You know those nights where you just want to eat a whole pizza by yourself? Well, now you can! Okay, it is a raw vegan pizza, maybe not quite the same as the real thing, but it’s still yummy and a healthier substitute. My dad tasted it and approved so you know it’s blog worthy when that happens!
Everything from the crust to the “cheeze” is made from scratch and although this pizza is somewhat time intensive, it’s quite easy to make. I encourage you to give it a shot the next time you want a whole pizza but don’t want the negative health consequences that come along with it.
Raw Vegan Pizza
Serves 2-4
Carrot-Bell Pepper Crust:
1 large red bell pepper
2 large carrots
1 cup ground flax seeds
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1 tbs. fresh or dried basil
1 tbs. fresh or dried oregano
1/2 tbs. fresh or dried rosemary (more of all spices if desired or a few tbs. Italian spices)
1/4-1/2 cup water
Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor. Start with 1/4 cup water and add more if needed. You want a thicker dough like consistency, nothing too watery or runny.
Pour batter onto two dehydrator sheets (lined with teflex or parchment paper), or more if you want smaller pizzas. Spread dough out with a spatula into nice, round pizza crusts. Keep dough thick, as dehydrating will thin it out (and you don’t want cracked pizza crust!). You can spread it thinner if you want thin crust, just be careful not to spread it too thin. You can also create a slight lip around the crust to hold your toppings on.
Place in dehydrator set at 115 F for about 6-8 hours. Check crust about 4-6 hours through and flip crusts when able. Dehydrate for last 1-2 hours flipped. If you want a crunchier crust, leave in even longer.
If you don’t have a dehydrator, you can use the oven at the lowest setting (usually around 120-200F so you won’t have to leave the crust in for quite as long).
Pizza Toppings:
Mushrooms, thinly sliced
Yellow squash/zucchini, thinly sliced
Spinach
Coconut aminos
While preparing your sauce and cheese, marinate your mushrooms and squash in some coconut aminos. massage aminos gently into veggies and let sit for at least 10 minutes.
Sundried Tomato and Mango Sauce:
1 cup sun dried tomatoes, soaked in warm water for at least 1 hour
1/2 a mango
1 tbs. dried basil
1 tbs. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried sage
1-2 dates, pitted
1 handful of spinach OR 1/2 a peeled zucchini
1/2-1 cup water (I used the same water the tomatoes soaked in)
Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender, starting with 1/2 cup of water. Add water as necessary to reach desired sauce consistency.
Basic Cashew Cheeze Sauce:
2 cups cashews, soaked in water for at least 1 hour
1/4-1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1-2 tbs. dried Italian herbs or fresh parsley and cilantro
2 tsp. turmeric powder
1/2 cup water
Blend all ingredients in the food processor or high speed blender (hold fresh herbs if using) until smooth. Add more water if you want a thinner cheese. I like to start with 1/4 cup nutritional yeast and then add based on taste. Some people love nooch and some hate it. If using fresh herbs, mix in chopped fresh herbs at the end of blending.
Assembly:
When ready to assemble your pizza, take crust and spread tomato sauce over it. Top with spinach and then the rest of your veggies evenly. Put cheeze into a plastic ziplock bag. Cut a small hole off one corner and then squeeze cheeze over your pizza. Cut into desired pieces and eat up!
You need to make this. You need to make this right now. After you finish reading this post and how to make it, go make it!
As a vegan, I don’t endorse eating fake animal products (like fake meats and fake cheeses) as they contain a lot of processed ingredients, soy, and nasty food colorings and preservatives. AKA just because it’s vegan doesn’t mean it’s healthy! But let’s be real, quesadillas are life. Having those delicious fillings in between a crunchy tortilla… mmm mmm mmm. I was craving a quesadilla the other week but obviously didn’t want to eat a bunch of fake, health-less cheese. So I got creative. And I nailed it. Once again 😉
Granted, this isn’t like your classic ooey-gooey quesadilla, but it’s a grand alternative for a vegan, healthy version.
