Sometimes when I’m leaving town on a trip, I scatter little post-its around the house for Casey to find while I’m gone. I might also make something special as a little send off, so he can eat something and think of me while I’m away..

Last week I flew up to Seattle to join Joy on her Book Tour and an hour before I left for the airport, I pulled this Brussels Sprouts & Bacon pizza out of the oven. This is one of those special somethings.

I figured I’d give him something delicious & hearty to eat while he was busy missing me. I think it worked.

This pizza is ridiculously good. The Brussels sprouts get sweet, soft and semi crunchy while the bacon, cheddar, feta add a nice salty bite. You could totally put an egg on it and call it breakfast.  I should have used slices of this pizza as post-its.

And we’re off!

It all starts with DOUGH. There’s a little step by step in this post if you are looking for it.

And then we cook bacon.

And then we gather our ingredients together.

Start slicing up the onions, b-sprouts & garlic.

Get your dough ready!

Take the dough and stretch it out on your well oiled cookie sheet.

Have a 3 year old test the dough.

Cooper likes it. That means you will too.

Spread the cheeses on top.

Take the balsamic & vinegar and put it in a bowl. Add in your b-sprouts and toss evenly to coat.

Your pizza should look like this…filled with onions, garlic, sprouts & bacon.

Let’s look real close. You might wanna push some of the onions down. They could get burned.

After some time in the oven it comes out like this!

Take a little feta (as much as you’d like) and sprinkle on top.

Make someone miss you with this pizza…

Or make them happy that you’re home.

Brussels Sprouts & Bacon Pizza

Makes enough for 4-6 servings

(recipe for dough from My Bread, by Jim Lahey & additions inspired by Bon Appetit)

• homemade or store bought pizza dough (I used half of this recipe)
• 3 pieces bacon, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1/3 cup aged white cheddar, shredded
• 1/2 cup mozzarella, shredded
• 5-6 large Brussels sprouts, shredded
• 1/2 red onion, sliced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for baking sheet
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• red pepper flakes
• salt & pepper
• 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

Preheat oven to 500F.

In a medium skillet, cook bacon over medium high heat for 2-4 minutes. Set aside on a paper towel to drain.

Oil a 13×18 inch rimmed baking sheet liberally with good extra virgin olive oil. Then gently plop the dough on the pan and stretch and press it out to the edges. If it springs back wait five minutes and then proceed. The dough is very thin. If it tears, piece it back together.

In a small bowl, add the tablespoon of olive oil with the balsamic vinegar and toss Brussels sprouts in to coat.

Evenly top the pizza dough with cheeses, bacon, garlic, red onion, and Brussels sprouts. Add a heavy pinch of red pepper flakes, salt & pepper. Put the pizza in the oven to bake for 18-20 minutes. To serve, top with crumbled feta cheese and slice up!