Just because September is upon us doesn’t mean summer is over. We have a few official weeks left. And the peaches and tomatoes and berries aren’t going to disappear overnight. Thank goodness. I’m not ready to say goodbye yet. I picked up some end-of-summer veggies at the farmers market this week and decided they were destined for a pizza.

I didn’t actually grill the pizza (although you could- I did so here) but I grilled the zucchini and peppers and onion before I put them on the pizza. (Just with a little olive oil and s&p.) Those grilled veggies combined with sliced tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and Parm, bits of shaved garlic, and chopped fresh basil made for one stunning pizza. (Oh, and I threw on some chicken sausage which is good, but not necessary.)

You really don’t need a recipe (other than a good pizza dough). Gather the most beautiful vegetables you can find (or fruit- fruit is awesome on pizza) and grill them. Add your favorite cheese(s) and fresh herbs. Bake it ’till it’s golden and crisp and the cheese oozes. And you’re there. Summer on a crust.

Grilled Summer Vegetable Pizza

INGREDIENTS
1 recipe pizza dough
extra virgin olive oil, for grilling vegetables and brushing crust 1-2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced as possible
summer vegetables (zucchini, yellow squash, eggplant, bell peppers, onion, tomatoes, etc.),
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
chicken sausage (optional)
fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced
freshly grated Parmesan cheese
fresh basil, julienned

DIRECTIONS
1. Prepare pizza dough according to recipe directions.

2. While the crust is rising, grill the vegetables. (I grilled everything except the tomatoes.) Preheat indoor grill pan or outdoor grill to medium-high heat. Prepare vegetables (wash and stem, pit and slice, etc.), brush with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. (NOTE: You don’t want to chop your veggies up too small before grilling. Leave them in large pieces to go on the grill and then afterwards cut them up for topping the pizza.) Grill until tender and slightly charred. Set aside to cool before chopping into the size you want for topping the pizza.

3. Preheat oven and pizza stone to 450 F.

4. Brush prepared crust with a thin layer of olive oil. Sprinkle with the sliced garlic and roasted vegetables and chicken sausage (if using). Top with slices of mozzarella and freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper.

5. Bake in preheated oven on pizza stone for about 10 minutes, until the crust is puffed and golden brown and the cheese is bubbling. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with fresh basil. Slice and serve.

Makes 1 large pizza.

(an A Hint of Honey original)