My husband is usually the pizza chef in our family, and he’s very particular about what he likes, so I was a little nervous serving him this version without any cheese. Happily for us all, he absolutely loved it. Thin slices of zucchini stand in for mozzarella, while onions, kalamata olives, pine nuts, pesto, and fresh basil give it more than ample flavor and variety. One good-size zucchini yields the perfect amount of slices to cover the pizza, but if you have access to small yellow and green zucchini, little rounds of assorted colors would be lovely. Good-quality store-bought marinara sauce works just fine, but if you use our Spicy Heirloom Tomato Sauce, it makes this pizza extraordinary.
My recipe for pesto makes 1 cup/240 ml, and you need only about half of it for the pizza, but I believe if you are going to dirty the food processor, you should make enough pesto for a pasta dinner later in the week. While fresh pizza dough from the market works great, I’ve included a recipe for 100% Whole-Wheat Pizza Dough, which is fun to make from scratch if you have the time. It’s hard to find all-whole-wheat pizza dough at the market, and fresh dough is especially fun to make if you are cooking with kids. —MYRA
Serves 3 to 4; makes one 14-in/35.5-cm pizza
Whole-wheat pastry flour for rolling out the dough
One ball 100% Whole-Wheat Pizza Dough (page 131) or 1 lb/455 g store-bought dough
Cornmeal for dusting
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 cup/180 ml good-quality marinara sauce or Spicy Heirloom Tomato Sauce (page 125)
1 large zucchini, thinly sliced
1 medium yellow onion, cut in half lengthwise, then cut crosswise into eight slices
1/2 cup/70 g pitted kalamata olives, coarsely chopped
PESTO
4 cups/120 g packed fresh basil
1/2 cup/120 ml extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup/30 g pine nuts, toasted (see page 117)
1 tbsp coarsely chopped fresh garlic
1/4 tsp salt
TOPPINGS
2 tbsp pine nuts, toasted (see page 117)
1/4 cup/10 g packed thinly sliced fresh basil
Garlic powder (optional)
Red pepper flakes (optional)
Position a rack on the bottom of the oven and if using a pizza stone, place it on the rack. Preheat the oven to 500°F/260°C/gas 10 for at least 30 minutes so that the stone is hot.
Lightly flour a work surface and a rolling pin. Shape the dough by patting it into a flat, round disk. Then roll it out on the work surface to form a 14-in/40.5-cm round, 1/8 to 1/4 in/3 to 6 mm thick. If your pizza stone is smaller than this, adjust accordingly.
If using a pizza peel or pizza pan, generously dust it with cornmeal (alternatively, use a large baking sheet and dust it with cornmeal).
Transfer the dough to the prepared pizza peel, pan, or baking sheet. Brush the dough lightly with about 1 tbsp of the oil, leaving a 3/4-in/2-cm border unoiled.
Cover the dough with a thin layer of tomato sauce. Arrange the zucchini slices in concentric circles on the dough, leaving the 3/4-in/2-cm border bare. Arrange the onion atop the zucchini, and then scatter the olives over the dough.
Slide the pizza off the peel and onto the preheated stone, using a jerking motion to release it. (Alternatively, place the pizza pan or baking sheet in the oven.) Bake for 8 minutes.
Check to see that the pizza is cooking evenly, rotating it if necessary. Continue cooking until the crust is golden brown and the toppings are sizzling hot, 3 to 5 minutes more.
Meanwhile, make the pesto: Put the basil, oil, pine nuts, garlic, and salt in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped, then puree until the mixture is smooth, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. If not using immediately, cover and store for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator. Return the pesto to room temperature before using.
Remove the pizza from the oven by sliding the peel under it, or use tongs to slide the pizza off the stone onto a cutting board. (If using a pizza pan or baking sheet, remove the entire pan from the oven and transfer the pizza onta a cutting board.) Using half the pesto, immediately drop teaspoons of pesto all over the top. Spread it over the topping with the back of a spoon or with a cake spatula. Sprinkle with the pine nuts and basil.
Using a sharp knife or a pizza cutter, cut the pizza into eight slices, and serve them hot with garlic powder and red pepper flakes, if using.
2 SLICES: CALORIES: 470 | FAT: 29G | CARBS: 48G | PROTEIN: 8G | SODIUM: 900MG | DIETARY FIBER: 36% | VITAMIN A: 45% | VITAMIN C: 25% | VITAMIN E: 10% | THIAMIN: 15% | RIBOFLAVIN: 10% | NIACIN: 20% | VITAMIN B6: 20% | FOLATE: 20% | CALCIUM: 15% | IRON: 25% | COPPER: 25% | PHOSPHORUS: 15% | MAGNESIUM: 20% | ZINC: 10%
