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FAST Whole Wheat Pizza with Sautéed Onions

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Finally. Pizza you can enjoy along with your kids. A great last-minute dinner, this FAST—Flash Almost-Scratch Tasty—recipe can be on your table in 20 minutes.

I use Trader Joe’s ready-made whole wheat pizza dough. If you prefer to make your own, try this Really Simple Pizza Dough from Smitten Kitchen.

No amount of rolling will turn homemade pizza into a thin-crusted NYC dollar slice. So let it be what it is: A scrumptious, puffy-crusted, rustic pie.

FAST Whole Wheat Pizza with Sautéed Onions

1 pound whole wheat pizza dough
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons corn meal
1-1½ cups jarred or canned chunky marinara
½ pound—about 1½ cups—mozzarella, grated
¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
flour for dusting hands and rolling pin

  1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

    2. Key ingredients for FAST Whole Wheat Pizza.
    Key ingredients for FAST Whole Wheat Pizza.

  2. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon corn meal on a large cutting board. I love these multi-use flexible mats, see photo below, that let you roll out dough, chop vegetables, etc., then easily move food from place to place.

    3. Scatter cornmeal lightly over cutting board.
    Scatter cornmeal lightly over cutting board.

  3. Position dough in the center of the cutting board.


  4. Lightly flour hands and/or rolling pin and press and roll the dough into a circular shape about ¼”-½” thick.

    5. Use a rolling pin and/or hands to roll and press dough into a (sort of) circular shape.
    Use a rolling pin and/or hands to roll and press dough into a (sort of) circular shape.

  5. If you have a pizza pan—I do, only because I found one for 50¢ at a garage sale—sprinkle it, or a cookie sheet, with the remaining cornmeal.


  6. Loosen sides of pizza dough while at the same time rolling it off the cutting board. This is a quick movement. I roll the dough off the board and over my forearm—wish I could photograph this, but only have two hands and one of them must hold the camera! Roll the dough onto the pizza pan or cookie sheet. Don’t worry if it’s not perfect—this is rustic pizza. Press the dough to the edge of the pan to cover as much of the surface as possible.

  7. Let dough rest while you prepare the onions.

  8. In skillet, heat remaining oil.

  9. Throw in sliced onions and sauté. Adjust flame and stir to keep onions from burning and sauté 4-5 minutes until onions are soft and slightly brown, see photo.

  10. Add the garlic to the onion and continue to sauté for an additional 2 minutes.
    11. If you have time, you can slow fry the onions until they're dark and a little caramelized.
    If you have time, you can slow fry the onions until they're dark and a little caramelized.
  11. In the meantime, brush one tablespoon oil over the pizza dough—this keeps the crust from becoming mushy when you add toppings.

  12. Spread marinara evenly over dough, leaving outer rim of crust uncovered.

  13. Sprinkle the cheeses over the marinara.

  14. Arrange sautéed onions over top of pizza.


  15. Slide pizza into oven and bake for 7-10 minutes. Allow to cool for 3-5 minutes, slice and serve.

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Alternative toppings

You can play around endlessly with this basic pizza recipe. In addition to—or instead of—onions, try topping your pizza with some of the following ingredients:

  • Sliced black olives

  • Sliced roasted red peppers

  • Julienned bell peppers

  • Sautéed mushrooms

  • ½ cup ricotta, dropped in dollops

  • 3-4 anchovies, thinly sliced

  • Sausage made from local, grassfed meats

    • Serves 4-6

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