White Pizza w/Spinach and Garlic

This weekend was the divisional playoff round for the NFL, which meant one thing for me. Four football games in two days. What a way to spend the weekend.

For the second pizza in this series, I decided to go with a pizza that does not have a tomato sauce. In fact, this pizza does not have a sauce at all. Instead, the crust is brushed with a mixture of olive oil and garlic, topped with fresh spinach and three kinds of cheese, then baked until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted. 

This is a recreation of a pizza my wife and I used to order when we lived in Texas. About a year after we moved there, we had found a little hole-in-the-wall pizza joint that served up some very delicious pies. We would order from them at least once a month, and as a result, got to know the owners very well. Unfortunately, we had to move and the restaurant closed down, but the pizza itself still lives on every time I make it. 

White Pizza w/Spinach and Garlic

1 recipe Basic Pizza Crust

1/4 cup olive oil

6 cloves garlic, minced

6 oz ricotta cheese

2 cups fresh spinach leaves

12 oz shredded mozzarella cheese

4 oz shredded Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 500 degrees F. If using a pizza stone, place it in the lower third of the oven and let it heat at least 45 minutes. Prepare crust according to recipe. While crust is rising, warm olive oil over low heat in small saucepan. Add garlic and cook until just able to smell garlic. Turn off heat and let cool. Mix mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses together in a medium bowl.

Divide dough in half. Stretch one half of the dough into a 16-inch circle. Brush dough with half of the olive oil and garlic. Dot top of crust with half the ricotta.

Spread half the spinach over top of the ricotta. Sprinkle half the mozzarella/Parmesan mixture.

Bake in 500 degree F oven for 7-10 minutes or until cheese is melted and crust is golden brown.