Sweet T and a Honey B
Food, Fitness, and the Adventures That Make Life Sweet

Sun Dried Tomato Pesto and Goat Cheese Pizza

I am a certified pizza addict and I’m not ashamed to admit it. It’s no exaggeration when I say I have made every healthy pizza alternative there is.-quinoa pizza bites, pizza roll ups, cauliflower pizza, pizza salads, you name it. While a pizza inspired dish satisfies the craving, there’s nothing quite like, well, actual pizza. 

Since I had tried every other Simple Mills product (and loved it), I picked up a couple boxes of the pizza crust. It’s all natural, gluten free, and made with almond flour. The mix requires very few ingredients (Apple cider vinegar-which kills bacteria, supports gut health, lowers blood pressure, and contains probiotics-coconut oil or avocado oil, and water), takes minutes to make, and turns out with the perfect amount of crispiness. 

I topped our pizzas with a little of the pesto, some soft goat cheese, and my favorite veggies, and I had an actual pizza. One that tasted good and was good for me. This is a quick weeknight meal that satisfies the strongest of pizza cravings without all the extra grease.

(I bought two boxes of mix so that we had leftovers for the next night. The below recipe for sun dried tomato pesto is enough for 4 8-inch pizzas which uses the two boxes)

Sun Dried Tomato Pesto

  • 1 jar (250 ML) of sun dried tomatoes in oil (do not drain!)
  • 1 cup fresh basil
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (grated)

Gluten Free Pizza (Serves 2)

  • 1 box of Simple Mills Gluten Free Almond Flour Pizza Crust, made as directed (2 tbs Apple Cider Vinegar, 2 tbs oil, 6 tbs water)
  • 4 oz soft goat cheese
  • 1 cup arugula
  • 1 small roma tomato
  • 1/2 small onion
  • sea salt
  • Italian seasoning
  • 1/2 cup of the Sun Dried Tomato Pesto (save the other half in an air tight container)

 

  1. The Simple Mills mix makes two 8-inch round pizzas. After baking the crusts for 5 minutes at 350 degrees, take them out of the oven to add your toppings.
  2. Spread 1/4 cup of the Sun Dried Tomato Pesto evenly on each crust.
  3. Add roma tomato slices, arugula, and onion on top.
  4. Place 2 oz. of goat cheese on top of each pizza.
  5. Sprinkle with a little sea salt and Italian seasoning.
  6. Bake 15 more minutes at 350 or until ends of crust turn golden brown. 
  7. Cut each pizza in to four slices and enjoy!

Avocado Arugula Pesto Pasta

It’s pretty evident I haven’t had a lot of time in the kitchen lately based on my hiatus from any blogging. We’re still kind of finding our new groove over here based of Bryan’s grad school and my dance schedules. As a result, this last week I was looking a lot to other bloggers for some fall appropriate meals to cook for hubs and I while still requiring little time to actually prep it. My first go-to when it comes to AH-MAZING feel good/clean recipes is Rachel from RachLMansfield. A ton of my “must make” bookmarks include her recipes. 

This pasta is chocked full of deliciousness and is a solid choice for a dreary fall evening. We added a little chicken sausage for some additional bulk/protein and the combo was a winner. 

Avoacado Arugula Pesto Pasta

(serves 3)

Ingredients

  • 1 ripe avocado, peeled and pitted
  • 1 cup (packed) arugula
  • ⅓ cup raw walnuts
  • ¼ cup pine nuts
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 2 tablespoons avocado oil
  • Water as needed
  • 1 box pasta of choice (I used Banza Chickpea pasta. I love the taste of this pasta and the array of shapes!)
  • Optional: 1 lb Organic Chicken Sausage, cooked and sliced

Cook pasta as directed.

Combine all sauce ingredients in a blender or food processor. Add water as needed to get desired consistency (I added about 1/3 cup). 

Pour sauce over hot pasta. Top with chicken sausage, a little Parmesan cheese, or red pepper flakes. Enjoy!

(Note: my obsession with avocado is very real so next time I make I might try adding a little more avocado and a tiny bit less arugula to give it more of an avocado taste. Add a little more water if this is the case) 

Warm Sandwiches, Mixed Greens, and Homemade Honey Mustard Dressing

As I’ve boldly hinted before, I don’t enjoy over complicating food. In my opinion, there’s no reason that most meals should consist of a lengthy list of ingredients (side rant, does anyone else hate that when you have to purchase a giant bottle of a random spice you may never use again? And the recipe ends up calling for 1/4 tsp? This pet peeve is certainly a reason I enjoy keeping meals simple..). Spending time in the kitchen tends to be even more cumbersome when you’re experiencing record high temperatures in September (Fall, where you at?). As a result of the hot temps, we’ve avoided turning our oven on at all costs these last few days and in turn, threw together an incredibly simple Sunday night dinner to enjoy while we watched football and a few episodes of Shameless. 

I had a taste for a tangy/sweet sort of dressing with our mixed green salads and I consequently had received a jar of avocado oil in this week’s Thrive Market order. The avocado itself has a seemingly endless list of health benefits, and avocado oil is no different. Avo oil is extracted from the actual flesh of the avocado. It’s high in monosaturated fats (improves cholesterol and reduces risk of heart disease!) and Vitamins A, E, and D. Avo/Avo oil also contains magnesium (helps with digestion, increases energy, relieves muscle aches…the list goes on). Another great thing about avo oil is that it really doesn’t have any sort of taste. Even though I eat avocado with everything, I don’t necessarily want all my foods tasting like it. Because of this, I even used some in my gluten-free pumpkin muffins this morning!

