Pesto Tomato Pizza (with Avocado)

I had been craving pesto for the last several days. I've also had a slight craving for pizza. I memory serves me well, I may have made these before sans avocado. Or maybe it's because it's one of my favorite pizza from the Whole Foods Hot prepared foods area. It could be the latter. I still had some pizza dough that I made a couple months ago that I keep in the freezer. It does help to keep a batch for future use.

I made the pesto fresh the day before. The tomato I used and avocado I've had for about a week in the fridge, so I was definitely beckoning me to use them. I've had my fair share of salads the past two weeks, so I needed to jazz up the two on this meal. Now the avocado can be totally optional for those who don't like it. I added it to the pizza right before serving so it's still fresh and not turn brown in the cooking process. A delicious lunch with a nice cold glass of iced tea. Perfect for a summer day. No fuss meal.

Pesto Tomato Pizza (with Avocado)

1 frozen pizza dough - defrosted
4 Tbsp pesto (recipe below)
1 medium firm tomato - sliced and seeds removed
1 c shredded parmesan cheese
1 small ripe avocado - diced (optional)

Preheat oven to 400˚F.

Rolled out the pizza dough to your desired diameter. Spread the pesto evenly leaving roughly 1-inch from the edge for the crust.

Sprinkle half of the cheese over the pesto, then lay the tomato slices, sprinkle the remaining cheese.

Bake in the oven for 15 minutes (until the cheese has melted and the dough has cooked through).  Just before serving top with the fresh avocado.

Dip Creations

Last week I received some goodies in the mail. Thanks to the Tastemaker program from Foodbuzz, I received some samples of Tostito's new product called Dip Creations. In the package is three flavors, two of each.

2 Freshly Made Guacamole
2 Country Ranch
2 Garden Onion

Dips are fun. Great for parties or just by yourself as an afternoon snack like I did. As it just so happens, I had exactly 3 avocados waiting in my fridge, so it was perfect timing that I get to use one of the guacamole packets.

 

I like my guacamole in a mix of smooth and with chunky bits. So half of the avocados I blended in the food processor and the other half I did a rough mash. Added in the seasoning. I also like fresh tomato and onion in my guacamole to I chopped some up as well. 

Since i didn't have any cilantro or peppers the seasoning mix covered that. It had a nice tang and a hint of spice to give the guacamole a nice tiny kick. It's an easy way to jazz up an old chip favorite.

Easy Peasy Guacamole

2 medium to large ripe avocados
2 small tomato
1/2 medium sweet onion
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 packet Tostito's Dip Creations Seasoning Mix (Freshly Made Guacamole)

Scoop the avocado from its skins and throw out the seed. Mash (or blend in food processor) the avocados. Add in the lemon juice and Tostito's Dip Creation guacamole seasoning and mix well to combine.

Dice the tomato, remove the seeds. Then fine chop the onion. Add both into the avocado mix and fold the mixture until all is mixed.


Serve chilled with tortilla chips of bread.

Tuna Avocado Dip

I can imagine your faces are you ponder the title of this post. Tuna avocado...WHAT?! Yes...and it's really good. Not a strong tuna taste or aroma. Surprisingly, avocado is a nice substitute to mayo.

You can replace tuna with your prefer "meat" like chicken or some of the kind of seafood.


Tuna Avocado Dip

1 can tuna in oil
1 medium ripe avocado (pitted and lightly mashed)
1 Tbsp lemon juice
salt & pepper to season


Drain the tuna of most, but not all, of the oil. Mix all ingredients together.

Serve with slices of french bread or crackers. You can even spread this on a sandwich.