Green Pesto and Mushroom Pizza & The Pizza Throwdown

Bhavnesh and I had a pizza throwdown today. He wanted to eat a "green" pesto-pizza, while I wanted to eat a "red" tomatoey-pizza. So, I suggested he make his, and I make mine, and we see which one was best. My recipe is posted here. For Bhavnesh's pesto, we had to improvise as we have no mozzarella cheese or pine nuts. We thought of using almonds or another type of nut, but decided not to ruin such a good thing. Here is his improvised recipe for "Green" Pesto and Mushroom Pizza.

Pesto Sauce:
1 cup spinach
Olive oil
3 cloves garlic
Salt to taste

Mushroom Topping:
1 cup mushrooms, chopped finely
1/2 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed
Salt to taste
Olive Oil

1 readymade pizza base
1/2 onion, chopped
Cheese, grated

Step 1: Make the Green Pesto Sauce.
1. Grind up the spinach, garlic and salt with olive oil to a fine paste. That's your sauce. Pretty easy ...

Step 2: Cook the mushroom topping.
1. Heat up olive oil in pan. Add the garlic and onions and sautee until onions are translucent.
2. Then, add in the mushrooms and a bit of salt and cook for a few minutes. Keep aside.

Step 3: Assemble your pizza.
1. Heat up the griddle. Cook both sides of your pizza base using a griddle on the stovetop on medium low heat. Be careful not to burn. You just want it to be golden brown on both sides.
2. Now, reduce heat to low while you add your toppings. Spread the pesto first.
3. Top with the cooked mushrooms next, followed by grated cheese. Spinkle onions on top.
4. Cook the pesto pizza with closed lid for another 6-8 minutes - just enough time to melt the cheese.

That's it! It was pretty easy compared to my red sauce, which required more work and time to cook. All in all, both pizzas turned out delicious. There were a few changes for next time, though. The cooked mushrooms and pesto needed less olive oil. Also, my tomato sauce was a bit spicy so tone it down. Neither one of us admitted defeat, so I guess WE BOTH WON!