Cravings and San Diego Pizza

Moving from San Diego to San Francisco only presented one semi-large problem for me: Mexican food. Going from eating a burrito or two a day in San Diego to trying countless flavorless, rice and lettuce filled burritos in San Francisco really posed a challenge for me. Luckily, after two years I've found a taco shop here to tide me over and my cravings have changed from Mexican to Vietnamese. But let me tell you, it took a year of withdrawals to get over my Mexican addiction. To this day, whenever I fly back into San Diego, I request(more like demand) to  head to El Indio, my favorite place for chicken burritos EVER, straight from the airport and my parents are usually happy to comply. :)

Since getting to Melbourne, I haven't really had any cravings for food that I miss. Melbourne has such an awesome and diverse food culture and hadn't left me dissatisfied, until yesterday. I'm not sure what brought it on but I got a fierce craving for Pat and Oscar's San Diego pizza. This pizza is the ultimate California style pizza mixing international ingredients and flavors with innovative topping ideas. This particular pizza has a mix of Italian pesto, California avocados, traditional mozzarella, salty Greek feta, and red onions for a bit of color. I decided to make a home-made version to bring back those flavors. I made it easy for myself by buying a pizza base(although it would be much better if I had my hands on some actual pizza dough) and jarred pesto. 

San Diego Pizza (Inspired by Pat and Oscar's Restaurants)

Ingredients:

1 Frozen or Fresh Pizza Base

1/3 Cup Basil Pesto

1/4 Cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

1/4 Cup Feta Cheese 

1/2 Avocado sliced into thin strips

1/2 Small Red Onion thinly sliced

Small Handful of coarsely chopped cilantro(optional)

Directions: Slather the pizza base with the pesto, leaving about 1/2 inch along the edges for the crust. Top with mozzarella, crumbled feta, avocado slices, red onion, and cilantro(if using). Bake according to pizza base instructions. Usually around 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Enjoy!