Potato, Kale and Pea Pizza Pockets

Potato, Kale and Pea Pizza Pockets
yields 5 pockets

1 medium ball of fresh whole wheat pizza dough
all-purpose flour to dust the counter and roll out dough
2 tbl extra virgin olive oil
1 small yellow onion, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 medium sized yukon gold potatoes, small dice
1 head kale, stems removed, roughly chopped
salt, pepper and red pepper flakes, to taste
1 cup frozen green peas
1/4 cup Daiya jalapeno havarti vegan cheese, crumbled
2 cups of your favorite marinara sauce, I used Eggplant Marinara

Keep the pizza dough out at room temperature for 20 minutes then roll out thinly on a floured counter. Let rest while you make the filling.
In a saute pan, heat the oil and saute the onion and garlic until soft and lightly browned. Add the potatoes and kale and cook for 10-12 minutes until the potatoes are tender. If the potatoes are getting too brown, add 1/2 cup of water and cover the pan, to allow steam to help cook the potatoes. Season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Add the peas and vegan cheese and combine to melt. Taste and season. Allow filling to cool enough to handle.
Preheat the oven to 375. Grease a sheet pan with a drizzle of olive oil.
Roll out the dough into one long rectangle. Pile five mounds of filling along the rectangle leaving 1-2 inches in between each mound. Fold the rectangle over to cover the mounds and use a cookie cutter or cup to stamp out each mound completely encased in dough.
Bake for 25 minutes until golden brown and puffed.
Serve with marinara sauce and enjoy.

Falafel Pizza with Artichoke Salad

I'm not going to lie, I did not make this falafel.
dun dun dunnnnnnnnnnn!!!!
I actually purchased it from a salad bar at the grocery store, but you could also purchase it at your favorite Lebanese restaurant or even use leftover falafel. Of course you could make it yourself, but this is more of a leftover falafel type meal. Fresh falafel is too delicious to put on a pizza and cover with sauces and toppings.

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Leftover falafel is often dry and unappetizing the next day but this falafel pizza will now be your saving grace. Topped with olives, red and yellow bell peppers and drizzled with tahini, it's the perfect way to use less than perfect falafel and turn them back into soft, fluffy pieces of goodness.

Falafel Pizza
serves 4
1 ball fresh pizza dough
3/4 cup marinara sauce
5 pieces of falafel, cut into 4ths
1/2 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
3 tbl roughly chopped green and black greek olives
1 cup shredded vegan cheese
1/4 cup tahini

Preheat the oven to 425.
Roll out your pizza dough to a large circle. Place on a greased pizza stone or baking sheet. Spread marinara sauce on top, leaving 1/2" for crust. Top with falafel pieces, red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper and greek olives.
Sprinkle cheese on top and bake for 20 minutes or until the bottom has browned and the crust is cooked through.
Drizzle the top with tahini and serve.

Artichoke Salad
serves 3
1-15oz can artichoke quarters, drained and rinsed
1 tomato, seeded, roughly chopped
1/2 cucumber, thinly sliced
1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
3 tbl fresh parsley, roughly chopped
1 tbl fresh mint, roughly chopped
juice from 1 lemon
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
sea salt, to taste

Combine the artichokes, tomato, cucumber, red onion, parsley and mint. Dress with lemon juice, red pepper flakes and sea salt.

Sun Dried Tomato & Broccoli Stromboli

Stromboli is a type of calzone; pizza dough filled with whathaveyou and baked. In this instance instead of being folded over like a turnover, it is rolled up then cut into slices. The chickpea layer adds a creaminess that works well to substitute the texture you might expect from cheese and the sun dried tomatoes add a rich, chewy flavor that pairs well with the crusty brown exterior.

Chickpeas, shaved garlic, pan roasted broccoli, sun dried tomatoes and fresh spinach wrapped up tightly in pizza dough and sprinkled with rock salt then baked until crispy and golden brown.

Sun Dried Tomato & Broccoli Stromboli
1 1/4 cup vegetable broth
6 sun dried tomato pieces
1 ball pizza dough
4 tbl extra virgin olive oil, diveded
1 head broccoli, small florets & stem sliced thin
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
salt and pepper
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 handful baby spinach leaves
1-15oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

Pour 1/4 cup boiling vegetable broth over the sun dried tomatoes and let sit for 10 minutes to reconstitute and soften the tomatoes. Chop the tomatoes and reserve the broth.

Press the ball of dough out into a small square and let sit for 10 minutes. Repress the dough out into a larger square and let sit 5 minutes more. Once the filling is ready, re-stretch the dough to a large square. This resting is necessary in between stretches to let the gluten strands relax so they don't keep shrinking back up.
Preheat oven to 450.

Heat 2 tbl of oil in a large sauce pan and add the broccoli and garlic. Season with 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper and red pepper flakes. Saute over medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes until browned. Add the tomatoes, spinach, 1 cup of broth and reserved broth. Simmer until most of the broth has evaporated.
Roughly mash the chickpeas and season with salt, pepper and 1 tbl of olive oil.
Spread the mashed chickpeas onto the dough then top with the broccoli mixture. Roll up tightly and drizzle the top with some olive oil. Sprinkle with salt.
Transfer the stromboli to a greased baking sheet, crease side down. Bake for 30 minutes, turning once after 15 minutes to ensure even cooking.

Sausage & Arugula Pizza with Romesco Sauce

Romesco is a Spanish style red pepper sauce that is put together quick and has full, rich flavor. All Romesco sauce includes ground almonds, some sort of vinegar and bread. Mine includes fresh cherry heirloom tomatoes, balsamic roasted-red onions and garlic to make a great sauce for pizza or dipping. This recipe makes more than needed for one pizza, so make sure to use the rest drizzled on top of grilled potatoes, mixed with vegan mayo for dressing or as a dip with vegetables.

Crisp thick crust pizza with romesco sauce, fresh basil and cherry tomatoes, mint, arugula, vegan sausage and a drizzle of good olive oil.

Romesco Sauce
1/4 small red onion, quartered
10 cherry tomatoes
2 red bell peppers, seeded, quartered
2 garlic cloves, smashed
2 tbl extra virgin olive oil, divided
2 tbl balsamic vinegar, divided
1/3 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup packed, torn bread pieces, no crust (white or sourdough..especially good to use stale bread)
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp sea salt

Preheat the oven to 450. Combine the onion, tomatoes, red bell peppers and garlic on a baking sheet. Toss with 1 tbl of oil oil and 1 tbl of balsamic. Season with salt and pepper. Roast for 20 minutes until soft and caramelized.
In a food processor, blend the almonds and bread crumbs into fine crumbs with the paprika, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Add the vegetables and remaining 1 tbl of oil and 1 tbl of vinegar. Pulse until smooth.

Sausage and Arugula Pizza
1 ball fresh pizza dough
1 cup Romesco Sauce
3/4 cup Smart Grounds vegan ground beef
1/4 cup vegan mozzarella (like Follow Your Heart of Daiya), optional
1 tbl extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 tbl fresh chopped parsley
5 fresh mint leaves, roughly torn
2 cups baby arugula leaves

Preheat the oven to 475. Place a pizza stone or baking sheet in the oven to heat up as well.
Press out the pizza dough on a floured counter into a large circle or square.
When the pizza stone has heated up, remove and transfer the dough to the stone. Top with sauce, then crumble the ground beef and mozzarella. Drizzle 1 tbl of oil around the crust.
Bake for 15 minutes or until the crust has cooked through.
Once the pizza is out of the oven, top with fresh tomatoes, parsley, mint and arugula with a drizzle of olive oil.