Grown up "English Muffin-ish" Pizzas (no English Muffins...)

We had a long and fabulous weekend enjoying time with friends and watching my surrogate "little sister" tie the knot.  But I'm TIRED today.  Actually, I am wiped out.  It's like I'm old and can't keep up with late nights, long drives, and fun in the sun.  So this little gem of a dinner recipe is calling my name.  Quite literally.  I can hear it... or maybe I actually am deliriously tired.  Shrug.

OK, so maybe these are not exactly "grown up."  But no doubt they are bigger for your grown up appetite!  This has to be one of the quickest meals ever.  And it's surprisingly good.  Plus nobody would actually disparagingly compare it to an English Muffin version (Sorry Jenn, I know you love those!)  And for my girls with kids old enough to "help" in the kitchen- this one is perfect for you.  You can probably make these straight from your pantry and fridge.  Or with the smallest grocery list ever to pick up the few items you are missing.

Ingredients

• pita bread- circles, not cut in half  (I use whole wheat)
• sauce (anything you like that comes in a jar really...)
• cheese
• veggies
• meat (I pretty much always cheat & use deli meat)

**Tonight the recipe will be red sauce, fresh mozzarella, bell peppers, olives, and chicken for the Hubs & my visiting Mom in Law.

Directions

1. Take your pita's out of the bag
2. Spoon some sauce on top
3. Cover/Smother in cheese (or just sprinkle if you are an odd ball and don't love cheese!)
4. Add some veggies
5. If you like meat, throw that on as well
6. Bake for like 5 minutes at 350 (it's my default temp for anything that doesn't have a real recipe)
1. You just want the cheese to melt and everything to warm up.  The meat should already be cooked.
7. Slice it into four pieces with an official looking pizza wheel
8. Serve with a salad
1. Easiest salad ever- bag of baby spinach, one sliced avocado, spoonfulls of "3 bean salad" mixture with a bit of the juice poured as "dressing".  Top with Parmesan.  Done.

Easy Examples of our favorite Pita Pizzas!

Sauce Options

• me = pesto in a jar
• Hubbs = squeeze pizza sauce!  I'm guessing you moms are very familiar with the product :)

Toppings

• me = Deli sliced Havarti (I actually AM fancy!)  Bell peppers and spinach. 
• Hubbs = shredded cheddar & mozz mix straight from the bag!  Diced chicken that he bought already cut up from our awesome grocery store deli dept.  And four spinach leaves to make it look artistic.

Now tell me that doesn't look spectacular and very gourmet compared to the English Muffin standby! 

And for those of you with more time and who want to actually BE a little more fancy with there pizza creation, check out my friend Nicole's blog, The Junk Free Chef, for her Grilled Summer Whole-Wheat Flatbread recipe.  Unlike me, she actually IS a real life chef, knows how to cook amazing things, and has all the fancy gadgets.  She is awesome. Totally my food hero.

But seriously the possibilities are endless.  And each family member can have their OWN personal pizza without much effort.  What do you have in your fridge?  Deli Ham- add some pineapple.    Left over ground beef from taco night- add olives.  Pepperoni- do I even need to suggest?  You can also try to get "fancy" with it.  That Peach salad I made- use the left over slices of fresh mozzarella on top of red sauce.  Once out of the oven, throw arugula on top and sprinkle with olive oil and pepper.  It is such a simple dinner to make and takes 10 minutes tops.  Easy Peasy!

And since I have no shame, here are a couple cute pics from the wedding!  Congrats Nicole & Tony :)