Search This Blog

Saturday, July 14, 2012

Pita Pizzas | The Perfect Lazy Dinner

I've been making this simple twist on a Greek classic for over 10 years. Everyone I've shared it with has fallen in love, so now it's your turn. My very first job in high school was at a small family-owned deli around the corner from my house. While most of my friends were busy hating their jobs, I loved mine so much I stayed for 7 years. What can I say, I fell in love with food.

After going vegetarian, I was getting pretty bored of my grilled cheese options. We had a wonderfully convenient sandwich oven at this deli, and typically we'd throw a pita in it for a minute or two before topping it with standard gyro toppings-sliced lamb, feta, lettuce, tomatoes, onions and tzatziki sauce. Well, I wanted my cheese to be melted, so I topped my pita before throwing it in the oven. A pretty simple adjustment, but it made a world of difference. So the next time, I decided instead of rolling the pita up into a wrap, I'd leave it flat and top it like a pizza. 



Lazy Pita Pizzas
(serves 4)
4 large pitas (not pocket pitas)
8 oz. feta (I like a lot of cheese)
8 slices cheddar cheese
8 slices of tomato
a few handfuls of lettuce
gyro sauce (recipe below)

gyro sauce:
6 oz sour cream
chopped up garlic (I use jarred garlic)
salt and pepper to taste

optional topping variations:
chopped lamb meat
red onion
kalamata olives
mild banana pepper rings

Mix up the gyro sauce a day ahead, if possible. Lay pitas flat on a cookie sheet or pizza stone. They can even be frozen if you forgot to take them out of the freezer in time, just cook them a little longer. Spread a liberal amount of the gyro sauce on the top of each pita. Sprinkle feta over it, then lay cheddar slices on top of the feta. Place in the oven at 400 degrees for 7-12 minutes, until cheese is fully melted and bubbling a little. Take out of the oven, cut each pita into 4ths and top with lettuce and tomato.

This is a great family meal, because each individual can choose their own toppings. I've made these into Italian pizzas, Mexican pizzas, and Reuben pizzas. Best part is, you can keep the pitas in the freezer for whenever you want them and there's no pizza dough to wrestle with.

No comments: