Pumpkin Pizza

From: Rochelle

Last night, Austin's work had an iron chef competition. Of course I was ALL over that one! The secret ingredient: Pumpkin! Huzzah! My favorite! I was this close () to making my favorite double layer pumpkin cheesecake, but I am SO glad I didn't because two others made it to the competition. I decided to make Pumpkin Pizza and oh my goodness readers, it was delightful! The best part? We won! : ) Try it out to break up your regular pizza night. It reminded me of something you would see at California Pizza Kitchen.

Pumpkin Pizza
Adapted from About.com

Ingredients:

2 C	*Roasted Pumpkin, Cubed
1 T	Basil Pesto (If you don't have this, use 2 t basil + 1 t garlic powder)
1	Prepared Pizza Dough
3/4 C	Cheese of your Choice (I used cheddar, but Mozzarella or Colby jack would be good)
2 T	Cashews, salted, roasted, and crushed
3/4 C	White Cream Sauce (See Recipe Below)
1/4 C	Feta Cheese, Crumbled (Goat cheese would be yummy too!)
2 T	Parmesan Cheese, grated
Garnishes	Extra Chopped Cashews and Parmesan Cheese, and Parsley (dried or fresh)

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.

2. Gently toss roasted pumpkin with basil pesto to lightly coat evenly. Set aside.

*To roast Pumpkin, I cut a sugar pumpkin in half, scooped out the seed and placed, cut side down in a glass dish. I added 1/2" of water to the bottom and covered in plastic wrap. I then cooked in the microwave for about 15-20 minutes. After which I carefully removed the plastic wrap, drained the water, and turned cut side up and placed into a 500 degree oven until browned, about 10-15 minutes.

3. Roll out pizza dough and spread evenly with a layer of white sauce and cheese. Add crushed cashews and cubes of pumpkin. Drizzle with white cream sauce.

4. Scatter crumbled feta cheese and grated Parmesan evenly over the surface.

5. Cook pizza for 7 to 10 minutes at 500 degrees Fahrenheit until lightly browned. Remove from the oven and cut into slices.

6. Garnish with parsley, extra cashews and Parmesan cheese before serving.

White Sauce

3 T	Butter or Smart Balance
1/4 C + 2 T	Flour
1 1/2-2 C	Milk
1/2 t	Garlic Powder
1 t	Italian Seasoning (or basil/Oregano mix)
Dash	Salt and Pepper, to taste
1/3 C	Cheese of our Choice (Parmesan, Cheddar, or Colby Jack work well

Preparation:

1. Melt butter in a medium saucepan and add in flour, stirring until thick and pasty.

2. Slowly add milk, whisking together constantly to avoid lumps. Add garlic powder, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper and simmer for 3-4 minutes, or until thickened.

3. Stir in grated cheese until welted. Sauce will thicken further as it cools, so add in a bit more milk if needed.

This recipe makes more than enough white sauce for one large pizza.