Delicious and easy vegan pizza!

Okay, it has been a while, I know. But my goal for 2011 is to update my blog once a week and have a website with my sis and cuz by the end of the year. :)

I went to my friend Heather's for a pizza dinner last night and made an amazing pizza! It took all my strength not to eat the whole thing in one sitting. Here's what you need:

-1 pre-made whole wheat pizza crust, preferably fresh but if not then thawed and rolled out.

-1/4 cup marinara

-2 tbps. corn meal

-olive oil

-1 1/2 cups chopped fresh spinach

-1 cup chopped swiss chard

-1/4 cup fresh basil

-One stalk green garlic, fronds cut off and diced (like a leek)

-Roasted garlic (I had a few cloves left over from the night before)

-Diced Zucchini

-Sliced bell pepper

-Diced olives

With the over preheated to 350 degrees, you lay out the crust on a baking sheet sprinkled with 2 tsp. olive oil and the corn meal. Then you top the crust with the marinara and turn in and pinch the sides of the pizza. I then put the roasted garlic cloves, spinach, swiss chard, basil, zucchini, bell pepper, olives, garlic and basil. Bake for 8 - 12 minutes. SO GOOD! Oh man, I'm having the last two slices for lunch and I can't wait. :)

Cream Cheese Bagel with Fakin' Bacon

Wet and cold today so I really wanted comfort food. All I could think about was a snack I used to love in high school so I made it. Deelicious. 

-Sprouted Whole Wheat Alvarado St. Bagel 

-Follow your Heart Vegan Cream Cheese 

-Lightlife Tempeh Bacon Strips 

Toast bagel. Cook bacon according to directions.  Spread cream cheese on bagel and add bacon. Eat. :) 

easy tacos

Sometimes I look for the easiest way to eat a quick and healthy vegan meal. I know this is true of some of you as well. So what I did tonight when I decided to make celebratory tacos (finals are over yay!!!) I raided the salad bar at my local market. I grabbed spinach, pre sliced bell peppers, olives and sprouts. Then I grabbed tortillas and headed home. I already have canned pinto beans in stock (make sure to buy organic!) and salsa. So I threw the bell peppers in a pan, warmed up the tortillas and beans and voila you have quick and easy makeshift tacos. Just throw all the ingredients onto the tortillas and enjoy. :)

The post with lots of exclamation points!

Got some great veggies in this weeks box. Potatoes and carrots and leeks! oh my! I still had some carrots to use from last week so I decided to whip something up. Although it's starting to feel like summer (it hit 80 degrees today!!!) I can't give up on the soups. Not yet anyway. Once it hits 90 I'll be done, at least with the hot soup. Heirloom tomato gazpacho here I come! So I threw together the veggies and came up with a white bean soup with some dragon kale which came in the box. 

 

Ingredients: 

-1 leek, rinsed well and diced 

-a bunch of carrots, sliced 

-2 small potatoes, chopped into bigger chunks 

-1 and 1/2 cup water

-2 cans small white beans, drained and rinsed 

-half bunch dragon kale (rinsed and pulled off the stem) 

-lots of salt and pepper 

-1 tsp dried oregano 

-2 tbsp olive oil 

In a pot heat up the oil and add the leek. Once translucent add the potatoes and carrots. Stir regularly for about 5 minutes and add water. Bring to a boil then simmer. Once the potatoes are soft (poke 'em with a fork) then add the white beans and kale. Cover until the kale is noticeably reduced in size. Add dried oregano and salt and pepper to taste. I like a lot so I'm not about to tell people how much they should add. 

The only thing that would have made this soup super duper amazing would be thyme, but I don't have any right now. Maybe I should start a herb box for times like this. 

Rutabega.

I believe I have just discovered rutabegas!!!! Dun dun dun. I have no idea what to do with them yet, but they've been sitting in my fridge for quite a while. They still seem okay... not wanting to waste them I think I'll throw them in my veggie stock that I'm making. I'll report on how this turns out later.