Flat bread pizza

My husband found these high protein flat breads at Wegmans while he was buying the high protein bread he eats for breakfast. We bought so that we could make healthy pizzas. My husband calls them the best home made pizza I ever made even though I was out of the ingredients that I would normally use. I made it with what we had in the refrigerator. And yes, they were mighty tasty!

Toppings

Part skim mozzarella cheese

Olives

Jalapenos

Goat cheese

Avocado

Grilled eggplant and zucchini (I had a frozen bag from Trader Joe’s)

Pizza sauce (I used Wegmans Pomodoro sauce as I had on hand. TJ’s has the best pizza sauce)

Steps

1. Preheat the oven to 425 F
2. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper. I lined two because I made two pizzas – One w/ olives for the hubby and one w/o olives for me
3. Place the flat bread on the cookie sheet.
4. Smear the pizza sauce evenly on the flat bread
5. Sprinkle mozzarella evenly on top
6. Sprinkle the toppings
7. Bake for 8-9 minutes till slightly crisp – the edges will start to brown
8. Take out and bake
9. Enjoy!!

I love to add peppers and mushrooms to pizza, but, I didn’t have any. Be mindful not to add too many toppings. It gets hard to pick up and eat as the base is really thin.

Eating out – Veggie burgers

We have tried veggie burgers in so many restaurants. But, so far, two of them stand out. I want to share it with the rest of the veggie-burger-eating world.

The most favorite so far is the HAIGHT-ASHBURY burger from Burger Tap and Shake

This is how it is described in the menu:

HAIGHT-ASHBURY
(Veggie)
Crispy Falafel Patty, Pickled Vegetables,
Feta, Cilantro Raita

Its basically a falafel burger. It is unimaginably tasty. It is made with a bun that feels like an egg bread (maybe brioche or challah). The combination of pickled vegetables with the raita, and, just the  right amount of feta  with the falafel patty makes for a perfect bite. We also tried a couple of shakes – pineapple(my favorite), cherry, and the BTS (Butterfinger, Twix, & Snickers) shake. These are delicious as well. I myself am not a shakes person, so, I cant compare to other places. I can just say these were all very good.Do try it for yourself if you get a chance. You won’t regret it.

The other burger is from Juice Joint Cafe – Adrien’s Veggie Burger

 

This is how its described in the menu

Adrien’s Veggie Burger

Portobello mushrooms, artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers, black beans, goat cheese, arugula and basil pesto served on a multi-grain roll

Its a bean burger that has been all decked out. The artichoke hearts and arugula add the crunch factor to the burger. The goat cheese (again, perfectly balanced amount) and basil-pesto provide the burst of flavor to the burger.

Of course, the Juice Joint Cafe serves fresh fruit and vegetable juices. Their fixed combinations are really good too.

Since I am talking about the Juice Joint Cafe, I must mention the Vegan, GF cookies they carry. I forget the name of the baking company now, but, I will update as soon as I make another trip down there or, if it  comes to me. They are huge and moist cookies – one of the best cookies I have ever had. I have only tried the Lemon poppy-seed cookie. But, let me say this – it is difficult to have at your desk and not finish it all by yourself. I have tried to save some from later, but, have never been successful!

Crockpot chhole

This has now become my favorite method of cooking chhole. I pressure cook it only if I don’t have enough time. Since it is a crock pot dish, you need to plan in advance. I cook it at least for 4 hours. It took a while for me to get used to adding spices for crock pot cooking. Since it cooks for a while, the dishes can get over-spiced. I also cook a big batch and freeze the other half.

So, here goes.

Ingredients

6  cans of cooked garbanzo beans

2 bay leaves

half a stick of cinnamon

1/2 – 1 cup of fried onions

1 tablespoon badshaah punjabi chhole masala

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 tablespoon grated ginger

1/2 tablespoon grated garlic

1-2 teaspoons tomato paste

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

salt to taste

2-3 teabags (black tea , for added color only)

How to

Mix everything and cook on high for 4 hours

To Serve

Serve with roti/naan OR

Serve as chhole-tikki chaat

The first Dragon fruit Experience

I had read that a dragon fruit tastes like a combination of kiwi and pear. I had wanted to try it for a while. I was excited to see it in our local Wegmans store. I was hoping it better taste worth its price

I hadn’t seen anyone cut a dragon fruit. But, I cut it from the middle and, by instinct and took out the flesh with a spoon , like I would for an avocado. It was super easy. I then cut it into cubes.

It was tasting time. It had the texture of a ripe pear with seeds like a kiwi. It was crunchy with the seeds. But, it was only mildly sweet, not as sweet as a pear. If I got a chance to use it, I will probably use it for its texture more than its taste.

I just found a detailed link on how to eat a dragon fruit if you are interested in the ‘right’ way of doing stuff

http://thaifood.about.com/od/introtothaicooking/ss/dragonfruit.htm

Spicy Thai noodles

Adapted from the recipe here : http://asmallsnippet.blogspot.com.au/2011/03/spicy-thai-noodles.html

Another Pinterest find.

Ingredients:

1 chicken breast thinly sliced into pieces

1/2 packet of whole wheat angel hair pasta

1 teaspoon olive oil

Salt, pepper to taste

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Sauce:

1-2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 tablespoon crushed pepper

1 tablespoon honey

1 packet 0 calorie sweetner (I use Truvia)

1-2 tablespoons soy sauce

Salt and pepper to taste

Toppings:

Cilantro, chopped

Carrots, shredded

Scallions, chopped finely

Roasted peanuts, crushed

How to:

1. Heat the oils in a pan
2. Add the peppers when oil is slightly hot. If its too hot, the peppers will burn
3. Once the peppers are added, turn off the heat. Mix in rest of the ingredients of the sauce
4. Heat up another pan with a little oil.
5. Add the sliced chicken and add salt, pepper  and garlic powder
6. Cook till the chicken is thoroughly cooked through and browned a little
7. Keep the chicken on the side
8. Toss the noodles in the sauce
9. Serve with the sliced chicken and, as many toppings as you like

The original recipe strains out the peppers. We can take the heat, that’s why I didn’t.

I added chicken to add some protein to the dish. I will also try it with tofu or seitan to make it vegetarian.

Verdict:

We loved it. I think the toppings give the dish different textures and makes the dish. The sauce was good. But, it didnt have enough spices for my taste. I am going to try a couple of different versions with the sauce

Watermelon Feta salad

Again, mostly just a list of Ingredients

Ingredients:

Watermelon – cubed

Feta cheese – crumbled or cubed

Arugula (optional)

Dressing:

1. Salt, pepper, lime juice

2. Lime juice, mustard, salt ,pepper, orange juice

How To:

Mix ingredients and chill

Add dressing when ready to serve.

Avocado salad

This is the simplest salad. Like my brother put it, “you mean, it’s simple Indian salad with avocados. I can make this too’

That’s why call it Avocado salad – it makes a world of difference. Otherwise, its just a normal chopped salad.

No measurements, just a list of ingredients

Ingredients:

Tomatoes – cubed

Green/Red peppers – cubed into chunks

Onion – minced

Avocado – cut in chunks

Cucumber – cut in chunks

Lime juice

Cilantro

Green chillies – chopped, to taste

Salt

Pepper

Feta cheese – crumbled (optional)

How To:

Mix all the ingredients together.

Verdict:

It tastes unbelievable creamy.

Try it sometime with the feta cheese as well. It tastes totally different

If you chop all the the ingredients finely, it would make a great dip as well.