Recipe Box - Fresh Veggie "Pizza"

I think it was sometime after Moriah was born that my next-door neighbor showed up on my doorstep, carrying this "pizza" for us and introducing me to an entirely new dish that I immediately loved.  But to tell you the truth, I don't love the name of it.  It's not pizza, you see!  But what should it be called?

Maybe it's more like a flatbread.  Maybe it's a combination of pizza and flatbread.  Maybe we should call it flizza.  Or maybe patbread.  I'm really not at all sure.  ;-)

Regardless, it is delicious; and I guess, in the end, that's all that matters.  :)

The recipe appears in the cookbook Country Home Cooking by Marjorie Rohrer (who happens to be related to my neighbors--she even came over with them to sit on our lawn one 4th of July and watch Jeff set off some fireworks).  :)  In her cookbook, she calls it "Vegetable Pizza," but I added the "Fresh" when I describe it because I think that differentiates it a little bit at least from what most people think of when they hear about a veggie pizza.

Anyway, enough about the name!  ;-)

Marjorie gives detailed instructions for how to make the crust, and the first ingredient is "scalded milk"; but fortunately for people like me, she also includes a footnote that says, "If you'd like, substitute 2 cans of refrigerated crescent roll dough for the crust, and save 1½ hours of time!"  Yes!  That's my kind of directions!!  :)

If any of you reading this are purists and want to know the exact directions Marjorie gives, email me or send a carrier pigeon, and I'll fill you in.  But for now, I'm just going to tell you how I make this yummy food.  :)

Take your crescent roll dough (I use the jumbo size, but that's not necessary) and unroll it, leaving each piece flat, before baking it at 350 degrees for approximately 8 minutes (but watch it closely because a lot depends on the size of each piece of dough and the way your oven cooks, etc.).  When it looks done, take it out and let the bread cool.

Meanwhile, mix together 16 ounces of cream cheese (of course, this is easier if you've set your cream cheese out to soften ahead of time), ⅔ cup of mayonnaise, and ½ teaspoon of salt until smooth.  If desired, add some Italian or Ranch seasoning, or you can leave it plain.  The last time I made this, I added a packet of dry Ranch dressing mix, and it was quite tasty.

When the bread is cool, spread this mixture over the bread; and then top with chopped, fresh, raw veggies of your choice.  Marjorie suggests you'll need 6 cups, but I just add veggies until all the pieces are covered.  I used carrots, cucumbers, broccoli, bell peppers, tomatoes, and green onions this time; but other options are mushrooms, cauliflower, regular onions, zucchini, celery, or just about any veggie you can think of.  Marjorie suggests sprinkling black pepper on top of the veggies, but I forgot to do that.

She also says, "The addition of grated cheddar and crumbled bacon will turn a vegetable pizza into a main dish."  As you can see, I added cheese, but not bacon this time.

As you can also see, this is a pretty flexible recipe.  ;-)

It just so happened that the night I made this last week for our supper, I paired it with a fruit pizza; and my family made me laugh when they urged me to take a picture of it.  I really wasn't planning to...

...but then Tobin hopped up, got his cell phone (an OLD phone of Jeff's, which doesn't have cell service anymore but which can be used as a camera), and started taking pictures.  He was so cute, I had to take a picture of HIM!  ;-)

These two pizzas-that-aren't-really-pizzas went together beautifully to turn an ordinary Thursday evening supper into something a little more special.  I need to remember to make these again before long!  :)