"Its Ready but Honestly, I Have No Idea"

ROASTED EGGPLANT  PIZZA

For Dinner last night, Lucas and I attempted our very first pizza and it was amazing!  We had some left over kale in the fridge and lightly sauteed it for a healthy side.

 

I really enjoyed making this recipe, especially since the measurements are mostly to taste. Depending on how you like your pizza, throw on more or less of the veggies, cheese, and spices.  From other recipes I saw, most people pre-cooked the veggies before tossing them on the pizza - we baked the veggies but you can also do a light saute or do it on a grill.

We had the hardest time figuring out how to use the dough - when we put in on the baking tray, it would begin to shrink.  We finally gave up and just allowed the dough to be what ever size it wanted and tossed on the the ingredients on. Since our pizza dough was so thick - we had to play around with the timing to make sure the dough baked but the toppings didn't burn.  

 

Tahini Spread

• 3 Tbsp. Tahini
• 1 Tbsp. Lemon Juice
• 1 Clove Garlic, minced
• Pinch of Salt + Pepper

The Toppings

• 1 Eggplant
• 1 Red Bell Pepper or a Few Small Sweet Peppers
• 1-2 tsp. Olive Oil
• 1-3 tsp. Dried Oregano
• 1 Small Onion, halved and sliced
• Whole Grain Pizza Crust (there are a ton of recipes online but we used Trader Joe's pre-made dough)
• 3/4 Cup Shredded Mozzarella
• 1 Tbsp. Za'atar Season's (a blend of middle eastern spices - Whole Foods sells the spices already prepared or you can mix them together yourself - see link below)
• 1/3 Cup Crumbled Feta
• Fresh Thyme Leaves
• Salt + Pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 450-500'. Mix all of the tahini spread ingredients together in a bowl, set aside.
2. Cut eggplant and peppers in to small pieces or strips. Drizzle it with the olive oil, generous pinch of salt and dried oregano. Toss to coat. Spread it on a baking sheet and roast it for 15-20 minutes.
3. Saute onions in a pan over medium high heat with a dash of oil for about 10-15 minutes
4. Roll out your crust and put it on a floured sprinkled baking sheet. (we used parchment paper also)
5. Spread the tahini spread across the surface, sprinkle the mozzarella, the eggplant chunks and charred onions, the za'atar, and the crumbled feta.
6. Bake the pizza for 12-18 minutes until the edges crisp up. Garnish the top with a generous sprinkle of the fresh thyme leaves.



Baked and ready to eat!

Kale Salad

• Usually massaging kale in some lemon juice and soy sauce or Bragg's aminos will help soften the leaves but still give them that crunch - this usually takes about 5-8 mins and I just didn't have time for that
• Instead, I tossed the kale, a little balsamic glaze, a table spoon of lemon juice and some left over chopped onions and sauteed for 2-3 mins on high heat or until the kale becomes dark green (I got distracted and over cooked them last night and although they lacked the crunch, they were still yummy).

Simple Za'atar Recipe
Adapted from Sprouted Kitchen and Dr. Gourmet