By: Danya Weiner

There are just those days when I really don’t have the energy to make dinner, when I wish my kids would say to me “Don’t sweat it mom, were good with having some cucumbers…”That doesn’t happen. Every day I work with food, and come home, ironically, to an empty fridge. I am proud to say that I have mastered the task of making something out of nothing-to scrape the bottom of the fridge for goods and end up making a hearty dinner (which sometimes is just a good old omelet-I’m not super mom after all).

The idea for this pizza came from a recently published cookbook in Israel, “Al Hashuchan Express”. There are several recipes in the book which were created out of moments like I just described-where you just don’t have the energy for a complicated meal.

As an admirer of authentic Arab flavors, I took the idea from the book and combined it with Eyal Shany’s focaccia (served with tomatoes and chili peppers) and a traditional Druze pita (served with labane and za’atar).

The lavash pita turns delightfully crisp while baking, while the labane gets slightly browned. Use good quality dried za’atar (one that hasn’t been sitting on the shelf for too long), and all the flavors will blend to make a really nice light dinner/snack. After photographing this pizza, I kept on telling Deanna that I was on my last bite.. and a few minutes later the pizza was gone.

Lavash Labane Pizza

Labane is a very popular type of Middle Eastern cheese which has a consistency between that of yogurt and cheese, with a distinctive sour taste.

Ingredients for one pizza (multiply the ingredients by as many as you want to prepare):

1 large round lavash bread (about 8 inches diameter)

1 large vine-ripe tomato, thinly sliced

A handful of cherry tomatoes, thinly sliced

6-8 labane balls, halved

½ green chili pepper, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon dried za’atar

Sea salt

1½ tablespoons olive oil

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
2. Place the lavash bread onto the baking sheet and evenly arrange the tomato slices, cherry tomatoes, labane balls, and chili slices.
3. Evenly sprinkle on the dried za’atar and sea salt. Drizzle with olive oil.
4. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until the cheese turns golden. Serve hot.

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