Pizza! I am sure that I am not alone in having ‘pizza’ pop into my head more frequently as the week comes towards an end.
Home Made Pizza’s (or, as they are referred to at my place, HMP’s) are always an amazing ‘go-to’ Friday night dinner choice… and on occasion, Saturday post-gym breakfast treat.
What better way to kick off your weekend by making your own delicious, nutritious pizza feast? HMP’s all the way!
As always, our friend The Fit Foodie has a nutrient dense, protein packed recipe to which is sure to please every pizza fiend.
I’ve played around with some low-carb cauliflower bases but they just don’t fill me up, so I turned to beans for something more 
substantial. This Pizza is pretty phenomenal actually, both on nutrition profile and more importantly, taste. It’s cheesy, herby and chewy – the perfect start to the weekend, minus the hefty bill from Dominos.
The healthy stuff: A one-cup serving of black beans contains nearly 15 grams of fibre (50% of the RDA) and 15g of protein (equivalent to 60g chicken). This outstanding protein-fibre combination doesn’t exist in other fruit, vegetables, grains, meats, dairy products, nuts and seeds, or seafood. The antioxidants found in the skins of the beans promote better eyesight, cardiac health, capillary strength, skin appearance, and an improved immune system. They’re also great for energy, maintaining blood sugar levels, and digestion!
SERVES: 4
INGREDIENTS:
For the base
- 2 cans black beans, rinsed & drained
- 1 tbsp black chia seeds
- 2 tbsp ground flax seed
- 3 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp sea salt
For the topping
- 1/2 cup heirloom tomatoes, halved
- 1 large mushroom, thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup basil pesto (try this homemade version)
- 1/4 cup bocconcini (optional – vegans sub cashew/soy cheese)
- 1/2 cup rocket
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
METHOD:
- Preheat oven to 180° and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Mix together ⅓ cup water with the chia seeds and ground flax, and let it sit for 10 minutes until thick and gelatinous.
- In a food processor, add the beans, flax + chia mix, nutritional yeast, garlic, salt and cayenne. Blend until smooth.
- Spread the mixture onto the parchment paper in the shape of a pizza crust, until about an inch thick.
- Bake for 25 minutes, then carefully flip the crust to bake on the underside for 15 minutes.
- Lightly sauté the mushrooms until soft.
- Remove the crust from the oven and top with pesto, bocconcini, mushrooms and tomatoes, then bake for 5-10 minutes until the cheese has just melted.
- Top with fresh rocket and rosemary sprigs.
- Slice + serve (or save leftovers for breakfast!)
Sally, The Fit Foodie is a self-confessed fitness + health foodie lover.
Concocting high-protein foods packed with good fats and wholesome nutrients, Sally shares her recipes to inspire other clean-eating journeys.
Blogging about her foodie adventures (and subsequently overcoming orthorexia) has propelled Sally into
freelance journalism, developing recipes and writing for a number of national health magazines. Sally is a proud Ambassador for Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution, a yoga teacher, launched her own healthy snack business (Fit Mixes) and this year wrote her very first cookbook – Love Move Eat (Random House, March 2017).
Sally’s passion can been felt in her delicious, nourishing recipes.