Pepper, Mushroom, Tomato, Spinach & Garlic Pizza.

This is another one of those 'if you don't think about the real deal stuff, and think of it as something different - and not just a healthy version of pizza' - it's good, reallllll goooooood. Don't ever think of it as a pizza replacer because I don't think there's such a thing. Part of the joy of eating a pizza - at least for me - is that I'm eating something so yummy but so bad for you!

There's no guilt with this stuff. I made this one for Shayne and made a separate pizza for the kids with basically just the sauce and spinach. Puree sauce, here I come! And maybe next time I'll add the vegan 'mozzarella cheese' sauce so I fake the kids out even more and roast the garlic. Yum.

Pizza Dough
2 teaspoons agave nectar

1 (1/4-ounce) package active dry yeast
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour (preferable organic)
1 teaspoon salt
Vegetable oil cooking spray
2 tablespoons yellow cornmeal

In a large bowl, dissolve the agave nectar and yeast in ¾ cup warm water (100*-110*). Let stand for 5 minutes. Add the flours and salt to the yeast mixture and stir until a soft dough forms. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic, adding more flour if necessary to prevent sticking. Dough will feel slightly sticky.

Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat the top. Cover with a towel and let rise in a draft-free place until double in size, about 30-40 minutes.

Punch down the dough and roll into a 10- or 11-inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Place dough on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper and sprinkled with cornmeal. Crimp edges to form a rim. Lightly spray the surface of the dough with cooking spray.

Pepper, Mushroom, Tomato, Spinach & Garlic Pizza
1 recipe Pizza Dough (above)
1 cup canned tomato sauce
½ yellow pepper, thinly sliced
½ red pepper, thinly sliced
½ small onion, thinly sliced

1 cup mushrooms, thinly sliced
½ cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup spinach, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon fennel seed
10 fresh basil leaves, torn



Preheat the oven to 500*F.

In a small bowl combine the tomato sauce, garlic, oregano and fennel.Cover the pizza dough with tomato sauce, then top with bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, spinach, and garlic. Bake for 8 minutes. Take pizza out of the oven, top with basil, and bake for another 1 to 2 minutes.

Adapted from...

Banana-Ginger Pancakes.

I love a good breakfast for dinner, and these were a hit. Although the Sweet Potato Hash with Peppers from the same cookbook was not. I knew it wouldn't be... my family is not a fan of sweet potatoes unless I'm sneaky about them {which I did with the leftovers... pureed them up with some black beans and they devoured them as black bean burritos}. Coco actually ate a few bites... but that's really not a good indicator since she's back and forth all the time.

1 ¼ cups whole wheat pastry flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 ½ teaspoons ground ginger
¼ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons agave nectar
1 ¼ cups vanilla soy milk
3 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup mashed bananas
Vegetable oil cooking spray

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, ginger, and salt. In another bowl, combine the agave nectar, soy milk, applesauce, and vanilla. Add the liquid to the flour mixture. Mix until just combined (the batter will be lumpy). Add the bananas.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat, then coat with cooking spray. Pour ¼ cup of batter onto the hot skillet. The pancake is ready to flip when tiny bubbles appear on the top and burst, and the pancake is lightly browned on the edges. Flip the pancake and cook for about 1 to 2 minutes, until the underside is lightly browned. Adjust your heat so that the pancakes cook for about 1 to 2 minutes per side.

Spiced Pumpkin Oatmeal.

It's the end of the month... I'm out of my budget money for groceries... my 50 pound bag of steel cut oats is gone... and I'm having to figure out something good for breakfast. I remember seeing this pumpkin oatmeal in my new cookbook... so I pulled it out. Luckily had all the ingredients for... prepped as  much as I could the night before... got up a little earlier to start cooking it for the kids... and bam! It was yummy! I think the cinnamon was a bit strong - so when I do it again I'll tone it down some. It was yummy, but we missed our steel cuts. Creatures of habit. You could do a whole lot worse with no money, that's for sure!

