It’s official: Summer is here! On the first day of the season, I was greeted by two ripe zucchini and a yellow squash in my garden.

When the garden is in full swing, my recipes fluctuate according to two important criteria: 1) What am I hungry for? 2) What’s ripe? Sometimes an occasional third criteria must be met: 3) What needs to be eaten up?

Last night I had a Trader Joe’s whole wheat pizza crust just waiting to be put to use. I was in the mood for beans and cheese. My squash looked up at me lovingly from the cutting board. That’s how this recipe was born. I don’t think I’ve ever made a better Mexican pizza. Delish!

Mexican Pizza with Summer’s First Veggies

Ingredients:
1 whole wheat pizza crust
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 Tablespoon cornmeal
1 can tomato sauce
½ lime, juiced
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp hottest red pepper powder (cayenne or other)
1 can refried pinto beans
4 oz grated cheese combo (I like cheddar, jack, and mozzarella for this pizza)
½ zucchini sliced into ¼-inch thick circular slices
½ yellow squash cut into ¼-inch thick circular slices
1 large yellow onion cut horizontally into circular slices
1/3 cup fresh corn
¼ cup black olives, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
¼ tsp garlic savory salt (such as Mrs. Dash)

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 500 degrees.

Grease a thick pizza pan with olive oil and sprinkle with cornmeal. Roll out the whole wheat pizza dough and line the pizza pan with the dough. Using a fork, poke holes in the dough so air bubbles won’t rise during baking. Bake in oven for 8 to 9 minutes, or just until lightly golden brown.

Meanwhile, combine the tomato sauce, lime juice, and next five spices in a small bowl. Set aside.

When pizza crust is finished, remove from oven and immediately spread the refried pinto beans over the crust. Next, spoon about ½ the tomato sauce mixture over the bean mixture to create a pizza sauce covering the beans completely in a thin layer. (Save the rest of the sauce for another use.) Sprinkle the cheese evenly over the sauce and beans. Next, use the cut veggies as pizza toppings. Sprinkle the garlic, pepper and salt evenly over entire pizza. Bake for 8 to 9 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly. Allow to cool on a wire rack for at least 10 minutes before cutting and serving. ENJOY!