I needed a quick dinner on Friday night, something that would both fill up my boyfriend and give us a heavy dose of veggies. I dug through the freezer and found half of a bag of Trader Joe’s whole wheat pizza dough and voila – inspiration! However, I was missing a critical pizza ingredient: crushed tomatoes (and the rest of the staples needed for a homemade sauce). With a fully ripe avocado taunting me from the windowsill, I decided to experiment.
If you’ve been keeping up with the blog, you may notice that this pizza combines some of my favorite things: avocado (which continues to blow my mind with its versatility) paired with kale and cheese. The recipe can be varied to fit your dietary needs and taste preferences, but don’t think about touching the creamy dairy-free sauce…it’s killer.
Ingredients:
1/2 bag of whole wheat pizza dough (if frozen, defrost for several hours or by placing the entire bag in a bowl of hot water until softened)
1 avocado
2 cubes of frozen basil (or 1 bunch of fresh basil)
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 handfuls of raw kale (about 2 cups)
1/2 to 1 cup frozen corn kernels
2 small tomatoes, sliced thinly
3/4 cup of feta crumbles
1/3 cup of shredded Pecorino Romano cheese (or Parmesan)
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Start with the dough. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a baking sheet with olive oil or Pam. Using your fingers, work the dough by pushing and stretching until it is flattened on the baking sheet.
Pop the pizza dough in the oven and let bake for 12-18 minutes, or until the dough seems to have hardened a bit (it should still feel somewhat bendable).
Remove the dough from the oven and set aside. Leave the oven on 350 degrees for later use. Slice the avocado in half, remove the pit, and scoop the flesh into a food processor or blender. Add a tablespoon of olive oil and all of the basil. Blend until fully pureed and smooth–the consistency of hummus. Set aside.
Add a tablespoon of oil to a saute pan or pot and turn on medium heat. Add in the kale and corn kernels, a bit of salt and pepper, and stir occasionally until the corn has defrosted and the kale has cooked through (it will soften and develop a darker shade of green).
Now comes the fun part! Dress up the pizza. Use a spoon to spread all of the avocado mixture evenly onto the crust.
Top with all of your veggies (kale, corn, tomatoes) and finish off with the cheese.
Place the pizza back in the oven and bake until the cheese has fully melted and the ingredients have browned on top (about 10 minutes). Remove from the oven and transfer to a cutting board, slice in to pieces, and serve!
