enjoy!

THE pizza dough recipe.

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Yes.  It’s that good.

I know I’ve been painfully dangling a carrot in front of y’all’s faces when I post photos of our weekly pizza meals … with a promise of the dough recipe! but I always end up taking photos after I’ve prepared the dough.

That would be reason number 5,692 why I’m not a food blogger.

I’m also not a professional photographer.

I like to consider myself a hack in quite a few areas. [insert cheesy Kacia smile, here.]

+ now? on to the pizza dough!

I love making homemade pizzas.  Love.  Since switching a vegan diet as a family, pizza + pesto pasta has become a staple in this home!

Whenever I would declare it Pizza Night, I would turn to my friend Google + search.  Needless to say:  I tried a lot of dough recipes.

Eh. I liked some.  Hated others.  But there was one thing that they all had in common: they all tasted dough-y to me.

Does that make sense?  It was like a very-yeast-ish-bread.

Yech.  

Then I stumbled upon the kblog.lunchboxbunch + I  used some of her recipes as inspiration!  This recipe is inspired + modified from Kathy’s recipe for Vegan Pepperoni Pizza.

We now have our family favorite!  Annnnnd we make it at least once a week.

I should add that this dough isn’t a puffy, white flour dough.  Andy + I really like thin crust pizza with a good crunch.  So, if you do too: enjoy!

Pile everything on the counter.  Well, that’s what I do.

Then measure the yeast, sugar + hot water.  Give it a quick mix + set it aside.

Put your walnuts in the food processor.  After grinding the walnuts, add in your nutritional yeast + sunflower seeds.

When you are finished, it should look like this:

It ends up being a powder, but it’s a bit m-word.  You know … rhymes with joist. or hoist.  But I refuse to type it: that’s how much I despise that word.

Combine your dry ingredients: whole wheat flour, baking powder, vital wheat gluten, red quinoa, chia seeds, flax seeds, and salt.  Am I missing anything?  If you don’t have some of the “mix ins” on hand? Don’t worry about it.  Add something else – or omit it.

**I grind my own whole wheat flour.  I’m not saying this to somehow say “Yes-I’m-Awesome” [because I’m not], but because my whole wheat flour has the germ still in it.  I have to keep any left overs in the freezer.  So if you want to add some wheat germ? Go ahead!

Add your yeast-water-foaming-concoction to the dry ingredients.  Fold in until you need to knead it with your hands.  If you need more flour, add a tiny bit at a time.  I needed a little more water today, I think I was a little heavy handed on my cups of flour…oops!

[I also double the recipe in these photos! I freeze half for a day when I need a meal quickly!]

Knead your dough for about 5-10 minutes, until it forms a dough consistency + you can form it into a ball.

Cover.  Place in the sun. [out of the path of toddlers + puppies, of course].

+ then take time to snuggle on the couch.

I chose to play with this little nugget. :o]

+ now for reason number 10,231 why I am not a food blogger: I punched down my beautifully risen dough before snapping a photo.  Arg!

Well, you get the idea.

Cut it in half + form into two balls.

Here is where I am just a bit lazy.

You can roll out the dough, if you’d like, but getting out the rolling pin is too much work.

Yes, I said it: I can be lazy.

Here is what I do:

Spray your pan with olive oil + start spreading out your dough with your hands.  I keep flipping my dough over: to make sure it’s not sticking + to check for thick/thin spots.

Get the dough as thing as you’d like it + start adding toppings!

I usually just add whatever I have in my fridge!  Today I figured that I would do a Green Monster Pizza, since Green Monster Smoothies are all the rage, right?

I also made one with artichoke hearts, portobello mushrooms I sautéed in balsamic, kale + vegan “cheese.”

Don’t be scared of toppings!  We’ve done broccoli, spinach, “tofu mozzerella,” diced tomatoes + so many other random toppings: some have been better than others!

Bake for around 15-ish minutes at 400 degrees, or until as crispy + melty as you’d like.   I used Daiya “cheese” for the Green Pizza: I love that stuff.

Now? You eat.

I always get a bit nervous posting recipes: maybe Andy + I just have terrible taste in food!!

But, I’ll take that risk. ;o]

I hope you all have a wonderful Friday! Come Monday?

I will be mother to a one year old.  

Don’t mind me as I cry in the corner.

Have an awesome Friday!  I’ve created a PDF of this recipe that you can download!