I used this oil as the base for my dressing and added it gradually to the honey mustard mixture. It turned out to be just enough tangy and just enough sweet to satisfy my craving and a little bit of it certainly went a long way. 

 

Honey Mustard Dressing

  • 1/4 cup avocado oil
  • 2 tbs yellow or dijon mustard
  • 2 tbs honey
  • 1 tbs apple cider vingar
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp salt

Ham and Swiss Paninis – Makes 2 Paninis

  • 4 slices of crusty bread (sourdough works well)
  • 4 slices of thick- cut ham (I love the black forest ham from (Greenridge Farm). 
  • 2 slices of swiss cheese
  • Any sandwich toppings you like! We love red pepper or avocado slices on our paninis. 

Mix the honey,mustard, and apple cider vinegar together with a whisk or a fork. Gradually add the avocado oil to the mixture. Add garlic powder and salt. 

We grilled up our sandwiches on our panini maker (that thing gets more use than any appliance in our house) and threw together each salad using 1 cup of organic mixed baby greens, sliced cucumbers, and 2 tbs of dressing. All together dinner took about fifteen minutes which maximized the amount of couch time Sunday night!

 

Do you have an appliance or kitchen gadget that gets used more than all others? Do you have a Sunday dinner routine?

 

 

Chickpea and Avocado Salad

Fall has officially peeked his head in on us in the Midwest and the pumpkins and apples are popping up everywhere. I’ve never been so ready for an entire season in my life and although I’m almost 100% certain I was the first person in line to order a #PSL, this season certainly brings on some new challenges. My husband officially began grad school last week and since the new dance season has started for me, we basically don’t see each other until Thursday of each week (we now look forward to ‘How to Get Away with Murder’ and ‘This is Us’ On Demand dates). Our hectic schedules have forced me to think even simpler when it comes to mealtime so that our eating stays on track. As a result, baked chicken with various side dishes has been on heavy rotation. I’ve enjoyed experimenting with different ingredients and sometimes our favorite dishes have come from throwing whatever vegetables, oils/dressings, and cheeses we have left towards the end of the week. 

It’s no surprise I had a couple extra cans of chickpeas in my pantry last week as I’ve recently been finding every excuse to use them in different dishes. These little guys come with good amounts of protein and fiber and also aid in digestion. I combined a can of these with some thick chunks of avocado, and just a few other ingredients it was really flavorful. Judging by how fast my husband ate his portion, he certainly gave it two thumbs up!

 

Ingredients

  • 1 15 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed. Pat dry
  • 2 avocados, diced
  • 1/2 cup fresh cilantro
  • 1/4 cup chopped green onion
  • 3 oz crumbled goat cheese
  • juice from 1 lime
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • salt to taste

 

  1. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl with a spatula or wooden spoon. Enjoy!

 

Have you ever been pleasantly surprised by combining random ingredients? What’s been your favorite creation?

 

Happy Weekending!

An Ideal Summer Side

The end of summer is gathering speed and soon enough we will all be pulling our boots to the front of the closet and pulling up to the drive-thru screen at Starbucks begging for a pumpkin spice latte (I get that the latter may not appeal to everyone). While the fall is always a welcomed season, especially this year, I’m trying my best to hang onto my tank tops and the smell of sunscreen juuuusst a little longer. This need for a little more time with the sunshine includes the fresh fruit, vegetables, and lighter meals that come along with the summertime. We’ve been making it a point to grill out on the balcony a few extra times and enjoy the fresh in-season produce. 

A recent dinner at my in-laws inspired this last week’s side-dish with pretty much everything we ate. My wonderful mother-in-law had whipped up a cold quinoa salad with chopped veggies and feta cheese that was to die for. I’m fairly certain I had three helpings. If you know me, you know I love to look for an excuse to pair quinoa with any dish but very rarely find a way to eat it cold other than throwing it on top of green salads. Making it it’s own dish was something I surprisingly hadn’t tried before. I left dinner determined to replicate it at home using some of me and hub’s recent favorites from the farmer’s market.  

More than I love quinoa, I love sweet peppers. These were a must. And since I can eat avocado right out of the skin with a spoon, this had to go in too. What really made this dish extra tasty was the soft crumbled goat cheese and Kraft brand Parmesan Pesto Vinaigrette. I found these olive oil based dressings not too long ago and they are delicious and very few Weight Watcher points. The effort required in this recipe is close to none and makes enough for leftovers throughout the week. When I say we ate this with everything, I mean everything. This very colorful dish is great with grilled chicken, burgers, sandwiches, soup, and also just by itself.  Since we just finished up the last bite of this quinoa salad this afternoon with our shared grilled cheese, I’m already adding some more quinoa and goat cheese to the grocery list for this week. 

What are some of your favorite summertime dishes? Are there any other veggies you would add to your quinoa salad? 

Vegetable Quinoa Salad

Makes approx. 6 – 3/4 cup servings. 7 WW points per serving.

  • 1 cup quinoa, cooked (we used red because of the rich color it gives this dish)
  • 3 oz. crumbled goat cheese
  • 1/2 large cucumber, diced
  • 1 medium sweet red pepper, diced
  • 1 medium sweet yellow pepper, diced
  • 1 medium avocado, diced
  • 1/2 cup Kraft Parmesan Pesto Vinaigrette
  1. Mix quinoa, all vegetables, and cheese together in a large bowl.
  2. If serving right away, toss salad with the dressing. If you plan to have leftovers, add 1-2 tbs of dressing to each serving as you go to avoid the vegetables getting soggy.