Quick French Bread Pizza

Josh is in Atlanta today for his Grandpa's memorial party.  I took him to the airport an hour and a half away at 4am this morning.  It's ok, I came back and slept til noon ;-)  I have a terrible problem cooking for just myself.  I have a tendency to just cook some Trader Joe's herb pasta and throw some sauce on it.  Tonight I was still being lazy but since I've been craving pizza for a couple days now, I decided to make some french bread pizza with fresh herbs.

3-4 appetizer servings or 2 small dinner servings:

1 loaf french bread
1/4 c marinara sauce (as always, I love the Sockarooni)
1/4 c pizza blend or mozzarella cheese
turkey sausage or pepperoni
2 tsp chopped oregano
1 tbs chopped basil

When I walked out the door to snip the herbs from my garden, I almost stepped on this.  A dead black widow right next to my doormat.  I don't know where it came from, where it was going, or how it died but I'll be having some nasty nightmares tonight.  I lived in the backwoods of Georgia for 12 years and I never once saw a poisonous spider.  They're bigger than I thought and even more sinister-looking than the white trash tattoos you see everywhere.

Anyway, if you still have an appetite after me going off on that little tangent, bake your french bread dough according to the package directions for all but about 5 minutes of the full cooking time.

I scored the top and sprinkled on some Italian seasoning for extra flavor.

Cut the bread into thin slice, 1/2"-3/4" thick, and lay them out on the baking sheet.

Spread a thin layer of sauce on the slices and sprinkle them evenly with the chopped herbs.

Next comes the pepperoni or sausage.  I like to put it under the cheese to seal everything in.  It's like a cheese blanket keeping the innards all snug and tight. 

Bake for another 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted.  If you like crispy cheese, broil it for a minute.

What you pull out of the oven is a delicious mix of fresh herbs, warm bread, and creamy cheese.  It's great in a pinch, especially if you already have some french bread on hand.  All you'd need to do is top it and bake for 5 minutes. Instant lazy dinner when your hubby is out of town and you're cooking for one.