Pizza was on the menu tonight to use up the Trader Joe’s dough (which I still love, by the way). I didn’t feel like doing a “normal” pizza, so I decided on pesto, portabello, spinach and goat cheese.
Since basil isn’t exactly in season yet, I made an old favorite:
Cilantro Pesto.
- 1 big bunch of cilantro
- 25 grams toasted walnuts (2-3 tbsp?)
- 25 grams grated parmesan (2-3 tbsp?)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Puree in food processor. It’s pretty calorie dense even though I always cut back on the mix-ins, so watch your portion if you’re mindful of calories.
I just LOVE this crust!! I need to make something other than pizza with this dough. Bread bowls? Breadsticks? Just dough to eat!?
“One of these things does not belong”
Can you spot the slice of BBQ chicken pizza!? The husband and I traded slices.
I also opened a bottle of white wine to celebrate the warm weather and had a 4 oz pour.
All together for about 450 kcal, 9 grams fiber and 20 grams protein. Add 95 kcal for the wine!
Not sure what the evening plans are, but I’m just glad it’s the weekend 🙂
Nick says
Yum, whole wheat pizza, nothing like it. I tell ya, I have a feeling the BBQ chicken pizza was better! That’s my favorite kind to make too! Just can’t beat TJ’s!
– The Peanut Butter Boy
VeggieGirl says
Oh my goodness, that pizza!! I’ll take a slice, please!! Minus the goat cheese, of course ;0)
Hooray for the weekend, indeed!! It couldn’t have come sooner, that’s for sure, haha. Enjoy your night!
VeggieGirl says
Kath, we posted on each other’s blogs around the same time, haha!! Yes, I just combined the ingredients in the muffins, on a whim :0)
Kath says
Veg,
I know! You’re a baking genius, by the way 🙂
K
bikergurl says
Yum, I LOVE non-normal pizza! Maybe I just love pizza because BBQ Chicken Pizza also sounds amazing.
Caroline says
Mmm your pizza looks fantastic! I actually have never tried pesto, although I saw Rachael Ray make a light version with broth rather than oil.
Quick question regarding your lunch: are there multiple EarthFare locations? Since I am in NC too, I was curious if I could get some of the salad bar goodness too…
hk says
love the looks of your pizza!! I wish WF had pre-made whole wheat dough, no TJ’s down here in Austin 🙁 I guess I’ll have to get crackin’ on my own home-made dough…any recipe ideas for a nice healthy one that gets wonderfully doughy like your tonight?? mmmm, looks great!
Happy it’s the weekend, enjoy!!
Jill says
I love pesto, I love bbq chicken pizza, what a nice match! I’ve used walnuts too once, and my family thought I was CRAZY, so now I have proof I’m not!
Romina says
Oh my goodness! It looks delicious. I would eat that crust on its own. =)
Betsy in Pittsburgh says
The pizza looks great – I make homemade pizza every single week because it’s so good! Although I have to visualize your cilantro as basil…. for some reason cilantro makes me sick – it tastes like a cleaning product or something! Both times I had it I was nauseous for hours. Yikes.
But the pizzas do look great. Something I like to do with pesto is mix it up with mayo and spread it on the bun of a grilled chicken sandwich. Yum!
Steph says
Does anybody have a healthy recipe using BACON? I realize bacon isn’t the healthiest ingredient, but I have half a package that I need to use, and don’t want to waste it! Any healthy ideas? Thanks!
Katy says
I love broccoli crunch salad from whole foods… I made an adapted at home version once and it was yummy! Not sure of the portions, but you can play around with it 🙂
– Broccoli, blanched and cooled
(I had never blanched anything before- google it if you’re unsure of how to do it)
– Diced red onion
– Bacon
– pine nuts
– chopped red pepper
– dressing: mayo (I use miracle whip) with a little white vinegar and lots of salt and pepper
best if it is all combined and sits in the fridge for a bit… mmm I made myself hungry, time for dinner:)
Katie says
That’s funny, because bacon is pretty much inherently unhealthy…BUT my family does like to cook brussel sprouts in a pan with a little olive oil and bacon bits. Pretty much as close to healthy as you can get! 🙂
Steph says
Thanks for the suggestions! I know bacon is unhealthy but it tastes sooo good! Plus I hate wasting food. I was thinking spaghetti carbonara, but I’m not quite sure how to make it healthier. Maybe whole wheat pasta and some added veggies?
