Bleu-Feta Spinach Red Pepper Pizza

This is one of those last minute dishes that tastes great and can be prepared on the spot. Prep time is under 15 minutes if you use pre-made pizza dough or Mediterranean pita bread. For a thin and crispier pizza use a flatbread or pita pocket bread. Though make sure you toast both sides sufficiently before applying toppings. Due to the thinness of the pita pocket, they get soggy very quickly when sauce is added.

Ingredients:

• Mediteranean pita bread
• Sauce
• Fresh spinach
• Fresh basil
• Red Pepper strips
• Diced tomatoes (deseed)
• Olives
• Any other veggies you want
• Bleu cheese
• Feta
• Basalmic vinegar (optional)

Directions:

• Lightly saute peppers, tomato and spinach
• Heat the pita until crispy on one side
• Flip pita over in pan so crisp side is on top
• Add sauce
• Add veggies and chopped basil
• Add crumbled cheese
• Heat until cheese is slighly melted
• Drizzle with vinegar if desired

Enjoy!

Light Summer Salad with Fig and Bleu Cheese

When it's super hot out you don't want to keep the oven on. Cold and luke warm foods are the way to go. Here is a quick and easy summer lunch or dinner for those muggy days. I choose figs because I always see fresh ones at the market and never quite know what to do with them but see them paired with cheeses and crackers all the time. I'm not so much a snack person and wanted to make something that can be used as an appetizer to a 3 course meal or in a larger portion as the main entree.

Fresh figs are not as sweet as the dried version but offer a nice subtle sweetness and texture when added to salads. You don't have to cook them if you are in a hurry, they are a fruit and can be eaten raw. This is a good idea if you want to keep the oven completely off. However, I suggest lightly browning them to give them a creamier texture and caramelize the honey.

Ingredients:

• Fresh figs
• Blue cheese
• Mixed greens (arugula also works well)
• Honey
• Olive Oil

Directions:

• Cut off the tips of the figs and then cut them in half
• Thread them on to skewers or chop sticks
• Drizzle with olive oil and place face down in pan
• Flip skewers over and while grilling place a dollop of honey in the center of each fig
• Flip skewer one final time to caramelize honey
• While figs are grilling assemble salad
• Crumble or chop blue cheese and add to salad
• Garnish with fig skewers
• Serve with a drizzle of lemon and olive oil or a light citrus vinaigrette

This literally takes under 5 minutes to make including the grilling time of figs

Enjoy!