Lately I’ve been trying to keep things simple. Haven’t had much energy or motivation to do much in the kitchen these days. My head feels heavy, spinning with the constant bombardment of sad current events.

Last fall I had to cancel a trip to Italy at the last minute due to a family emergency and doesn’t look like it will be happening this year either. Sadly, at this point in time, we’re all just taking it one day at a time. So, for now, instead of going to Italy, I’m bringing a little bit of Italy into my kitchen and hope to inspire you to do the same.

The first of the season summer squash and zucchini have begun to pop up at my local farmers’ market. I decided to make some mini, personalized flatbreads with a simple basil sauce I whipped it up in the blender with just a few ingredients — a couple large handfuls of basil leaves, a clove or two of garlic, a squeeze of lemon juice, sea salt and good amount of extra virgin olive oil.

I then layered the basil sauce on the dough along with some freshly grated smoked scormoza — a cow’s milk cheese similar to mozzarella but with much less moister.

While the flatbread was in the oven, I thinly shaved the zucchini and summer squash lengthwise on a mandolin (of course, be careful so not to slice your fingers open).

As soon as the flatbread came out of the oven, I layered on some of the zucchini/squash along with some prosciutto, squash blossoms, Calabrian chile flakes and more of the basil sauce. While the zucchini and squash are raw, the hot steam coming off the flatbread warms it up a bit.

Feels homey and comforting and yet light and summery all at the same time.

One of these days I will get around to stuffing and frying squash blossoms. But for now, I added a few to the flatbread for a pop of color.

My go to pizza dough recipe is a combo of equal parts 00 flour and all-purpose flour…

Zucchini Flatbread

Makes 4 mini flatbreads
Basil sauce (recipe below)
Pizza dough (recipe below)
Shredded (smoked) scomorza or mozzarella
Zucchini and summer squash, thinly shaved length-wise on a mandoline
Prosciutto
Squash blossoms, stamens removed, roughly torn
Calabrian chile flakes
Basil leaves

Preheat your oven, preferably with a pizza steel or stone to 550F or as high as your oven will go. Let the steel/stone heat for 1 hour.

Lightly flour your work surface and roll out your dough (I like to use parchment for ease of transfer). Top the flatbread with a thin layer of basil sauce and shredded cheese. With a pizza peel, slide onto the hot steel/stone.

When the cheese is bubbly and dough charred in spots, remove from the oven and layer on the shaved zucchini/summer squash, prosciutto, squash blossoms, chile flakes, basil leaves. Drizzle with a little more basil sauce.

Basil Sauce

Enough for 2 mini flatbreads (double if you wish)
2 large handfuls basil leaves
1 to 2 cloves of garlic, minced
Sea salt
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Squeeze of lemon juice

Add basil and garlic to blender. Season with salt. With the motor running, slowly add the basil until you get a smooth emulsion. Add a squeeze of lemon juice to taste.

Pizza Dough

Makes 4 mini flatbreads
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon 00 flour
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

In a large mixing bowl, combine flours and salt.

In a small mixing bowl, stir together 200 grams (a little less than 1 cup) lukewarm tap water, yeast and olive oil. Pour the liquid into the flour mixture and stir until it forms a shaggy ball. On a lightly floured surface, knead with your hands until well combined, approximately 3 minutes, then let the mixture rest for 15 minutes.

Knead rested dough for another 3 minutes. Cut into 4 equal pieces and shape each into a ball. Place on a heavily floured surface, cover with plastic wrap, and let rest and rise for 3 to 4 hours at room temperature or for 8 to 24 hours in the refrigerator (if you refrigerate the dough, remove it 30 to 45 minutes before you begin to shape it for pizza).