Vegan (No-Fake Cheese) Quesadilla
Serves 1-2
Ingredients:
2 brown rice tortillas (or gluten free tortilla of choice, not corn)
1 large sweet potato, baked
1 cup of canned or cooked black beans (rinsed and drained)
1/2 cup thinly sliced baby mushrooms
1/2-1 small onion, diced (depending on how much onion you like)
1 cup baby spinach
Spices of choice: salt, pepper, chili pepper (my personal suggestions)
*You can add jalapeños for an extra kick
**You can also sprinkle a few tbs of nutritional yeast in your quesadilla (or add 1/4 cup to your sweet potato mash) for more of a cheesy flavor.
Directions:
Saute onion and mushrooms in a pan with 1 tablespoon of water until they begin to soften.
While onions and mushrooms are cooking, scoop the flesh out of your sweet potato and mash it in a bowl with spices of choice (I personally just like salt but if you want more of a kick, add 1/2-1 tsp ground red pepper). Don’t throw away the peel! It’s packed with nutrients. I like to use it as vehicle for getting other food into my mouth.
Mash your black beans in a separate bowl.
Lay out 1 tortilla on a cutting board and spread half the sweet potato over the tortilla. Layer half your mashed black beans on one half of the tortilla then add half your onion and mushroom mixture to the same half.
Lay spinach over half the tortilla and then fold tortilla in half (folding just sweet potato side over the layered side). Press down lightly.
Slide quesadilla into a frying pan over medium heat. Cover and let cook about 3-5 minutes, until pan side down begins to brown. Using a spatula, do your best to get under the tortilla and quickly flip it. Cook uncovered for another 3-5 minutes until both sides are browned.
While first quesadilla is cooking, prep your second tortilla. Cook the same way.
When quesadilla is done, slide it out of the pan onto your cutting board and cut into 2-4 pieces.
Serve with a side of guacamole or salsa (or both) and enjoy this vegan version of an all time favorite!
I like my food with a view 😉
Me: “I could eat curry forever! It is soooo good!”
Mom: “You mean you could eat it for the next two weeks straight until you become completely sick of it.”
Me: “No, there are so many options. Green curry, red curry, yellow curry…”
Mom: “Mhm…”
I have a bad habit of becoming obsessed with a food/meal and only eating that until I never want to see that food ever again in my life. But curry? How can you get sick of it? I’m not even a spicy person yet I can’t get enough of it lately. I’ve been on a green curry kick as of late, but every variety of curry is a star in my book.
This recipe calls for coconut milk and I used my Homemade Coconut Mylk. I recently posted my very first video on YouTube and it’s a quick and easy tutorial on how to make your own, chemical/additive/stabilizer-free coconut mylk. First of all, it would mean the world to me if you could head on over and and watch it, like it, and subscribe to my channel. And please let me know what types of videos you would like to see (more recipe tutorials, what I eat videos, anything!). Second of all, I highly recommend giving the recipe a shot because 1) it’s delicious, 2) it’s chemical free unlike the store-bought varieties, and 3) it’s perfect in this recipe!
Vegan Green Curry
Serves 4
Ingredients:
1-2 tbs. fresh grated ginger (depending on how much you like that ginger kick)
2 tbs. green curry paste (will be spicy, reduce if not a huge spicy fan)
1 tbs. coconut aminos
3 large carrots (I used a mix of purple and orange)
2 stalks of broccoli florets, chopped
2 yellow squash, cut into rounds and then cut in half
2 small baby bok choy, chopped into bite sized pieces
1 cup vegetable broth
1 cup homemade coconut milk or canned coconut milk (low fat or full fat, whichever you prefer)
1/4 tsp. turmeric powder
4 green onions, chopped
salt to taste
First things first, prep all your ingredients. Have everything chopped, grated, and ready to go.
