Grilled Game Day Pizza

1 pre-made pizza crust (such as Stonefire Artisan or Boboli)

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 garlic clove (2 if small)

4-5 small fresh baby gold and striped beets

½ Roma tomato, seeded

¼ small red onion

1½ cups (12 ounces) grated havarti cheese

5 thin slices prosciutto

8-10 small fresh basil leaves

1/8 teaspoon sea salt

1/8 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

At home: Peel garlic, crush it, put it in olive oil and put in baggie or very small container.

Thinly slice tomato, onion, and beets putting in separate baggies or containers; (for the beets: remove leafy tops and peel baby beets with a paring knife or vegetable peeler, then using a vegetable peeler, thinly slice pieces of striped and gold beets; keep vegetables in separate baggies and put in cooler with ice. Put salt and fresh ground pepper in a small folded foil packet.

At the game: Heat grill to medium-high heat.

Brush garlic olive oil over crust, including edges. Sprinkle grated cheese over crust. Tear each slice of prosciutto into 3 pieces and bunch up in little bunches all over crust, pushing each one down a little in between the cheese. Place thinly sliced tomato, onion, and baby beets slices all over pizza; Push basil leaves down into spaces and sprinkle the top of the pizza with small pinch of sea salt and fresh ground pepper

Place pizza directly on grill and cook for 2 to 3 minutes with closed cover on medium high, reduce heat to low and continue cooking with cover closed for 8-10 minutes or until bottom becomes brown and crispy, checking bottom frequently with a spatula. Turn the pizza a quarter turn every now and then for more even cooking.

If you have a back burner, turn on the back burner on high, and turn off the main burners, and let pizza cook an additional 2 to 3 minutes until top is slightly browned (or melted if you don’t have a back burner on the grill).

Remove from the grill with a spatula onto a cutting board, baking sheet, or other flat tray. Cut into slices or small squares.

Serves four as an appetizer.

Cook’s notes: Bring to game: barbecue brush, spatula, pizza cutter, cutting board, baking sheet or platter (or round disposable aluminum tray to put pizza on after grilling for cutting). Double recipe if you want to serve this as an entree. For a vegan option, omit prosciutto and add other thinly sliced vegetables.

Lori Wiktorek