Get Cookin' With these quick, low-fat pizza recipes beat Dominoes any day of the week.

For really great pizza, first call your favorite architect and order a wood-burning brick oven. Then, while waiting for the workers to arrive, knead, stretch, and roll out the pizza dough. Or, you can do it the easy way with an inexpensive pizza stone and ordinary ingredients such as crisp bread, pita rounds, and store-bought focaccia shells. Can these tricks mimic the 750 degrees that blister toppings in a heartbeat and the fragrant hickory smoke that turns flour, water, and yeast into farinaceous paradise? Not exactly. But you can create crisp-crusted, mouth-watering pies that are low fat, as addictive as your favorite restaurant’s, and on the table before the quickest delivery kid could get to the door. These super-fast pizzas require that you precook some ingredients because most ovens burn crusts before the toppings are done. Also, place the pizza in the top third of the oven to intensify the heat from the bottom and the top.

Quick Pizza Sauce

You can buy a jar of pizza sauce and risk it tasting like what it is—mass-produced—or use canned tomato sauce for that vinegary, mouth-puckering quality only tomatoes cooked with citric acid offer. A better alternative is to throw together this quick sauce for a savory, made-from-scratch flavor. Make it in large batches and freeze it in small containers. Add basil or other fresh herbs, or keep it neutral so it won’t compete with other flavors in your toppings.

1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
2 small cloves of garlic, chopped
1 cup commercial tomato sauce, preferably without citric acid
1/2 cooked red pepper

Coat a skillet with a thin film of vegetable spray and heat until a few drops of water dance on the surface. Add the onion and garlic and stir until they begin to wilt, about 2 minutes or so (don’t allow the onions to brown).

Stir in the tomato sauce and pepper, and raise the heat until the sauce just begins to bubble. Immediately reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes (do not allow it to boil away), then puree. A blender or hand blender does a good job of pureeing the skin of the pepper. You can make this up to 24 hours ahead and store covered in the refrigerator.

(8 Servings)

Focaccia Pizza with Eggplant, Onion, Zucchini, and Peppers
Some folks like a vegetarian free-for-all on their meatless pies, piling on everything that grows. But for a better pizza, use vegetables with a natural harmony, such as the Mediterranean big four: eggplant, onion, zucchini, and pepper. Adjust the ratio of vegetables to suit your taste.

1 half medium eggplant, thinly sliced
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 zucchini, thinly sliced
1 small red pepper, seeded and sliced
Salt and pepper to taste
Packaged fococcia shell
Quick Pizza Sauce (recipe above)
1 dozen fresh basil leaves, shredded
6 ounces low-fat mozzarella, grated or shaved thin
3 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated

Preheat the oven to 525 degrees F

Coat a baking sheet with a light film of olive oil and arrange the eggplant in one layer. Roast for 8 to 10 minutes until softened, turning once to cook evenly. Check often and remove before they begin to scorch. Exact cooking time will depend on the thickness of the slices.

Coat a skillet with a light film of vegetable spray and add the onions and garlic. Stir until they begin to wilt. Add the zucchini and peppers and cook over low heat until the vegetables are crisp but not raw.

Spread the Quick Pizza Sauce on the focaccia. Then layer the vegetable mixture and season lightly with salt and heavily with pepper. Scatter the basil over the vegetables, then cover with the cheese.

Using a large spatula or pizza peel, slide the pizza onto the stone and bake for 7 to 8 minutes until the cheese is bubbly and golden. Don’t overcook or the crust will be too chewy around the edges. Serve immediately.

(6 Slices)

Pita Pizza with Red Potatoes and Pesto
Though a tongue-twister, this is the easiest of pizzas, especially if you have some leftover cooked potatoes. Pesto fattens up everything it touches, but you only need a tablespoon here as a base for the rest of the toppings. Commercial pesto works very well, but use homemade when you have a garden full of basil.

2 medium red potatoes, sliced very thin (no thicker than 1/4 inch)
8 slices red onion, sliced very thin
1/2 medium red pepper, sliced very thin
2 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and pepper
4 pita breads
4 tablespoons pesto, commercial or homemade
4 tablespoons fresh basil, minced
4 tablespoons goat cheese
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 525 degrees F

Coat a baking sheet with a light film of oil. Arrange the potatoes in one layer and place in the oven for 4 minutes. Flip the potato slices and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes or until tender.

While the potatoes are cooking, coat a skillet with a light film of oil. Add the onion, pepper, and garlic and stir until the onion begins to wilt, 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside.

Coat each round of pita with one tablespoon of pesto. Arrange the potatoes on top and season lightly with salt and heavily pepper. Arrange the onion mixture on top, dot with the goat cheese and sprinkle with Parmesan.

Place on a preheated pizza stone and bake in the top third of the oven for 3 to 5 minutes or until the cheese melts. Don’t overcook or the pita will scorch. Remove from the oven and serve immediately.

(Serves 4)

Ciabatta Pizza with Sausage and Mushrooms
This fat-free, rectangular bread made from flour and water has a crisp crust and delicious flavor that makes a perfect underpinning for your pizza. You can use other types of French or Italian bread, but only the top or bottom crusts, reserving the doughy center for breadcrumbs. If you can’t find a spicy low-fat sausage, add red pepper flakes and fennel for that distinctive Italian flavor.

1 teaspoon olive oil
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 ounces low-fat spicy Italian seasoned chicken or turkey sausage, or apple chicken sausage
1/2 pound crimini or brown mushrooms, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons low-fat chicken broth, as needed
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds optional
1 large pinch of cayenne or red pepper flakes, as desired
Salt and pepper
1 loaf ciabatta or other crusty, flat bread
Quick Pizza Sauce
4 ounces low-fat mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 ounces Parmesan cheese, shredded

Preheat the oven to 525 degrees F

Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet until a spray of water dances on the surface. Add the onions and garlic and stir until the onions begin to wilt. Do not allow them to brown.

Add the sausage and mushrooms and stir, adding chicken stock by the tablespoon only if the pan begins to dry out. Stir in the fennel and pepper flakes if you are using them. Season lightly with salt and heavily pepper. Set aside.

Slice the ciabatta horizontally, as you would a hamburger bun. Place under the broiler for 30 seconds just to crisp the top. Spread the Quick Pizza Sauce on top and layer with the sausage mixture. Sprinkle with the cheese.

Place the pizza on a pre-heated stone and bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the bread is golden. Serve immediately.

(8 Slices)