Heat 1 tbs. of water over medium-high heat in a large saucepan with high sides. Add the grated ginger and cook for about 1 minute until it becomes fragrant.
Reduce heat to medium and add the green curry paste. Cook for another 1-2 minutes to warm curry and allow it to become fragrant, as well.
Add the carrots and cook for 3 minutes, covered. Add a couple tablespoons of water if the carrots begin to stick. Then add the broccoli, 1/4 cup of vegetable broth, and coconut aminos. Cook for about 3 more minutes, covered, until broccoli and carrots begin to soften. Add yellow squash and cook for another 3-5 minutes until squash begins to soften.
Add the bok choy, remaining veggie broth, coconut milk, turmeric powder, and salt to taste (add about 1/4 tsp at this point).
Stir well. Bring to a slight boil then reduce to simmer, stirring occasionally, and let cook until bok choy softens and all veggies are cooked through (another 5-7 minutes).
Stir in the the green onions and allow them to absorb the flavors before serving. Add more salt if desired.
Serve over rice or noodles and enjoy!
I’m sorry I haven’t posted in a while. My life has been VERY busy this past month. I had to finish off school, get through finals, I graduated, and then I was traveling for a week. I’m finally back in my apartment with NO HOMEWORK! WOOHOO! 🙂
I haven’t had much time to cook and I’ve been stress eating or celebrating eating which means lots of junk food (gluten-free) has been going down. I’m so happy to finally be able to relax a little and focus solely on treatment and eating right. I was originally planning to do a very strict elimination diet to try and figure out my tummy troubles but honestly I don’t have the willpower right now and I’ll be traveling around this summer so I won’t be able to stick to it. PLUS, I want to enjoy my last summer in Colorado so I want to be able to indulge every so often. BUT, I will be doing the Autoimmune Paleo protocol. I started today! You can read more about AIP here (Mickey Trescott) and here (The Paleo Mom).
I’m going to try my very best to stick to it but I know I may not be 100% until I reach my final home destination in August. I will also be keeping my diet very simple for the first few weeks as I adjust. This means I probably won’t have many recipes to share but I will share what boring meals I am consuming with you all. Although, lucky you guys, I already have a yummy, easy recipe for you: A basic roasted chicken. I had to share this because the skin came out so crispy and delicious! Too good not to share. I usually roast my chicken in a crock pot but my crock pot was occupied with bone broth so I oven-roasted my chicken and it is to die for.
OMG look at that delicious skin and that bite that I already took out of the leg… 🙂
Ingredients:
1 whole roaster chicken (mine was about 3 lbs)
2 tbs. coconut oil
5 cloves of garlic, peeled
Sage and basil (or any italian seasoning blend you like)
SALT (the good kind, trust me, you’ll want to use that pink himalayan)
Preheat oven to 450 F.
First, rinse of your chicken and pat COMPLETELY dry. Place your chicken in the baking dish and rub the coconut oil under the skin and inside the cavity of the bird. Rub a little on top. Next, take your italian spices and rub them ALL over that bird! Cover it to your liking. Now, immerse your bird in salt. I’m being serious here, you want to salt that baby up. Rub salt all over the outside and the inside. If you think you have used to much, you haven’t, that’s perfect. Lastly, place your peeled garlic cloves inside the cavity.
Place your bird in the preheated oven and bake for 50-60 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165 F. Take your chicken out and let sit for 10 minutes. Now, place the bird on a cutting board to rest for another 10 minutes. DO NOT TOUCH during the resting phase except to move the bird to the cutting board.
While your bird is resting, you will be making a gravy. Take all the drippings from your baking dish and place them in a skillet or sauce pan (it doesn’t matter what you use). Bring to a simmer and add 1 tsp. of coconut flour. Stir occasionally until the gravy thickens some. Take the garlic out of the bird, chop it up and mix it in with the gravy. If you would like your gravy to be smoother, feel free to run it through a blender quickly.