Let me know what y’all think!

xoxo,

 ** We are on Day 9 of reading through reading plan! Follow on twitter! or @SheReadsTruth on Instagram or twitter to find out more!  It’s never too late to join in the community! **

Kale + Walnut Pesto Pasta | Recipe

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So as I’ve mentioned a few times, the Hosmer family has gone to the dark side… of veganism.

dun dun dunnnnnnnn.

It all started when we received some lab results back for Andy that surprised us a bit: high LDLs + low HDLs.

BooHiss.

I told him that we needed to improve his numbers.  –> he agreed.

I told him I would make the changes with him.  –> he thanked me.

I told him that we’d need to start eating very vegetarian…. –> he looked at me like I had about 3 eyes + a frog leg coming out of my ear.

So we …. sort of ate vegetarian.  + sort of worked on fixing those numbers.

A few months later we had another blood test: worse.  Not a lot worse, but not better.

It was at this time that a documentary was recommended to us: Forks over Knives.  [To clear a few things up: 1. we know this documentary had a purpose. 2. we know that all research has a bent… we’re human beings. 3. while we felt that we agreed with a lot in this film, we also felt it left a lot out.]  Basta.  We also decided that it couldn’t hurt to try a change in our diets… + see if it works, right?  So. We dove in.

I’ve been asked quite a bit if we’ve gone all the way.  Andy + I decided that we want our diet to consist of less than 5% meat + dairy.  So, I guess that makes us pretend vegans… or something.  I’m also too cheap to throw away what we have “in stock,” so I am eating up the cheese stuff + meat that we have on hand.

On to more interesting things: the cooking! 

I have definitely been working harder in the kitchen + finding new recipes for our family.  It’s difficult to fall back on “old favorites” when our favorites are approximately a few weeks “old,” at most.

But this recipe?  This one is a new favorite.  I’ve made pesto with walnuts before, when I didn’t have any pine nuts on hand, but on Tuesday I didn’t have any basil around either.  Double fail.  So kale came to the rescue!

I give you… Kale + Walnut Pesto Pasta.  I’ll post the crunchy fairy turd recipe soon. ;o]  I have no idea why I’ve started calling chickpeas fairy turds, but I have.  Not Sorry.

1 box of whole wheat pasta – mine was a 13oz box … and I have about 1.5 cups left over in another bag of pasta.  Very exact, I know.

Kale, remove all the thick stems.  [I think I used about 10 leaves.]

Walnuts [about 1 cup]

UPDATE: nutritional yeast!! I completely forgot that I threw some of this in! I kind of look for any old excuse to use it these days! I used about 3/4 C  [You can get nutritional yeast at Whole Foods, but I like to get mine at our local food coop… as it’s a little less “whole paycheck.” I’m sort of obsessed with it + it’s benefits, and I’ve been using it a lot!]

Olive Oil

Salt/Pepper to taste

Garlic [I used 5 cloves]

1. Fill a big pot full of water. Bring it to a boil + add the kale.

2. Bring it back to a boil + remove using a slotted spoon, etc.  [You want to keep the water for the pasta … OR you can save the water as vegetable broth! + nab some new stuff for your pasta. ;o)]

3. When the water boils again, add your pasta.

4. While the pasta is cooking, put your garlic in a food processor.

5. When the garlic is all chopped up, add a few walnuts at a time.   At this point I should have removed the chopped up walnuts + garlic…added it to my kale in a bow, and then put in small portions together…but I didn’t.  So we’ll make the instructions what you should do, not what I did. 

6. Remove the walnut/garlic “paste” with a spatula + mix it up with the kale.  Update: Add the nutritional yeast + mix together.

7. Grab a handful + put it back in the food processor.  Continue adding until it’s not chopping anymore, + begin adding olive oil.  I just pour a little in as it’s chopping.  You can add as much olive oil as you’d like – I like my pesto a bit thicker.  When everything is blended into the pesto, add salt/pepper to taste.

8. When your pasta is al dente, drain the water + add the pesto to the pasta in the hot pot.  I found that the heat help move the pesto around to coat all of the pasta.

9.  Top with some freshly ground pepper + basil … if you have some! Unlike me. :o[ + some crunchy chickpeas fairy turds

10. EAT!

Husband + 10 month old approved!

I’ll be updating all of my recipes with a PDF to download + print.  Stay tuned!

Also? *standing on my roof + calling all vegans + pretend vegans* Please? have any great recipes to share?  My brain is starting to hurt.  xoxo

xoxo,