Vegan Pizza Margherita
By: Nikki Brown
Published: Saturday, September 23, 2017 - 6:14am

Ingredients




For the Pizza Crust:
500g/17.5oz cauliflower florets
20g/0.75oz flax meal
62.5ml/2fl oz water
50g/2oz rolled oats (gluten-free optional)
1 tsp. dried rosemary
¼ tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp. salt
For the Mozzarella Cheese:
85g/3oz raw cashew nuts
250ml/8.5fl oz water
15g/0.5oz tapioca starch
1 tbsp. nutritional yeast
1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. garlic powder
For the Marinara Sauce:
1 tbsp. olive oil
20g/0.75oz garlic, finely chopped
400g/14oz can crushed tomatoes
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. maple syrup
1 tsp. dried oregano1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper
Toppings:
70g/2.5oz cherry tomatoes
20g/0.75oz basil leaves

Preparation

1 Make the Pizza Crust: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 2 Whisk together flaxmeal and water in a bowl. Leave for 5 minutes. 3 Steam cauliflower until fall-apart tender. Let it cool then squeeze out as much of the moisture through a fine cheesecloth. 4 Grind rolled oats, dried rosemary, garlic powder, and salt in a food processor to a flour-like texture. 5 Combine the pressed cauliflower and flaxmeal mixture. Stir well. 6 Stir in the oat mixture. 7 Form a ball and put it on top of the lined baking sheet. 8 Press it down to a circle. