Roasted Tomato and Spinach Pizza

In the dead of winter (no matter what climate you live in) I usually cringe when I see people buying fresh tomatoes. I'm not a "loco" locavore, but the idea of eating those orangish looking things that claim to be tomatoes in February or March just seems sad and so out of place. When tomatoes come through my check out line at Co-opportunity they look anemic, like they haven't gotten enough heat and sunshine to bloom into the beautiful fruit/vegetable that they can be.

However, I subcumbed to buying tomatoes in February after watching Giada di Laurentiis on the Food Network make magic with cherry tomatoes. Cutting them in half, she roasted them in the oven with garlic, olive oil and salt and pepper, and then tossed them with pasta and fresh mozzarella. While I'm usually not a huge fan of the cherry or grape tomatoes, I had to try this dish and the grape tomatoes looked like real tomatoes so I went for it.

What a delight they were! Instead of pasta I mashed them up and used them as a sauce for pizza. Topping the pizza with spinach and mozzarella and fontina cheese made the most perfect pizza I've made yet!

Roasted Tomato and Spinach Pizza

Dough to cover a cookie sheet
coarse cornmeal to sprinkle
1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
olive oil
1 cup steamed spinach
1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 cup fontina cheese, shredded
salt
pepper

Preheat oven to 400. Cut tomatoes in half and toss with olive oil, minced garlic and salt and place in roasting pan large enough so that tomatoes are in a single layer. Roast for 20 minutes and remove. While tomatoes are roasting, sprinkle cornmeal on cookie sheet and stretch pizza dough over it as thinly as possible. When tomatoes are done, mash with a fork in the pan and then scrape onto dough. Increase oven temperature to 450 degrees. Sprinkle mozzarella over all, dot top with spinach and top with fontina cheese. Bake at 450 degrees for 12 minutes or until crust is browned. Remove from oven and allow to cool a few minutes before cutting.

Hugs!