Now you are ready to slice up your bird, skin and all, drizzle it in gravy, and devour it. Enjoy!
Lunch time meal of roasted chicken and carrots. What could be better?
Lyme update is up first so skip over this next part if all you care about is food.
The past few weeks… okay months… have been hard. Really hard. Lyme wise. I feel like I’ve slowly been headed downhill. Despite learning all these things that may be affecting treatment and my health (mold, heavy metals, etc) and addressing them, it doesn’t seem to be doing much. I feel like nothing, treatment wise, touches me. It may help for a week or a few weeks then it’s like I’m not even taking anything. I start treatments that other people rave about (yes, I realize everyone is different but something has to work for me, right?!) and it makes no difference for me. I’m hoping to start more of an herbal protocol at some point in the next 6-months and see if that makes a difference. I take some herbs now but I mean a real hardcore herbal protocol.
Side note update: Last week I got my heavy metals test back which came back positive for mercury, lead, thallium, and a little cesium. I’ll be starting a chelation protocol for that within the next week or two. I’ll be doing 4 days a week of oral chelation then 3 days of mineral replacement (since chelating pulls out essential minerals with the metals).
A year ago at this time wasn’t great either but I was able to workout at least 3 days a week, go out occasionally, and do more (granted, I still had a lot of other symptoms and would crash at least once a week). The past few weeks I haven’t even been able to do any yoga because I’m EXHAUSTED beyond belief, my muscles feel weak, and my joints are killing me. I have to say, though, that I don’t feel like I have specific Lyme symptoms (like night sweats, air hunger, vision spots, etc) besides joint pain. I feel more just extremely fatigued, worn out like nobodies business, and like I am repeatedly being run over by a bus. Every little task of the day takes SO MUCH ENERGY. Brushing my teeth is like death. I’m wondering if it is just intense toxin overload from killing off the bugs and I am not detoxing enough or if I’m legit Lyme sick. Detoxing has been tough because 1) I’m in school which means less time for it 2)our water doesn’t get/stay hot so I can’t really take detox baths… unless a cold bath counts 3) when I feel like crap my eating goes to crap because I’m exhausted and don’t have the energy and frankly I stop caring because I feel shitty as it is already. I realize when I feel the worst is when my diet needs to be the strictest…. you don’t have to tell me. Come make me food, please?
It’s been extremely cold and snowy here, which also doesn’t help because cold makes me feel worse. This also means walking to class (in the cold) through snow and it feels like I’m hiking a mountain. So, my body is dead by the time I get home. BUT HERE IS THE GOOD NEWS! I saw a new doc yesterday. He is a Naturopathic Doctor who went to the grad school I am considering AND he has trained with Dr. Klinghardt (they are on a first name basis). He is not a Lyme-specialist but knows about lyme (obviously, Dr. Klinghardt) and works with other Lyme patients. I found him because he is also an acupuncturist, which is my main reason for seeing him (yay some detoxing help!), but figured he might have some other insight and ideas for treatment. My appointment went great and I felt able to be open and honest with him about my disease and symptoms. He was very receptive and listened intently. He writes everything down, even the information he wants me to remember (writes it down FOR ME to take home… doesn’t just say it) and maintains constant open communication with his patients (you can call whenever or email and he wants to make sure you keep him updated about how you are feeling with treatment).
Anyway, just by feeling my pulse (based on the Chinese Medicine standards) he immediately pointed out what systems in my body are out of whack… the exact ones I knew where and had been giving me hell all week! We did some acupuncture which helped a lot. I’m going to continue seeing him for acupuncture but he is also having me do ozone enemas. I AM SO EXCITED ABOUT THIS! I have heard that ozone is supposed to be great for Lyme and I also have heard good things about enemas for detox (plus my digestive system is whack) so I hope this helps at least some! He said he has tons of ideas but we will start slow and see how I respond. I’ll keep you guys updated.
