I've got two favorite restaurants here in the Bean Town - Viva Maria and Thai Jasmine. Pizza/pasta and Thai noodle dishes... what can I say, I like carbs.
Much to my demise, Viva Maria closed a few weeks ago! They opened a small quick-service stand in the mall, and I have been told they are "searching for a new sit-down location." Either way, I was totally bummed.
My absolute favorite dish to order at Viva Maria was the Dominic's White Pizza, topped with fresh garlic, broccoli, spinach, tomatoes, ricotta, and mozzarella cheese. The best bite was the thick chewy crust with the sweet ricotta cheese. Man, I miss that pizza.
Last week, I decided that I just couldn't live without the Dominic's White Pizza, so I re-created it myself. And while this pizza wasn't exactly like Viva Maria's, it was pretty darn close! It definitely satisfied the craving.
The good thing about this pizza is that it's actually pretty healthy! It's covered in fresh vegetables, and there's no added fat from processed meats. (Not that I'm against processed meats; pepperoni's one of my favorite pizza toppings... just not so great to have it every week. Because, you know, pizza is at least a once-a-week occasion at our house.) And all the cheese gives you protein! Riiiiiight.
Give this pizza a try on your next pizza night!
Sprinkle a piece of parchment paper with cornmeal. Stretch pizza dough into a 12-inch circle; place on parchment.
For sauce, combine melted butter, olive oil, garlic, and parmesan cheese. Spread onto prepared pizza dough.
To prepare toppings, place broccoli with 1 tablespoon water in microwave-safe bowl. Microwave until just crisp tender; about 2 minutes. Place spinach in a microwave-safe bowl with 1 teaspoon water. Microwave until wilted, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Squeeze off extra water.
Top dough with broccoli, spinach, and diced red pepper. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese, and then top with dollops of ricotta cheese.
Very carefully, remove hot baking stone from oven. Slide the parchment (with the pizza on it) directly onto the baking stone. Return to 500*F oven and bake 8-10 minutes until cheese is golden brown.
Much to my demise, Viva Maria closed a few weeks ago! They opened a small quick-service stand in the mall, and I have been told they are "searching for a new sit-down location." Either way, I was totally bummed.
My absolute favorite dish to order at Viva Maria was the Dominic's White Pizza, topped with fresh garlic, broccoli, spinach, tomatoes, ricotta, and mozzarella cheese. The best bite was the thick chewy crust with the sweet ricotta cheese. Man, I miss that pizza.
Last week, I decided that I just couldn't live without the Dominic's White Pizza, so I re-created it myself. And while this pizza wasn't exactly like Viva Maria's, it was pretty darn close! It definitely satisfied the craving.
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| Stolen from my Instagram account... I need to bake this pizza in the daylight so I can take some nice pictures of it. Or I could just wait until summer... Ohhhh summer nights where the sun stays out past 5:30pm. |
Give this pizza a try on your next pizza night!
[Click to PRINT]
Dominic's White Pizza
Servings/Yield
1 pizza- 1 recipe pizza dough (my favorite is Annie's Eats)
- 1 tablespoon butter, melted
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese
- 1-1½ cups broccoli florets
- 3 cups spinach
- ½ red bell pepper, diced
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- ½-¾ cup ricotta cheese
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
Method
Preheat oven to 500*F. Place baking stone in hot oven; let stone preheat for 30 minutes.Sprinkle a piece of parchment paper with cornmeal. Stretch pizza dough into a 12-inch circle; place on parchment.
For sauce, combine melted butter, olive oil, garlic, and parmesan cheese. Spread onto prepared pizza dough.
To prepare toppings, place broccoli with 1 tablespoon water in microwave-safe bowl. Microwave until just crisp tender; about 2 minutes. Place spinach in a microwave-safe bowl with 1 teaspoon water. Microwave until wilted, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Squeeze off extra water.
Top dough with broccoli, spinach, and diced red pepper. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese, and then top with dollops of ricotta cheese.
Very carefully, remove hot baking stone from oven. Slide the parchment (with the pizza on it) directly onto the baking stone. Return to 500*F oven and bake 8-10 minutes until cheese is golden brown.
Source: Inspired by Viva Maria Pizza & Pasta
Comments
We could taste test it for comparison if need be for you. ;)