Sunday, July 19, 2009

A Midsummer Night’s Pizza

I dream of zucchini pizza. There’s something magical, even Shakespearean about it.

Each summer I can’t wait to slice those paper thin disks of bright yellow and green and scatter them over yeasty dough. Sure, I’ll make lots of zucchini bread, and zucchini soup, but there is absolutely nothing better than dining on the deck as the sun sets and the sky turns pink, with a glass of red wine and a thin crust pizza bursting with the flavors of summer.

The zucchini and summer squash are erupting from the ground at Restoration Farm. It’s almost as if Puck himself has given them a little bewitching boost.


My pizza is piled high with the best of Restoration Farm – zucchini, summer squash, newly harvested garlic, and kale. The zucchini is sweet and crisp, the kale slightly bitter, and the garlic, toasty and mellow.

Restoration Farm’s head grower, Dan Holmes tells me things are looking good for the berry patch. I steal down the tree lined path to take a look and the signs are encouraging:


Can a luscious berry tart be far off?

Visions of summer berries begin to fill my head, for the summer squash may soon be no more yielding but a dream.

©2009 T.W. Barritt All Rights Reserved

10 comments:

Christo Gonzales said...

its poetry in motion.....

Sam Hoffer / My Carolina Kitchen said...

I love Restoration Farm. What a great place for inspiration. Your zucchini pizza looks terrific.
I didn't realize you dreamed of zucchini. I have a recipe for an unusual zucchini soup I'll have to make for you one day. I think you'll like it.
Thanks for taking us along to the farm.
Sam

Amanda said...

Looks fabulous. How lucky you are to have such bounty! Did you do that pizza on the grill? I love pizza on the grill as much as I love it in the oven. YUM!

Karine said...

Such a healthy pizza! Thanks for sharing!

Foodiewife said...

How delightful to see such beautiful harvest and to dream of future recipes. Did you grill these? The melted cheese looks perfect. I love summer squash! What a beautiful way to enjoy it. What kind of berries are those? Mmmm, a cream custard tart, topped with berries. That's summer!

Kalyn Denny said...

Wow! I love the idea of zucchini or yellow squash on pizza. I think I'm going to have to try that! Mine are not nearly so big yet, but soon I'll have plenty.

Lydia (The Perfect Pantry) said...

I'm not sure I've ever seen kale on a pizza before -- that's the ingredient that interests me. I'd probably saute it first to get some of the bitterness out, and then smother it with cheese, because I can never have too much melted cheese on pizza.

Anonymous said...

hehe.. i love your writing.

Now that i made a compliment.. can i have a slice? :)

veron said...

I envy you such wonderful produce from Restoration Farm. I'm not a fan of zuchinni but your pizza looks fantastic. You know I am looking forward to your berry tarts!

~~louise~~ said...

Such a dramatic illusion of Restoration Farm's "erupting" zucchini is indeed what dreams are made of...thanks for sharing, T.W.

A toast to you and your "harlequin" pizza!

I just can't help wondering what those squash blossoms look liked. I adore stuffed squash blossoms!!!