it's the little things: a recipe // margherita pizza pie

andrew and i have an obsession with margherita pizza. we really do. this all started a few years back when we visited andrew's brother and sister-in-law, troy and lauren, at their home in the heart of wine country, st. helena, california. for those of you who have never been there, add it to your bucket list of travels, it's divine!

one evening we walked across the railroad bridge with good bottle of vino and dined at a local favorite, a little pizza joint called pizza tra vigne. words cannot describe how quaint and magical this little restaurant is, not to mention, it's smack dab in the middle of the country's best vineyards. i loved gazing around the at the scenery, following the vines and as they crawled up and curled around every charming surface of this building's exterior. and there's more! this pizza joint was covered by a gorgeous canopy of thick, emerald tress, and was lit up by these adorable glowing bulbs that dangled from a thin wire as dusk started to approach. you guys, this place was perfect. i felt like i was back in europe, and i loved it.

did i mention we ate outdoors under the trees whilst bathing in what might as well have been candlelight? the whole evening was my definition of a good time. good company, good wine, and good food = bliss.

then there was the pizza pie! this was not like any pizza andrew or i had ever had before. there were only 5 ingredients: dough, a light garlic sauce, heirloom tomatoes, fresh buffalo mozzarella, and basil. this midwest gal was used to the meat lovers combo with extra cheese, aka: the more ingredients the merrier. but let me just say, i immediately turned into a big fan of the original italian pie, margherita, for obvious reasons. its simple and rustic qualities just spoke to me...

...yes, i have a very personal relationship with my food. biiiiiig deal. and big whoop if i host kitchen shows in the privacy of my kitchen {to myself} most nights of the week. i have juila child to thank for this. if you have not checked out my ode to her, pop on over to this post!

andrew and i have been feeling a tad nostalgic as of late and we miss all that is california very much. as stella and i roamed trader joe's the other day, i decided to gather ingredients to recreate our beloved margherita pizza in memory of our travels out west. i was weary to say the least, never having made homemade pizza before, but in the end...the only thing we could say was, "mmmmmmmmm," and "let's have that again tomorrow!" success? most definitely.

if you want to get in on some of this goodness...try this recipe out.

margherita pizza pie!

* i got all of my ingredients at trader joe's. the dough was garlic herb, i highly recommend.

ingredients:

- pre-made pizza dough

- buffalo mozzarella cheese

- pizza sauce

- fresh roma or heirloom tomatoes

- fresh basil

- fresh parmesan cheese

- preheat the oven at 350 degrees. roll dough out in flour and put on pizza stone. we like our crust very thin, but you can make it to your liking.

- apply pizza sauce to dough.