Liz H. says
I second bacon and brussel sprouts!, BLT’s, put it in an omlett or frittata, crumble it on top of a salad, wrap it around some chicken brushed w/ dijon mustard, s&p and grill it, tossing it in a veggie pasta would be great!
Becca says
I love the ingredient combination on your pizza Kath!
Amanda says
That looks so good! How did you divide the dough and store it (freezer or fridge?) (I am assuming you didn’t eat the entire package at once?
How do you get the bread so thin! Your story about the earthfare manager is too funny!
M.E. says
hk-
My local WF has pre-made whole wheat pizza dough. It’s relatively new though so maybe yours carries it now too– check in to it!
Leng says
That pizza looks HOT! I never thought of putting pesto on it. Such a great idea! 🙂
Kath says
Caroline,
Here’s the store locater – looks like there’s one in Raleigh in Brierdale Shopping Center.
http://www.earthfare.com/storeinfo/1200/
They’re building one in Rock Hill opening this summer ACROSS THE STREET from my school – I’m so excited. But point of the story is they are expanding all over 🙂
Re. Bacon,
I don’t see anything wrong with a few strips of bacon every now and then! It’s just high in saturated fat and sodium, but if you eat healthy most of the time it’s a fun addition to your diet (I try to get the nitrate-free/organic/or all-natural kind though). I just wouldn’t eat it everyday… But Steph, what about split pea soup? That’s one of my favorite ways to eat it 🙂
Amanda ,
We just stored the dough in its bag in the fridge. A brown juice appeared after about 5 days, but the husband said that was just fermentation and was OK – it smelled fine. Actually, I think it made the dough taste better. We divided it by weight using the food scale, but you could just eyeball it and put it in separate portioned bags when you get home. Next time I’m going to eat some/freeze some.
And it was REALLY thin. So thin that I had a hole in mine and it was hard to eat the pieces. But I’d rather get “more” and have it be hard to eat than have a teeny tiny thick crust pizza. Just stretch and stretch until it’s almost tearing.
Kath
Kathryn says
I just bought TJ’s whole wheat dough last night – can’t wait to use it!!
Anon. says
Healthier Spaghetti Carbonara (Food Network Recipe):
16 ounces spaghetti
1 cup chopped turkey bacon or regular bacon
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 to 3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups lowfat milk
1/2 cup lowfat or nonfat sour cream
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
Salt and ground black pepper
Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Meanwhile, cook bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat until golden brown. Add onion and garlic and saute 3 minutes, until onion is soft. Add oregano and cook 1 minute. Add flour and stir to coat onion. Add milk and bring to a simmer. Cook 5 minutes, until sauce thickens, stirring frequently.
Remove from heat and stir in sour cream, Parmesan and parsley. Season, to taste, with salt and black pepper. Drain pasta and toss with sauce to coat. Serve.
We used whole wheat pasta- and not the whole 16 oz… probably around 12 oz?, 1% milk, and lowfat sour cream (you could also probaby use part skim ricotta). It was very good!
jennifer says
Hi Kath, ive been a silent reader of your blog for quite a while and i’d like you to know how much i love it! you know, i just came back from grocery shopping, and i want to admit (a little embarassing) that i had been so excited i almost screamed in the store because i found KALE! 🙂 it’s so hard finding kale here because somehow the stores around me never seem to have those! (i’m from the UK by the way) and so i’m definitely going to make some kale chips tonight! 🙂 thanks so much for all your awesome meal ideas!
Kath says
Jennifer,
YAY!! Have fun playing with the kale 🙂
Kath
Sidi says
Bread from that dough is great.