Basil Pesto & Tomato Pizza

Life has been a little crazy over here! Sorry I haven't posted that much recently. I'm in the middle of several projects, but the biggest one is that we are in the final stages of buying our first house! I would say I'm excited, but as any of you that have gone through this process before know - it's exhausting! I'm just looking forward to the part when we can move in and I can pick a new tile back splash for the kitchen. If anyone has any moving/remodeling/new house advice for me, I'd love to hear it. I could use all the help I can get!

So enough about that - what's up with this tasty looking thin crust pesto pizza, right!? Well, this may be one of the easiest things I've ever made, but it's so delicious. It comes together super fast which is great when you have company over and have to make another one because the first one is already gone! You can add on whatever else you'd like on this too. The other one I made had thin slices of zucchini, and another time I added some caramelized onions. Customize to your heart's content.

Basil Pesto & Tomato Pizza
makes 1 pizza

1 pre-made refrigerated pizza dough (check the ingredients!) I used a thin crust variety.
1 jar prepared basil pesto (again, make sure to check ingredients. Out of 5 brands at my store only one was vegan!)
4-5 roma tomatoes, sliced and de-seeded
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp agave
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 clove garlic, chopped
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped
1 Tbsp fresh oregano, chopped

Preheat oven to 450.

Unroll your pizza dough on a greased baking sheet. Spread the basil pesto in a layer across the dough. (As much as you like - I didn't end up using the whole jar.) Top with the sliced tomatoes.

Bake at 450 for 10-12 minutes, or following the time on your pizza dough.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl mix together the olive oil, lemon juice, agave, garlic, and garlic salt. 

When the pizza comes out of the oven, top with the chopped basil and oregano, then pour the olive oil mixture evenly over the top of the pizza. Slice and serve.

This pizza is great for quick dinners, or even when you have company over. The olive oil and lemon dressing really gives this a extra pop of flavor - so don't skip that part. You could also add some vegan cheese to this if you like. What are your favorite go-to pizza toppings?

Thanks for stopping by!

Roasted Potato & Asparagus Pizza

Something must be in the air, because I have been seeing lots of delicious looking pizza recipes popping up around the blogs lately. I'm not complaining at all, because pizza is awesome! I finally decided to try my hand at making a homemade dough too, and it came out pretty well. I used a recipe from Veggieful, and topped it with a quick pizza sauce and some sliced potatoes and garlic asparagus.

Roasted Potato & Asparagus Pizza

Dough:
I followed Veggieful's pizza dough recipe 

Sauce:

1 can (4 oz) tomato paste
1 C water
1/4 C extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
Pinch of  salt and pepper
1/2 Tbsp oregano

1/2 Tbsp basil 

1/2 Tbsp rosemary

Mix all ingredients well and let stand to let flavors blend.

Topping:

3-4 medium potatoes

olive oil

salt and pepper

rosemary

1 C asparagus, chopped

1 clove garlic

nutritional yeast

Cut the potatoes paper thin with a mandolin slicer. Toss in a large bowl with some olive oil, salt, pepper, and rosemary to taste. Spread out in a single layer on a baking sheet (I used a silpat non-stick mat) and bake for 10-12 min at 350 F.

Saute the asparagus with a splash of olive oil and 1 clove of garlic until just softened.


Assembly:
Once your pizza dough is ready and has pre-cooked in the oven, spread the sauce and then add a sprinkle of nutritional yeast. Layer the potato slices and top with the asparagus.
Bake the whole pizza at 400 F for 15-20 min or until edges are slightly browned and the potatoes look crisp.

Next time I will bake mine a little longer - as you can see the edges of my crust didn't quite get browned enough. I also think it might be fun to cut the dough in half and make a thin crispy pizza crust. All that said, making pizza from scratch wasn't as hard as I thought! I enjoyed the flavors of the roasted potatoes and the fresh asparagus. What is your favorite pizza topping combo?

Thanks for stopping by!

Sloppy Joe Mac 'n Cheese Pizza

Did your jaw just drop a little bit? I think my husband laughed out loud when I first told him what I was making for dinner. Sloppy Joes plus Mac 'n Cheese all on top of a pizza? I will admit I was a little skeptical myself, but I just had a hunch it would turn out pretty awesome.

I was inspired by Richa and her month of pizza recipes where she had both a sloppy joe pizza and a mac 'n cheese pizza. I thought both ideas were so unique! I decided to add them together and see what would happen.

