Ricotta Pizza — The Basics Hold

February. The mainland states are buried. We had rain Tuesday. Ryan was on duty at Miramar. Standard week.

Caleb, 7, wants to be a firefighter still. Has not deviated. Hazel, 3, chaos incarnate. Put a peanut butter sandwich in the DVD player Wednesday. Showed zero remorse.

Baked ziti Sunday. Doubled the recipe. Half went into the freezer.

Megan called from D.C.. We talked twenty minutes. The relationship is better now than it was.

Ryan came home from work. Dinner was on the stove. The basics held.

The military spouses' Facebook group had a small drama this week. Two women fighting over the playgroup schedule. I muted notifications and cooked dinner. Some weeks the group is the lifeline. Some weeks it is the source of unnecessary stress. The skill is knowing which week you're in.

Wednesday morning meal prep — Sunday afternoon, hours of containers. The freezer is full. The future-me thanks present-me. Donna taught me this routine. Donna's freezer was always full. Donna saved her sanity with quart bags labeled in Sharpie.

I made a casserole for a neighbor whose husband is deployed. I dropped it off. She cried. I told her, eat the casserole, baby. The food is the saying. The casserole was a mostly-frozen tater-tot situation that took fifteen minutes of effort and six months of practice to perfect.

Caleb's school had a fundraiser this week. I baked cookies because I always bake cookies. The cookies were the standard chocolate chip. They sold out in twenty minutes. I am the cookie mom of this PTO and I have stopped fighting it.

Dad called. He has been gardening. He is sending zucchini updates again. The PTSD is managed. He talks more than he used to. He is becoming his own version of healed, which I did not think was possible at fourteen.

The Friday before-school morning was chaos. Three kids, two backpacks, one missing shoe. We all made it to the bus. I drank cold coffee at nine AM because that's when I sat down. Standard.

Caleb watched the firefighters at a school visit Wednesday and came home buzzing. He is going to be one. I have known this since he was four. Some kids tell you who they are early.

Hazel and I had a hard moment Tuesday at homework time. She is in a season of testing limits. We worked through it. We always do. She is mine.

I went for a walk Sunday morning before the kids got up. Half an hour. The fog was burning off. I needed it. Some weeks I get the walk in. Some weeks I don't. The week tells me which.

The PCS rumors are starting again. The official orders will come in a few months. We could move. We could stay. The waiting is the worst part. Three years here and I have learned to not put down deep roots in any military town. Nineteen-year-old me would not have believed how good I have gotten at packing.

Ryan came home tired Wednesday. He showered, ate, sat on the couch, was asleep by eight. Standard for a Marine who has been up since four-thirty for PT and stayed late for a brief. The schedule is the schedule. The body adapts because it has to.

Ryan went to his counselor Wednesday. He always comes home calmer. I am calm too, just from him being calm. The man Torres was killed with — Ryan calls his wife twice a year on Torres's birthday and the anniversary. The military widows are their own community.

Reading another military memoir at night. They make Ryan tense. They steady me. We negotiate. He doesn't ask what I'm reading. I don't tell him. The arrangement works.

The baked ziti goes in the freezer, and the future-me is grateful — but some nights the present-me needs something that comes together fast and still feels like I meant it. Ricotta pizza became that thing. It’s got the same creamy, cheesy comfort logic as the ziti, without the hour of assembly. Ryan ate two slices the first time I made it. Caleb called it “fancy cheese bread,” which is both incorrect and the highest compliment a seven-year-old offers.

Ricotta Pizza

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 14 min | Total Time: 29 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 lb pizza dough, store-bought or homemade, at room temperature
• 1 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese
• 1 cup shredded low-moisture mozzarella
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
• Small handful fresh basil leaves, for finishing

Instructions

1. Heat the oven. Place a baking sheet or pizza stone on the center rack and preheat the oven to 475°F. Let it heat for at least 20 minutes so the surface is fully hot before you bake.
2. Mix the ricotta base. In a small bowl, stir together the ricotta, minced garlic, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes if using. Taste and adjust seasoning. Set aside.
3. Shape the dough. On a lightly floured surface, stretch or roll the dough into a roughly 12-inch round. Transfer to a piece of parchment paper. Brush the outer inch of dough with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil to form a border.
4. Build the pizza. Dollop and spread the ricotta mixture over the dough, leaving the oiled border bare. Scatter the shredded mozzarella evenly over the ricotta, then finish with the grated Parmesan. Drizzle the remaining tablespoon of olive oil over the top.
5. Bake. Slide the pizza (on its parchment) onto the hot baking sheet or stone. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, until the crust is golden and the cheese is bubbling and lightly browned in spots.
6. Finish and serve. Remove from the oven. Scatter fresh basil leaves over the top immediately. Let rest for 2 minutes before slicing into 8 pieces and serving.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 430 | Protein: 19g | Fat: 18g | Carbs: 48g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 610mg