2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

1/3 cup raisins

1/4 cup dried cranberries

1 cup canned pumpkin

2 tablespoons agave nectar

4 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Combine all ingredients with 4 cups of water in saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the liquid is mostly absorbed and the oatmeal is creamy.

the get healthy, go vegan cookbook
dr. neal barnard, md
and robyn webb
page 65

3 Layer Quesadilla

The kids loooooved this, totally going into the rotation!

vegetable oil cooking spray

1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 cup vegetable broth

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 large red onion, chopped

2 cups zucchini, chopped

1 cup frozen corn, thawed

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, minced

kosher or sea salt to taste

freshly ground black pepper to taste

3 (8-inch) whole wheat tortillas

3/4 cup prepared chunky salsa

garnish: avocado & tomatoes

Preheat the oven to 350*F. Coat a 10-inch pie plate with cooking spray and set aside.

Add the beans, 1/4 cup broth, garlic, oregano, and cayenne to a food processor or blender and blend until smooth but thick. Set aside.

Heat the remaining 1/4 cup broth in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and saute for 5 minutes. Put in the zucchini and corn and saute for 3 mintues. Add the cumin and cilantro and saute for 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper.

Place one tortilla in the prepared pie plate. Spread about one-third of the bean mixture over the torgilla. Using a slotted spoon, add one-third of the vegetable mixture on top of the beans. Add one-third of the salsa over the vegetables and top with another tortilla. Make two more layers in the same fashion, to make a total of three layers.

Baked uncovered for about 30 minutes. Cut into wedges, garnish with avocado & tomatoes then serve. 



page 137



Italian Fusilli with Sundried Tomatoes & Artichoke Hearts.

This stuff is goooood. Light and fresh - but fills you up as a pasta dish should. And don't even get me started on sun-dried tomatoes and artichoke combo... yum.

1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes

1/4 cup vegetable broth

1 medium onion, coarsely chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 (14-ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and quartered

1/2 cup white grape juice

sea salt to taste

freshly ground black pepper to taste

2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano

1/4 cup loosely packed fresh basil, thinly sliced

1 (10-ounce) package fusilli pasta, whole wheat {I used a veggie pasta combo that I got at Costco}

Cover the sun-dried tomatoes with boiling water in a small bowl and let stand for about 10 minutes to soften. Drain and slice tomatoes into thin strips. Set aside.

Heat the broth over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute for 3 to 5 minutes, until softened and translucent. Add the tomatoes, artichoke hearts, grape juice, salt, and black pepper. Lower heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in the oregano and basil.

Meanwhile cook the pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain. Toss the pasta with the artichoke mixture. Serve.



page 106

Quinoa with Navy Beans and Almonds.

I'm a big fan of Dr. Neal Barnard. His book Reversing Diabetes totally gave me the last little push I need to get my family converted over to a plant-based diet. I've gone through a lot of his recipes from that book... and was totally stoked to see he had a new cookbook, the get healthy, go vegan cookbook, coming out. I got on the waiting list at the library (all of 1 person was ahead of me) and waited.

This is my first try from it, and it was yummy, simple and fresh. I made it that night because I had all the ingredients on hand. I can't wait to try more...

1 cup quinoa, rinsed in a fine sieve

1/4 cup vegetable broth

1 cup cremini mushrooms, sliced

1/2 cup onion, chopped

1/2 cup red bell pepper, chopped

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 (15-ounce) can white navy beans, drained and rinsed

kosher or sea salt to taste

freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 tablespoon slivered almonds, toasted

2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped

Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add the rinsed quinoa, bring to a boil again, lower the heat, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the vegetable broth in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and saute for 2 minutes. Add the onion and bell pepper and saute for 5 minutes until the mushrooms are browned. Add the lemon juice, beans, and cooked quinoa. Season with salt and black pepper and mix well. Garnish with the almonds and parsley, serve.

{{This is for you Lady... Makes 4 servings, 1/4 of the recipe has 50.9 grams of carbs. {It was in the book, I didn't calculate that one out.)}}

the get healthy, go vegan cookbook - page 109