Friday Night Pizza

Really -- is there any better meal for a Friday night than pizza?? We are big pizza fans in this house -- it's one of the guilty pleasures that I'm willing to indulge in regularly, as long as I can keep it decently healthy (i.e. no meat lover's pizza for me). I recently found a GREAT homemade Hawaiian Pizza recipe (well...semi-homemade) in Southern Living. We've been enjoying it for the last few months, and I thought I'd share with you. I must state, though -- I'm a sauce girl. There are varying tastes that make people enjoy different aspects of pizza more than others. Some like only certain toppings, or only certain types of dough. Not me. For me, it's all in the sauce. And this recipe has great sauce! It has lots of garlic and tomato, and THAT is the kind of sauce I love. :) It's also pretty easy to throw together, which is another bonus.

Pizza Sauce

4 to 5 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 (28 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (optional)

Saute garlic and crushed pepper in hot oil in a large saucepan, over medium heat 1 minute. (Do not brown garlic.) Stir in tomatoes and salt. Bring sauce to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer, stirring occasionally, 15 minutes.

I usually use Tandori style (not sure if I spelled that right, but it is Indian flatbread) garlic flatbread as the crust -- it is delicious. Do you see a theme developing here? We like garlic. :) You can use any crust that suits your taste, though. I also usually top the pizza with sliced ham, fresh pineapple, and green pepper. Of course, mozzarella cheese is the crowning glory of this recipe.

Enjoy!