Giada's Nicoise Salad Pizzette

I watch a ton of Food Network, and my favorite time to do so is while I'm working out! I'll put the treadmill on a 10% incline at a speed of 2.5, which provides a great burn but still allows me to take notes if I see a worthwhile recipe. A few days ago, I was watching Giada De Laurentiis' show about a Spa Day menu, and she made these interesting, adorable little "pizzettes" with tuna salad, tomato, and olive tapenade. Lovelovelove all those ingredients, and it sounded like either a killer recipe or a bomb...in other words, it was a must-try for me. These were incredible!! I could eat them every day, and they were a hit with my boyfriend, too. When he came home from work, I had a plate filled with these scrumptious bites for a pre-dinner snack.

 

As usual, instead of following Giada's Recipe exactly, I improvised based on what I already had in the kitchen and our personal tastes. Here's how I did it:

 

Ingredients

 

Tapenade:

• 1 cup pitted black olives, drained
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped

 

• 2 whole wheat flatbread, cut into fist-size circles
• 1-2 roma tomatoes, sliced into eight 1/4-inch-thick slices
• 1/3 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese
• Olive oil, for drizzling
• One 5-ounce can tuna in water, drained
• 6 string beans, blanched and each cut into thin 1-inch pieces
• salt and pepper, to taste 

Directions

Spread a sheet of aluminum foil on a baking sheet (for easy cleanup) and coat lightly with non-stick cooking spray. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

For the tapenade: Place the olives, lemon juice, oil, italian seasoning and garlic in a food processor. Blend until minced.

Spread about 1 tablespoon of the tapenade over each flatbread circle and place a slice of tomato on top. Add sprinkles of mozzarella cheese on top, then drizzle with olive oil and bake until heated through and slightly crispy, about 10-15 minutes.

Place the tuna and 1 tsp olive oil in a small bowl. Using a fork, lightly mash the tuna. Add salt and pepper, to taste. Divide the tuna and spoon on top of the cooked pizzettes. Place 2 pieces of green bean on top of the tuna and serve.

Easy Ingredients that I had on hand!

Pizzettes ready to go into the oven!

 

 


What's your favorite appetizer to make at home? If you send me the link or the recipe, I'd love to try it for a future post!