Prior to my MrT LEAP test I had never attempted to make my favorite indulgent items like pizza, pasta and even most baked good because I figured why would I even bother to.... I like to have balance and if its the weekend and I want a pizza, I'll eat a pizza and just balance it out with clean home-made meals during the week.
Now that I have actually pinpointed my food insensitivities with a blood test, I can better avoid the specific ingredients that set me off, while still indulging in some of my favorite typically "unhealthy" foods. In the long term, I will probably still engage in the former from time to time and not always settle for my plant based pizza as the end all be all, but in the meantime while on a somewhat long lasting elimination diet I am having fun playing around with new recipes and this plant based pizza (which avoids a few of my insensitivities- yeast, ham/cured meats and dairy) definitely is worth the time to get my fix.
Try out this recipe for a fun and indulgent tasting pizza you can feel good about. This recipe makes 2 pizzas that are enough for 2 or 3 people.
Super easy to make pizza dough without yeast- nothing to let rise!
Ingredients:
Kite Hill Ricotta (You can obviously use any plant based dairy free cheese, but this almond milk based one is the best I've had!)
Marinara Sauce (try making one yourself and sneaking in an extra veggie with my Tomato Beet Everything Sauce)
Fresh basil
2 cups Whole wheat flour
3 tsp baking powder
3 tbsp avocado oil (or any favorite cooking/baking oil)
1 cup water + however much you end up needing to add tbsp by tbsp if any
salt/pepper
(optional) Mint pesto
Organic Spinach (a food really worth getting organic- has the most pesticides)
Method:
***I started using the hook setting of my mixer for the dough but ended up doing it by hand and found it easier to knead!:
Combine the baking powder, flour and 1 tsp of salt.
Whisk the oil and water together in a separate bowl.
Pour the liquid into the dry ingredients little by little while mixing. Add more water 1 tbsp at a time if you find it to be too dry. You just don't want it to be too sticky, so if it accidentally gets too sticky just add a little more flour.
Knead until it forms a nice thick dough and form it into two even balls
Allow the balls to "rest" for a few minutes, then use a roller to roll them out on a parchment paper lined baking sheet (At this point I put a little oil on my fingers to smooth out some of the dry edges)
Bake for 10-15 minutes at 425 degrees or until edges begin to brown a bit
Remove from oven and leave it on. Add the toppings except the ricotta (it tastes fine, but dries out a little in the oven so I would put it on after cooking)
Finish cooking for another 10 minutes, then remove, add ricotta, salt/pepper and enjoy!