One of my favorite things about living in California is all the amazing grocery stores. I’ve had trouble in some of the places we’ve lived in finding anything healthy, fresh or even remotely “exotic” (I once couldn’t find limes in Oklahoma).

Recently I discovered an amazing supermarket right down the road from our new neighborhood! From the moment I walked in, I was instantly in love. Fresh & Easy is a “Neighborhood Market,” reminiscent of the places I used to shop when I lived in Paris. It’s not a huge superstore full of processed garbage, but they have just about everything you could possibly need including fresh produce, a huge variety of fresh meats & fish, a bakery, and lots and LOTS of fresh (and easy!) prepared foods (dinners, sandwiches, ready-to-grill items).

When Fresh & Easy offered me the opportunity to go shopping for a “summer grilling” night, I jumped at the chance!

Nick and I love making homemade pizza, but these days our weekly weather forecasts rarely fall below triple digits, so there is no way I’m about to heat the oven to over 400 degrees. We’ve been cooking on the grill a ton lately to keep the heat outside, so why not pizza on the grill?!

Nick’s been bugging me to make a Margherita pizza for a while now and since the basil in my garden is coming back from the dead a little bit, I figured it was the perfect time. He also requested “something with prosciutto.”

Fresh mozzarella and prosciutto are things that I’d have trouble finding elsewhere. Fresh & Easy not only carries several varieties of each, but also has their own (very affordable) brand!

My shopping experience was definitely “F&Easy”, and made summer grilling delicious and fun! I found a fresh&easy brand pre-made pizza dough which was a huge time saver on this meal. I also love that Fresh & Easy puts the essential nutrition facts right on the front of all of their fresh&easy brand products.

Another great find was this can of San Marzano Style plum tomatoes. Every good Italian chef touts the San Marzanos, but they sure can be pricy. These tomatoes were super yummy AND affordable!

Grilled Margherita Pizza

makes 2 small pizzas

• 1 fresh&easy Traditional Pizza Dough, halved
• Olive oil
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 (28 oz) can fresh&easy Whole Peeled Plum Tomatoes with Basil
• 1/4 tsp sugar
• Salt & pepper, to taste
• 1 (8 oz) fresh&easy Fresh Mozzarella Cheese Ball, thinly sliced
• 15-20 fresh basil leaves
• Sprinkle of Parmesan cheese

Heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat in a medium saucepan. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes, sugar, salt & pepper. Use an immersion blender to lightly blend the tomatoes to desired smoothness. (If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can blend the tomatoes in a traditional blender before adding them to the pot. And then immediately drive to the store and buy an immersion blender because they are the best thing ever.) Cook the tomatoes until thickened, about 40 minutes.

Preheat the grill to medium-high. Stretch each pizza dough half out as thin as you can without ripping them (they don’t have to be perfect circles). Brush each side of the dough liberally with olive oil, and set on a cooking sheet or pizza pan.

Carefully transfer the dough from the pan to the grill. Cook 2-4 minutes until the bottom has some nice grill marks. Carefully flip the dough, then turn the grill to low. Spread the sauce on the dough, then top with mozzarella, basil, and a sprinkle of Parmesan. Put the cover of the grill down and cook until the crust is crisp and cheese is melted, about 5-7 minutes.

Caramelized Onion and Prosciutto Grilled Pizza

(adapted from The Pioneer Woman)

makes 2 small pizzas

• 1 fresh&easy Traditional Pizza Dough, halved
• Olive oil
• 2 onions, thinly sliced
• Course salt
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 (8 oz) fresh&easy Fresh Mozzarella Cheese Ball, thinly sliced
• 1 (3 oz) package fresh&easy Sliced Prosciutto

Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring often, until caramelized, about 15 minutes.

Preheat the grill to medium-high. Stretch each pizza dough half out as thin as you can without ripping them (they don’t have to be perfect circles). Brush each side of the dough liberally with olive oil, and set on a cooking sheet or pizza pan.

Carefully transfer the dough from the pan to the grill. Cook 2-4 minutes until the bottom has some nice grill marks. Carefully flip the dough, then turn the grill to low. Sprinkle the dough with salt and Parmesan cheese. Then layer on the mozzarella, caramelized onions and prosciutto.

Put the cover of the grill down and cook until the crust is crisp and cheese is melted, about 5-7 minutes.

I definitely have a new love in my life, and if you live near a Fresh & Easy, you need to get acquainted real soon.