What we ate Wednesday

This is a feature on one of my favourite blogs Bonzai Aphrodite and I wanted to try to post at least one meal a week so you can see all the gorgeous food we eat. When my mum was here visiting over Christmas she couldn’t believe the variety of tastes and textures and flavours we enjoy. She kept asking, “Do you really eat like this ALL the time?” And the answer is  YES. Plant based eating, where you cook with whole foods, is definitely where it’s at. It’s delicious, nutritious and cruelty free. What’s not to love?

 

You may notice that this is not being posted on Wednesday. Well, we actually ate this on Thursday but What we ate Thursday doesn’t sound as good. Plus I wanted to post this pizza recipe as I just *knew* it was going to be freakin’ amazing.

 

I also wanted to show you how easy it is to veganise a recipe. I found this recipe in the free newspaper given out by the supermarket Waitrose. It is showing how you can make a copy cat recipe of the Rustichella  pizza you find on the menu at the restaurant Pizza Express.  

 

Basically they want you to buy the Pizza Express brand Margherita pizza (cheese pizza) in the chiller section of the store and top with pancetta, sun dried tomatoes, rocket (arugula), parmesan cheese and Pizza Express brand bottled Caesar dressing.

 

The problems here are several.

1. Their crust is made with wheat--which is definitely no-no for my tummy.

2. Pancetta is a smoky meat

3. Parmesan cheese is made from dairy

4. Caesar dressing is made with anchovies (and more parmesan cheese and egg yolk)

 

Did this stop me? Heck no! I made my own gluten free crust to start, but if you don’t have wheat issues then feel free to buy a ready made crust to make it go quicker.

 

I topped my crust with some homemade red sauce and caramelised red onion. I sprinkled on the sun dried tomatoes (chopped into bits)  over the top and then baked.

For the last three minutes of baking I added smoked tofu  I added this last as tofu can burn if cooked too long. After baking  I  sprinkled on vegan parmesan made with nutritional yeast and ground almonds and salt.

Then I added a handful of rocket and drizzled on some vegan Caesar dressing made from this recipe http://ohsheglows.com/2010/06/25/easy-vegan-caesar-salad/ It was lovely and creamy and lemony and salty and tangy. The only change I made in the recipe was using my regular parmesan substitute rather than her recipe for parmesan.

Look at that creamy dressing up close! There was both rocket and Caesar dressing left over so I smell salad for tomorrow’s lunch!

 

It was delicious--it tasted just like a posh pizza you’d  get at a swanky pizza place.

 

 I can understand why people might be hesitant to go vegan--they worry that all the fun will go out of eating. That every meal will be bland. That it will be hard to find food to eat. That it will be hard to cook. I had those worries. I worried that if I cut our meat and dairy and eggs, what would I eat?

 

But being vegan is so freeing. There is so much delicious food out there. Food that involved no suffering and death. Food that tastes good and is easy to prepare. If you used a pre-made crust, this pizza would come together in a snap. I made the dressing the day before to make it go even quicker.

 

Now go and make it for yourself.