Friday, October 5, 2012

Zucchini Pizzas with Basil


I was able to buy a round zucchini at the local farmer's market. A friend had told me that she was going to grill pizzas from the one she got, so I thought I'd give it a go as well. In case you haven't seen a round zucchini, they look like this:


....kind of like a pumpkin, but green! So fun and so many possibilities in cooking with them.

First, I cut slices about 1/2" thick. I coated each side with a little Extra Virgin Olive Oil so that when I put them on the grill, they wouldn't stick. Unfortunately, my zucchini pizzas didn't make it on the BBQ (starter wasn't working and I couldn't get the dang thing lit). I used my George Forman to cook the already coated-with-EVOO zucchini discs. Four to five minutes was all that was needed. I then put them on a cookie sheet, smeared a little pasta sauce on them, sprinkled with grated mozzarella cheese, and then baked them at 350* for about 10 minutes until the cheese melted. After cutting some fresh basil from my garden, I sliced it up and sprinkled it on the baked "pizzas."
 

I served these with a large salad with plenty of greens and sprouts, and some rolls. Delicious!

Thursday, October 4, 2012

Oatmeal with Chia and Blueberries



One of my favorite breakfasts is hot cereal with chia. I usually add some organic blueberries or cherries (you can get them frozen at Costco).  I use a Marga Flaker to turn my oat groats into flaked oats for quicker cooking.

In the picture above, I combined flaked oat groats, flaked sprouted brown rice and added some oat bran and hemp seed. I use about 1/4c. of this and add 1 c. water to cook. Once the cereal has started to thicken, I add about 1/2 c. of sprouted chia. I keep this in the refrigerator and add to smoothies as well. Simmer on low until cereal is cooked and  mixture is thickened. Add frozen berries and stir into cereal. Top with a little yogurt if desired.