Meatless Monday with Butternut Squash, Mushroom and Red Onion Pizza

Hello and welcome (back) to the Miratel blog and thanks for stopping by for another Meatless Monday recipe.  We took the Meatless Monday pledge as part of our CSR business initiatives in support of reducing meat consumption by 15% to improve personal health and the health of the planet.

As the summer harvest is coming to an (all too soon) end, we can soon start to enjoy the bounties of fall and today’s (unique) pizza recipe does just that. On the menu tonight is a Butternut Squash, Mushroom and Red Onion Pizza. This interesting and delicious dish is an adaptation on a Rachel Ray recipe that we came across on the site Jewelry4Change which is a blog named after the blog owners Etsy shop that raises funds to support Africa Water and Life. The blog shares the mom & daughter team’s love of cooking, gardening, reading and crafting. Now let’s get cooking.

Ingredients

• 1/4 butternut squash, peeled and cut into small pieces
  

  Butternut Squash, Mushroom and Red Onion Pizza image courtesy of jewelry4change.blogspot.com (click to enlarge image)

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 3 Tablespoons flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
• 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
• 10 ounces mushrooms, sliced
• 1 package refrigerated pizza dough
• 8 ounces mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
• garlic salt
• 5 Tablespoons cornmeal

Preparation:

1. Saute the mushrooms over medium heat, until the liquid from the mushrooms evaporates. (This will prevent your pizza from becoming soggy.) Set aside.
2. Position oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 475 degrees F. On a parchment-lined, rimmed baking sheet, toss the butternut squash and onion slices with 2 Tablespoons olive oil; season with salt and pepper.  Roast in the upper third of the oven, until golden and slightly softened, about 12 to 15 minutes.
3. Remove the squash and onions from the oven and toss them with the parsley, garlic, sauteed mushrooms, and 2 Tablespoons olive oil.
4. Sprinkle cornmeal on a pizza pan (or ceramic baking stone). Stretch and roll the dough to fit the baking sheet. Drizzle 2 Tablespoons of olive oil, then garlic salt on top of the dough.
5. Sprinkle the mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses on top, followed by the squash mixture. Bake in the lower third of the oven until the crust is deep golden, about 15 minutes.

You can purchase pizza dough at most Italian bakeries and also in the refrigerated section of the bakery department in most grocery stores. If you want to add more fiber to this dish you can use whole-wheat or spelt pizza dough, if available, instead of traditional white flour dough. This recipe illustrates that you can still menu plan around the autumn harvest just as easy (and deliciously) as the summer. Serve with a raw seasonal side salad with a light vinaigrette dressing.

We encourage you to visit the Meatless Monday website and join us in taking the pledge to reduce meat consumption just one day per week. It’s easy especially with great recipes like this one. Spread the word at work to promote CSR business initiatives that will make your green call centre, office, factory, shop or salon even greener.

Enjoy!

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