Pizza Salad

I woke up thinking about this salad this morning and how it is the perfect summer meal idea. Now I know it isn’t “officially” summer yet, but to me anything after Memorial Day is summer. 

We often try to avoid turning on our ovens in the summer, but sometimes after a day of swimming, gardening, day camp, or other fun outdoor activities a frozen pizza just hits the spot. 

Typically, Fridays in our house are Frozen Pizza Fridays. If you’ve ever been to a pizzeria, you know they have that specific sort of side salad that perfectly compliments a hot, cheesy slice.

This Pizza Salad is that side for Frozen Pizza Friday. The beauty of this recipe is you can make it earlier in the day and then dress it while your pizza cools.

The other good news is that some of the ingredients come in jars and you will have them on hand for several uses. I also like to plant chives in the Summer JUST to make this salad.

Let’s Talk Frozen Pizza

Obviously this post is more about the salad than the frozen pizza, but I wanted to share that the Mama Cozzi brand of frozen pizza from Aldi is one of my new favorites.

For one, it is STILL very affordable (I am sure you have seen the price of groceries lately). It also cooks up very quick and very crispy. 

In fact, it reminds me of my all time favorite frozen pizza, the old Chef”s Kitchen brand frozen pizzas that Jewel-Osco used to sell. I keep a few of these in the freezer for last minute meal ideas. 

This isn’t an advertisement for Aldi, by the way, I just thought I would share my deep thoughts on Mama Cozzi.

The Salad Dressing

The salad dressing I use for this particular recipe is by a brand called Garlic Expressions. It is a little pricey but we LOVE it.

Ingredients

• 1 head of iceberg lettuce
• 1 medium red onion
• 1 package or a handful of fresh chives
• 1/2 cup of sun dried tomatoes
• 8 slices of provolone cheese
• 6 to 8 peperoncini plus a splash of juice from the jar
• 1 tablespoon (or more) of dried italian herbs
• 1/2 cup of a garlic or salad vinaigrette (we like the Garlic Expressions brand)
• 1 tablespoon of mayo
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Wash and air dry your iceberg lettuce and cut and tear into bite sized pieces. I like to leave it in the bowl in the fridge for a bit so it is ice cold.
2. Slice your red onion and add to the lettuce.
3. Add your peperoncini to the bowl and drizzle a little of the juice from the jar on the salad. You can also cut the peppers up, but we like them whole.
4. Chop your sun dried tomato into small pieces and sprinkle over the whole salad. You can also use diced tomatoes if you don’t want to grab the sun dried.
5. Dice your cheese and add to the salad.
6. Sprinkle the whole salad with the chives, finely sliced.
7. In a jar add your salad dressing and the mayo and whisk or stir until well combined and creamy.
8. Season the whole salad with the dried italian herbs and salt and pepper.
9. When ready to serve, drizzle with the dressing, the the parmesan cheese.

Notes

I make this salad in the morning and then when I am ready to eat, I bake my pizzas and dress the salad. It is the perfect Summer meal.