Spinach and Feta Pizza

Sometimes we fall back on simple, fast and dependable meals that don't require a lot in the way of cooking.  Last night was one of those nights.  After work we spent a couple hours buying everything we need for the weekend's cooking, so we got back home pretty late and were quite hungry by that time.  Thankfully I'd planned ahead and included among the night's purchases everything I'd need to throw together one of our favorite quick dinners:  a vegetarian pizza with a Greek spin.

Awhile back, I noted that I prefer to make things from scratch rather than relying on mixes, commercial sauces and the like.  Tonight's dinner is one of the exceptions to that general rule, relying as it does on refrigerated pizza dough and canned pizza sauce.  It does meet my criteria for acceptable short-cut cooking, though, as it is quite delicious and does not sacrifice flavor for speed. 

So, if you want a reliable, fast and tasty weeknight dinner some night, try this one out and let us know what you think.

Spinach and Feta Pizza

1     10-ounce tube of refrigerated pizza dough
1     tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2     teaspoons minced garlic
1     15 oz. can pizza sauce
2     cups fresh spinach, chopped
6     ounces fresh mushrooms, thinly sliced
1     2.25 oz. can sliced black olives
1     cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2  cup shredded Italian cheese blend
6     ounces feta cheese, chopped or crumbled
1/4  cup fresh basil, cut into thin strips
1     teaspoon Greek or Italian seasoning
1/2  teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Spray a large, rimmed cookie sheet with cooking spray.  Unroll the pizza dough and stretch it to fit the cookie sheet, pinching the edges against the dough against the sides of the pan to make a crust with a raised edge.  Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic.  Spread the pizza sauce evenly over the dough, then layer with spinach, mushrooms, black olives and the three cheeses.  Sprinkle with fresh basil, Greek or Italian seasoning and red pepper flakes.

Cook for 15-18 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.  Remove from the oven.  Let the pizza rest for a couple minutes, then slide it off the cookie sheet onto a cutting board before slicing.

Notes:
We don't prefer any of the refrigerated pizza doughs - they're more or less interchangeable as far as we're concerned, and any of them we've tried have worked fine in this recipe.   We do have a preference in regard to canned pizza sauce, though, and always go with Dei Fratelli (they make a lot of great tomato products).   We use Kraft's 5-cheese Italian blend along with the feta and mozzarella.  For this recipe, we prefer the Greek seasoning over Italian, and find Penzey's spices reliable in either case.