Sloppy Joe Mac 'n Cheese Pizza
4 small pitas or other flat bread
1 recipe of lentil sloppy joes
1 recipe pumpkin mac 'n cheese (made without the chard and pine nuts)
panko breadcrumbs

*note: I had lots of both the sloppy joe mix and the mac 'n cheese leftover, so if you don't want extra I'd half both recipes to make the pizzas.

Preheat oven to 400 F. Brush a little olive oil over the pitas.
Spread the sloppy joe mixture on the pitas, then top with some of the mac 'n cheese.
Sprinkle some panko crumbs over the whole thing then bake for 10-15 minutes or until the edges of your pitas are golden brown.

I was pleasantly surprised by this pizza combo! It reminded me a little of eating baked ziti, but on a pizza. If you are feeling a little crazy I would totally recommend it. What is the weirdest pizza combination you've ever had?

Thanks for stopping by!

Friday Flashback

1. Great recipe for Asparagus Linguine with Almond Crisp (I added yellow tomatoes!)
2. Falafel from one of my favorite quick-food places, Garbanzos.
3. No cheese vegetable harvest pizza from Mod Market
4. Kitty toes!

Friday Flashback

1. Delicious Avocado Strawberry Quinoa salad
2. Minnie!
3. Is it sad to admit I like frozen pizza on my recipe blog? Well, I like this one. For emergency no time to cook nights, of course. :)
4. My new favorite snack - smashed avocado on toast with cracked pepper.
5. My produce delivery this week featured some pretty heirloom tomatoes.

Have a great weekend!

Friday Flashback

1. Delicious lettuce wraps from Flora Foodie
2. Eating out: all veggie, no cheese pizza
3. Colorful salad
4. Lounging kitty


Have a wonderful weekend!

Zucchini and Pepper Flatbread

 I am digging all the summer vegetables that I'm getting in my mile high organics produce deliveries.

This flatbread would be a great appetizer to serve at a party, but you could just eat the whole thing for dinner, like I did!

 Zucchini and Pepper Flatbread

2 pitas, halved horizontally to form 4 rounds, or a similar pre-made pizza crust or flat bread.
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 small onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1/2 zucchini, sliced then halved
2 handfuls fresh spinach leaves
1/8 C pine nuts
olive oil
oregano
garlic powder
black pepper to taste


Preheat oven to 400.

Lay out your pitas or flatbread on a cookie sheet. Brush each with a little olive oil, and sprinkle some garlic powder and oregano on the top.

In a skillet over medium-high heat saute the garlic and onion for 2-3 minutes. Add in the bell pepper and saute another 2-3 minutes. Next add in the zucchini and cook until slightly softened. Add the pine nuts and the spinach, and heat until spinach is wilted.
Divide this mixture on top of the flat breads.

Top each with another sprinkle of oregano, garlic powder, and black pepper.

Cook for 8-10 minutes or until the edges of the bread are golden.
Slice into small squares to serve.

I made another batch of these with mushrooms in place of the zucchini. I am trying to work my way up to eating mushrooms, but I usually just give them to my husband instead because he loves them. I didn't try the " fungus version", but he gave it his stamp of approval. 

Any recommendations for mushroom recipes where you can't really tell there are mushrooms in it? :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Thai Chickpea Pizza

I love anything with peanut sauce! This pizza was tasty and easy to make too.

 

Thai Chickpea Pizza
Adapted from veggieconverter

1/2 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup canned diced fire-roasted tomatoes
1/4 cup natural peanut butter
3 tbsp soy sauce
juice of 1 lime
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tbsp agave nectar
sriracha, to taste

1 pizza dough of your choice, or 4 pitas
1 15 oz can cooked chickpeas
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 cup bean sprouts
1/2 cup peanuts, chopped

optional:
2 green onions, chopped
1 carrot, grated


Preheat oven to 425.

Make your peanut sauce: combine the coconut milk, tomatoes, peanut butter, soy sauce, lime, garlic, agave, and sriracha in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.

Spread the peanut sauce over the pizza dough or pitas. Sprinkle the chickpeas, pepper, bean sprouts and peanuts onto the pizza. Drizzle with a little more peanut sauce for good measure.
Bake at 425 until crust edges are golden brown, about 10-12 minutes. 

Yum! I think next time I'll add carrots and green onions too.

Minnie hates it when I stick my camera in her face, but I just can't help it. She's too cute!

 

Thanks for stopping by!