I am writing this post on Saturday night and I literally just got finished eating these delicious pizzas 10 minutes ago. I am so excited about them and how tasty they were that I just had to instantly write this post to share with you! I am a big time lover of bbq sauce, and I absolutely love it on pizzas. And I think it is pretty obvious that I am major lover of vegetables. I tend to gravitate towards vegetables as they are in season, too. Whenever I think of Summertime vegetables, I usually think of summer squash and corn. These pizzas have both of those vegetables to offer and a whole lot more. Get ready for a fantastic Summertime meal that is chocked full of veggies with this one. It is goooood, I promise! And have I ever lied to you? 😉
Mini BBQ Vegetable Pizzas on Summer Squash Crusts
*I based the ingredients for the crusts off of this recipe for zucchini and carrot tostada shells, which were inspired by Melanie.
Servings: Makes 2 mini pizzas (I ate both! :))
Ingredients
For the Crusts:
olive oil cooking spray
1 cup shredded zucchini, squeezed dry in a towel (I used a grey zucchini, but you can use a traditional green one)
1 cup shredded yellow summer squash, squeezed dry in a towel
2 eggwhites, beaten
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
black pepper, a few sprinkles
fine sea salt, a few sprinkles
1/4 cup + 1/8 cup whole wheat flour
For the Pizzas:
water, for cooking
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup red onion, diced
1/3 cup corn (fresh or frozen)
3 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped
1/2 cup sliced baby bella mushrooms (I actually used some roasted ones that I had in my fridge)
1/2 tsp dried cilantro
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
black pepper, to taste
fine sea salt, to taste
2-4 TB of bbq sauce (I used hickory flavor, which I already had in my fridge)
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray generously with olive oil cooking spray.
2. While the oven is preheating, combine all of the ingredients for the crusts. Separate the crust mixture into two mini crusts and press lightly into the shape of pizza crusts. The crusts should be about 1/4 inch in thickness.
3. Bake the pizza crusts for 15 minutes, carefully flip them over and cook an additional 5 to 10 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.
4. While the pizza crusts are cooking, line a large skillet with a thin layer of water. Heat over medium-high heat until very hot. Once hot, lower the heat to medium. Add garlic and onions to the pan and cook for approximately 6 to 8 minutes, or until softened. Add additional water, as necessary.
5. Lower the heat to medium-low and stir in corn, spinach, mushrooms, and seasonings. Cook for approximately 2 to 3 minutes, or until warm and the spinach has wilted.
6. Remove the crusts from the oven and switch the oven to the low broil setting. Top the crusts with bbq sauce and the vegetable mixture. Broil the pizzas for approximately 3 to 5 minutes, or until the crusts are crispy and the toppings are heated through.
7. Finally, eat the most delicious Summertime pizzas. And yes, you just must eat both! 😉
It looks pretty tasty, am I right?
Trust me, these taste just as good as they look! Or..maybe even better!
Now don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love a traditional pizza. But the foodie in me also loves coming up with creative and new ways to change-up more traditional foods. I loved the zucchini and carrots tostadas so much that I just knew I had to make them into a pizza crust. I wanted to make a Summery pizza so I selected Summertime veggies for both the crust and the toppings. Subbing out the carrots for yellow squash was delicious, and can you really beat toppings like bbq sauce and corn? These smell, look, and taste like Summertime to me!
I am loving these during the Summer, but I can pretty much guarantee that I’ll be making these into the Winter time, too! 😉
Have you ever heard of/seen a grey zucchini? What “new to you” veggies have you tried this Summer?
I did not even know that grey zucchini existed until I saw the light green/grey squashes at my local grocery store on Saturady. They were homegrown and locally grown so I just knew that I had to give them a try! I really couldn’t tell much of a difference in the taste, but that may have been because the zucchini was mixed in with other ingredients.