So, food now? Yes? Yay. This was my first attempt at making any type of sushi period but it turned out AWESOME. This recipe is very flexible but below is a basic starting point. You can use whatever veggies you like for inside the wrap but I will post exactly what I used. There are some sprouted ingredients (the most important is the buckwheat), which needs to be done 2-4 days in advance. Buckwheat is awesome because it’s actually a fruit seed. Plus it is gluten-free. It is a complete protein and healthy for your heart and digestive system! Here we go:
Raw Vegan Sushi with Sprouted Buckwheat Spread:
Ingredients:
Nori Wraps (can get at local health food store like Whole Foods)
Beet
Jicama
(Any veggies would work… carrots, cucumber, zucchini, etc)
Pea Sprouts
Sprouted sunflower seeds*
Buckwheat spread (recipe below)
Avocado
*To sprout sunflower seeds: Get some sunflower seeds, shelled, from the store. Rinse well and soak in water overnight, first. Drain in a strainer and rinse again. If you have mason jars with mesh sprouting lids you can put them in there, without water, or you can spread them out over a strainer. You basically want to let them sit in the strainer or jars (spread out so they aren’t all piled on top of each other) for 2-4 days, rinsing twice a day, until they have sprouted. You can google videos for a better understanding if you need! 🙂
Let’s make the sprouted buckwheat spread first….
Sprouted Buckwheat Spread
Ingredients:
2 cups raw sprouted buckwheat*
1 tbs. apple cider vinegar
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/2 tsp. sea salt
2 tbs. olive oil
Water, as necessary
*First you need to sprout your buckwheat. Go to the store and buy raw buckwheat groats (THESE ARE GLUTEN FREE). Rinse and soak your buckwheat like you did your sunflower seeds. After soaking for 1-24 hours rinse VERY well (they will have a slimy mucous on them, which is normal). Spread them out on a plate and let them sprout for 2-4 days, placing in a strainer and rinsing well 2x a day. They are done once their little tails are about as long as the groats themselves (too long and the flavor changes). Now they are ready to go!
Place all ingredients, except water, in a food processor and process until smooth and creamy! May take some time like when you make other nut/seed butters. If it seems thick add a tablespoon of water at a time until smoothed out. Add more salt, lemon, or spices as you desire.
Okay, now onto The Sushi
First, you’ll need to peel and chop your beet and jicama. Cut your veggies into strips (so they look like french fries). Now, lay out a nori wrap on a cutting board and lay your chopped veggies in a line at one end of the wrap.
Next, take some sprouts and place them over top of the veggies. Sprinkle on your sunflower seed sprouts and sliced avocado. Spread the buckwheat spread onto the OPPOSITE end from your veggies.
(I used carrot and beet pulp from juicing as a “rice” for this one after an idea I got from detoxinista.com… have to say, didn’t like it, though).
Okay, time to wrap it up! Don’t be scared, this isn’t as hard as it may seem and I find it easier then wrapping a burrito (this is saying a lot… I can’t wrap a burrito for my life). Start at the VEGGIE END, rolling your wrap tightly. You may have to push the ingredients in on the ends. Roll until you get to the buckwheat end, the buckwheat spread will help seal the wrap and keep it closed.
Next up we will cut the wrap into sushi bites. This is easy, you guys got this! Just take a knife (I mean you can try it with a spoon if you want but I don’t think you will be very successful) and cut your roll into bite sizes so it looks like sushi.
YESSS! NOW IT IS TIME TO PUT IT ON A PLATE AND EAT IT!
Clearly that is snack size status right there ^^^. I would advise making a couple wraps if you are having these as a meal OR serving them along side something else. Below I served mine with marinated veggies.
Do you love sushi? What is your favorite kind? I love sushi and it was a blast to finally make my own, especially raw style. As always, let me know if you try these bad boys out and how you liked them.
Wishing you all the best and stay warm!
