The May edition of Runner's World came a couple of weeks ago. Forget the "Rut-Busting" Workouts or "Run-Walk Training Plan;" I immediately flipped to the recipes. (Note the irony.)

Last month I was quite pleased with a yogurt-based Alfredo sauce I made from the magazine. This month's "pizza" recipe looks quite simple and gives another idea on how to utilize wonderful spring asparagus.

I've continued the running plan Richard sketched out for me and, amazingly, was able to run almost three miles, non-stop, last weekend.

Variety, however, is the spice of life, and nothing breaks up a running regime like the fun of exotic Zumba dance classes.

Zumba, to me, is a spiced-up, global version of the aerobic dance classes I use to take in the 1980s. (Pssst! Zumbo has better music and dance routines!)

Jane Helzer, our instructor, is a food lover. She has an eclectic diet and eats local organics whenever possible. Coming from a Louisiana Creole Family, she likes her food as spicy as her Zumba music, so I added added lots of red pepper flakes to this recipe to keep her happy!

The following Pam Anderson recipe, from her book "The Perfect Recipe for Losing Weight", was adapted from the May, 2010 edition of Runner's World magazine.

My changes: I substituted caramelized onions for the Canadian bacon and added cherry tomatoes. I also added red pepper flakes and additional fontina cheese. Naan is an Indian-styled flat bread, and you may certainly make your own. I used the time-saver Fabulous Flats Naan, available at most local groceries. The recipe is supposed to serve four, but in our case, served 2!

I've just cleaned my grill and am thinking these toppings would be great on a grilled pizza--check out a UTube I made giving the blow-by-blow steps for making your own grilled pizza.

Yield: 2 small "pizzas" (2-4 servings)
Time to caramelize onions: Approx. 45 minutes
Active Time: 20 minutes
Cost: Approx. $10

Ingredients

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
1 small red onion, peeled and thinly sliced
1 teaspoon brown sugar, optional
2, 9-inch store bought naan
1/3 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1/4 cup prepared pesto
8 asparagus spears (bottom ends snapped off and discarded), cut into 1 1/2-inch lengths
8-12 cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
4 ounces fontina cheese, sliced as thinly as possible

Directions

1. Heat oil in a heavy-bottomed sauté pan over medium heat. Add onions and sauté about 15 minutes, then add add sugar, if using, to pan and stir. Cook an additional 30 to 45 minutes or until onions are caramelized and golden brown.
2. While onions are cooking, preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place naan on a baking sheet. Combine pesto and ricotta and spread over naan. Toss asparagus with remaining oil and lightly season with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper.
3. Evenly distribute asparagus and tomato over naan. On center rack of oven, bake until
asparagus is bright green, about 10 minutes.
4. Remove from oven; spread the caramelized onions over naan and top with fontina. Return to oven and continue to bake until breads are crisp and cheese has melted, about 5 minutes.