost evaporated, about 5 to 6 minutes. Remove the mushrooms from the heat. Sprinkle them with 1/8 teaspoon of salt, and set them aside.

Roll the dough into a 14-inch circle on a pizza peel sprinkled with corn meal or on a large piece of parchment paper. Sprinkle the desired amount of blue cheese over the dough. Spread the mushroom mixture over the cheese. Top the pizza with the mozzarella.

Slide (if using a peel) or transfer (if using the paper) the dough to the preheated stone or baking sheet. Bake the pizza for 8 minutes on the grill or 10 minutes in the oven.

Meanwhile, toss the arugula with the lemon juice and the remaining teaspoon of olive oil. Remove the pizza from the grill or oven and top it with the arugula mixture. Sprinkle the pizza with the remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt. Return the pizza to the grill or oven for 1 minute to wilt the arugula. Let the pizza rest for 5 minutes before cutting it into 8 slices.