White Pizza with Broccoli and Mushrooms (and olives)

I’ve been posting a lot of recipes lately and I wouldn’t be able to post them if they weren’t really good and EASY!! If they weren’t easy I wouldn’t have time to post. lol. I’ve been eating raw from breakfast through lunch (just before dinner) but have been trying to eat vegetarian for dinner. It’s been working out great and here is a recipe that I really liked and wanted to share. Enjoy!

In the original recipe they wrote that the key to a crisp crust is preheating the baking pan or pizza stone. I have to say this is the first time I’ve done this and agree with them.

Ingredients:

2 tbs butter, divided

2 cups mushrooms (sliced)

1 tbs flour

1 cup low fat milk

2 tsp garlic (minced)

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella, divided

1/4 cup grated Parmesan, divided

1 13.8 oz pkg refrigerated pizza dough

I added some halved Kalmetta olives to my pizza

1. Place pizza stone or baking sheet in center of oven and heat to 425 degrees.
2. Melt 1 1/2 tsp butter in skillet over medium high heat. Add mushrooms, and cook 4-7 min or until beginning to brown, stirring frequently. Add broccoli and 1/3 cup water. Cover and steam broccoli in skillet 3-4 min or until tender.
3. Heat remaining 1 1/2 tbs butter in saucepan over med-high heat. Add flour and cook 2 min, or until pale golden, stirring constantly. Stir in milk, garlic, and salt. Cook 3-4 min or until mixture thickens and begins to boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in 1/4 cup mozzarella and 2 tbs Parmesan until sauce is smooth and cheese melted.
4. Shape pizza dough according to package directions. Remove pizza stone from oven and place dough on hot stone..... be careful not to burn yourself like I always do. :(
5. Spread white sauce over dough to within 1/2 inch of edge and top with broccoli mixture. Sprinkle remaining mozzarella and Parmesan over top. Return to oven, bake 18-20 min or what I use as a measure...until edges of pizza are golden and center is hot and bubbly. Cool slightly before slicing and serving. Viola! My smoke detector only went off once during this recipe and it’s not because I burnt anything it’s because it’s so damn sensitive (which I guess I’m grateful for ;))

275 calories per slice

13 g prot

9 g fat

38 g carbs

7 g sugars

3 g fiber

Source: Vegetarian Times April 2010

Raw Chocolate Pudding

Ingredients:

1 medium avocado

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup agave

1/3 cup pitted dates

1/4 cup cacao powder

1 teaspoon pure vanilla

Blend up in a blender til smooth and creamy and enjoy! You’ll be surprised how good it is.

Recipe from Sweetly Raw Check out this site. It’s Amazing!!!!!

This recipe is posted especially for one of my awesome daughters, Coreen! Enjoy, love you.

30 Day Raw Food Challenge

I’ve been interested in trying out a raw food diet for a while. I’ve read a lot about it and it seems to have really great benefits. I’ve decided to do this now because:

a) I’ve just read the book “Skinny Bitch” and found it very informative and daunting at the same time. Food, especially chicken and meat, just don’t look the same to me anymore. I’ll do a review on it later and

b) Just found a 30 day Raw Food Diet Challenge from Humbaba Raw Food World . Perfect timing! I’m going to start this on Monday after I do some planning, shopping and Easter. Planning is one of the main ingredients of any successful mission.

From what I’ve read the benefits of a raw food diet are:

*It will increase your energy level as early as 5 days after starting a raw food diet.

*A raw food diet feeds your body vitamins, minerals, and enzymes that are lost by cooking food.

*Raw food helps you lose weight effortlessly and you don’t even have to count calories!

*Raw food helps with anti-aging by feeding your body enzymes, help you think clearer which all helps you feel less stressed.

These are just some of the benefits. I am doing more research and will keep you posted on recipes and benefits and how it’s affecting me. I’m starting on Monday April 5th. I need to plan what I’m going to eat and go food shopping.

I will be Raw all day except dinner. I have to feed the family for dinner and will probably try and incorporate some raw foods into dinner. I may even just have a smoothie for dinner for myself. We’ll see. Wish me luck!

Have you ever tried a raw food diet? Let me know how it went for you!

Beautiful photo: Urban Explorer