On my way back from Montreal, I stopped by the airport bakery cafe MBCO where I always go to pick up a dozen Montreal style bagels for my dad.  I love that bakery – it’s always full of lovely and tempting goodies including gorgeous fresh breads, sammies, and wraps.  But what really caught my eye was the eggplant brie pesto pizza in the display.  Of course, I had to pass and munched on my gluten-free granola bars instead while longingly eying that pizza.

Inspired by the MBCO’s pizza, I went to WholeFoods in Toronto and picked up their ready to bake gluten-free pizza crusts.  I’ve never tried them before but thought I’d give it a go.  Although I love making my own dough, sometimes convenience just wins out.  The crusts are a tad on the thick side, but I’m a fan of super thin pizza crusts.  The flavour is nice and it’s not too chewy or hard once baked.  I’d definitely buy these again.

For the toppings I used my pesto recipe (you can also use store-bought of course) and spooned a layer on the crust followed by the mushrooms.  I grilled up a few slices of eggplant that were lightly brushed with olive oil and put those on with some thick slices of goat brie.  I tossed it in the oven for 15 minutes at 375 degrees and voila – pizza pie.  A bit of chopped flat-leaf parsley added a nice freshness.  The truffle oil is completely optional, but I love the taste of it on my pizza so I drizzled a few drops and some hot chili flakes before I gobbled it up.  All I was missing was my hubby (who was on his way home but got stuck in Newark because of hurricane Irene) and a glass of red wine.  He made it home safely the next day and got to have the pizza for lunch.  

A note about truffle oil – there are 2 kinds available, black and white.  White truffle oil is more delicately flavoured and white truffles are harder to find so this variety is typically more expensive.  I like the bold flavour of the black truffle oil which also happens to be a tad cheaper.  The sticker shock of how pricey either variety is enough to jolt just about anyone (this bottle was $15USD back in Scottsdale) but you really only need a few drops on your pizza.  D was not impressed when I went on a  ‘save money’ kick and came home with the truffle oil claiming it would save us loads of money since we could stay home and enjoy truffle-y things instead of going to fancy restaurants.  In the end I was right, but at the time, it was a tough sell.

This airport carry-on sized bottle should last you many meals and months if you use it sparingly.  So if you like the flavour, I encourage you to splurge and treat yourself/your family and invest in a bottle.  It’s still more cost-effective than going out and buying anything in a restaurant that is ‘truffled’ and definitely gives the ‘wow’ factor to your homemade pizza/pasta/bruschetta.  D now enjoys it regularly on his pizza and our friends and family have been ‘wowed’ whenever we bust it out for them.