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Enjoy a little slice of Florida tonight.

Summer days are long, and if you're an active fisherman you don't get home until late. That means slaving over a big fancy meal probably isn't on your agenda. One option is to take advantage of the myriad food delivery services and have some lukewarm food show up at your door an hour later. Or you can rely on the original food delivery of cardboard-flavored pizza in a cardboard box. Twenty-three bucks for a large?

With just a bit of planning, your kitchen can be prepped to make a delicious homemade pizza at a moment's notice. It's just a matter of taking a few things out of the freezer before you leave home in the morning. Pesto sauce can be stored for a few weeks, covered in the fridge, and the pizza dough can be thawed during the day. Who needs tomato sauce, pepperoni, sausage and all those other additives when the combination of basil, garlic, cheese and oil, ground into pesto, is available? Adding shrimp, my favorite topping, does involve some pre-planning, but it's worth the effort. If necessary, they can be frozen in advance, then peeled and deveined after an overnight thaw in the fridge, while your hungry crew enjoys a cold cocktail and your oven heats up.

Regarding pizza crusts, think Publix Supermarkets. There are (as of today) 799 Publix stores in the state of Florida. And every one of them has a bakery that sells pizza dough, pre-formed and folded, or in a bag for do-it-yourselfers. Buy a few, freeze them, and thaw as needed. Then top with a layer of homemade pesto, the shrimp, and bake in a 450-degree oven until crispy and crunchy. FS

Shrimp and Pesto Pizza Pie

Ingredients

• ½ lb. Gulf shrimp, peeled and deveined



• Pizza dough, pre-formed or bulk

Homemade Pesto

2 cups fresh basil leaves

3 cloves garlic

½ cup pine nuts

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

¼ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. black pepper

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

Directions for Pesto

In a food processor, pulse the first six ingredients until a coarse mixture forms. Then, with the processor running, slowly add the olive oil. Use the pesto immediately or store, tightly covered, in the refrigerator.

Florida Sportsman Magazine June 2019