OK, back to work

Feeling peckish (and craving pizza) I left my current project on the table and headed to the kitchen where I created a masterpiece in a skillet!

Sadly, I discovered the larder was out of tomato paste (how did that happen?), and was running low on naan (a soft flat bread - for those non-foodies out there), but we had two naan remaining with which to make pizza for Karl and myself, so that was all that mattered for the moment!

I slivered onion and julienned artichoke hearts, then sauteed them together in a smattering of olive oil.  Oh, baby!

While the sauteing commenced, I mixed up a poor boy's pizza sauce using a small amount (about 1/2 cup) of a good, plain tomato sauce.  Had it been too watery I was prepared to reduce it a smidge, but fortunately I buy a good-quality store brand, no additives or do-dads included....so, yea! 

And yes, I chose sauce (in the absence of my beloved paste) over some other form of tomato pulp product. 

Before you ask "why tomato sauce and not your usual go-to of crushed tomatoes?" - I'll tell you.  ANY other form of tomato pulp is too wet to begin with.  Even after straining crushed tomatoes they would still be too wet for this sort of food....plus, why waste all of that tomato-y goodness when you don't have to?

Grabbed my mortar and pestle and ground up a mixture of anise, a shake of red pepper, anise, oregano, anise, fennel seed, basil, anise, basil, and a couple turns of freshly ground pepper (we don't call it black pepper in this house because not all the peppercorns in our pepper mix are black).  Added the ground rub and roughly a teaspoon of minced garlic (maybe more - OK, yeah, it was more) to the tomato sauce, and stood there like a doofus waiting to spread it over the warm naan.

Meanwhile, I started another skillet on med-to-low-medium heat; wiped the surface with a dab of olive oil and lightly heated the first side of a naan loaf.  Once the naan was turned, I spooned half of the tomato sauce mix over the warmed surface of the bread then liberally covered it with shredded "pizza mix" cheese (monty jack, mozzarella, and a bit of Parmesan). 

Spooned the now sauteed veggies onto the pizza, then quickly added wedges of hard salami over the entire thing (nope, we had no pepperoni).  By this time the cheese was melted beautifully which only helped to heat up the salami pieces, too.

Called Karl out to grab half of the first pizza, and we both smiled as we bit into a crunchy bottom and a chewy top!

Now I have to try and stop thinking about that pizza as I sit back down at the sewing machine.

Yeah, right.