Take a childhood love of pizza, add a generous pinch of experimentation, and voilà: new handmade pizzas in interesting combinations. “I love to play with food, and over the years, I noticed foods that really work well together, so I decided to use them on pizza,’’ explained Al Capone, owner of Capone Foods in Somerville. “I also like to keep our food unique by offering combinations that challenge normal expectations.’’ The result is thin-crust pizzas with pairings like mushroom pesto and mozzarella, spinach and aged gruyère, sweet piquillo pepper and porcini, and zucchini and onion, the most popular, made with a lightly garlic-flavored béchamel. The “upscale’’ pepperoni uses Daniele’s Casalingo salami, similar to pepperoni but higher quality. The dough is made with Neapolitan Caputo 00 flour, known to produce crisp, airy crusts. The toppings are fresh vegetables, meats, and cheeses — mozzarella, Pecorino Romano, or fresh Italian buffalo milk mozzarella, depending on the pizza. The 8-inch pies ($7.95 or $8.95) are sold frozen and require only 15 minutes in the oven. Available at Capone Foods, 14 Bow St., Somerville, 617-629-2296, www.capone foods.com; at Wagon Wheel Farm, 927 Waltham St., Lexington, 781-862-2112; and Butcher Boy Market, 1077 Osgood St., North Andover, 978-688-1511.

LINDA J. MAZUREK

Linda J. Mazurek can be reached at ljmazurek@aol.com.