What I Want Now: Raw Vegan Pesto Pizza On A Sprouted Lentil Crust

Doesn't this look gorgeous?! Photo and recipe courtesy of Joanne from Foods for Long Life.

Strawberry, Pea, Pepper, and Lettuce Salad with a Pesto Dressing

Strawberry, pea, green pepper, and lettuce salad dressed with a basil walnut pesto dressing.

Strawberry, Pea, Pepper, and Lettuce Salad

Ingredients:

• 10 large strawberries
• 1 cup green peas
• 2-3 cups lettuce
• 1 green pepper
• 3-4 basil leaves
• 2 tablespoons basil walnut pesto
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Handful of sunflower seeds

To make:

• Chop up the strawberries, peppers, and lettuce.
• Finely chop the basil leaves and combine it with the pesto, olive oil and a couple of teaspoons of water to make a dressing.
• Pour over the remaining ingredients.
• Garnish with sunflower seeds.
  
  
  
  
  
  

Basil Walnut Pesto Pasta with Peppers and Olives

When you make a fresh batch of pesto, its always best to use it as soon as possible. I made a quick sauce out of mine to go with my whole wheat fusili pasta. I'm a bit iffy about boiled flour-based dishes (noodles, pasta etc), and almost never have them. But since I got a pack of pasta at a discount, why not?!

Basil Walnut Pesto Pasta with Peppers and Olives

Ingredients:

• 1 cup fusili pasta (or any other of your choice)
• 3 tablespoons of basil and walnut pesto
• 1 green pepper
• Handful of black olives
• 1/2 cup water
• Teaspoon of olive oil
• Salt, to taste

To make:

• Heat a pot of water along with the salt.
• When the water comes to a boil, add the pasta.
• Cook for 7 minutes, or as per instructions on the pack.
• Drain the pasta, retaining about 1/2 cup of water to make your sauce.
• In a pan, add the pesto and 1/2 cup pasta water, to make a sauce.
• Add the pasta back in the sauce, along with the peppers and olives.
• Cook for an additional minute and turn off the gas.
• Drizzle the olive oil on top when you serve.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

Basil and Walnut Pesto

A really simple, flavorful pesto made with the freshest of ingredients. That would mean the best olive oil you can afford, and fresher than fresh basil leaves. If you want it really rustic, you need to chop up the basil and walnuts with a mezzaluna. But if you're lazy like me, a blender will do as well. The original recipe calls for pine nuts, but we don't get those around here.

This one's dedicated to my new celeb crush - David Rocco. <3

Basil and Walnut Pesto

• 2-3 cups of basil
• 1 cup walnuts
• 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil
• 1-2 garlic cloves (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

To make:

• Chop up/Blend the basil, walnuts and garlic till they are still a bit chunky.
• Add the salt and olive oil over the mixture.
• Mix well.

And to put the pesto to good use, here's a pasta recipe.

Indian Veggie Pizza....on Naan

I had a garlic naan left over from yesterday afternoon's lunch. So, inspired by this recipe, I decided to have a slice of Indian-style pizza and make it a healthier version of the original recipe. Plus, I get to use up some of my damn vegetables (Such a mistake buying so much, but hate having it go to waste!).

To make, you'll need a half or quarter of a naan (depending on the size of the naan bread). Basically, each serving of your pizza will be one sliver of the naan - If you have a big round naan, cut it into quarters, and so on.

Mine was a day old, which was just fine with me.

On this, I used a base of green chutney - which is similar to pesto, except its made of coriander, green chillis, coconut flesh, and some herbs. I didnt make a fresh batch, it just happened to be lying in my refrigerator made by my mom. Here's a nice recipe for green Indian chutney. You could use pesto.

PS: In the original recipe, the breads look more like tandoori rotis, not naans. I'm Indian. I would know.

Veggie Pizza on Naan Bread

Ingredients:

• 1/2 naan
• Table spoon of green chutney/pesto
• Some thinly chopped veggies - I used green and yellow peppers, red cabbage, and some greens
• 5-10 black olives
• Dash of olive oil
• Teaspoon of roasted sunflower seeds
• Dried basil, as per taste

To make:
On a sliver of the naan bread, spread the green chutney all over.

Then, lay some green leafy vegetables, then the peppers and cabbage on top. Then the olives. Splash on some olive oil and a dash of dry basil.

Finally the sunflower seeds for crunch.

Bake in the oven at around 250 degrees celcius for around 15-20 minutes.

You can either have it as a pizza or roll it over and have it as a wrap. And yes, I'll admit, its not really a pizza - seeing as there was no cheese (or vegan substitute for cheese) or tomatoes.

I have to say, I really, really enjoyed eating this one. I still have a quarter of a naan left over, which I will use for another pizza - This one with Tahini paste as the base (should go well with the garlic in the naan), and sliced eggplants and some veggies for lunch. Mmmm. Can't wait!!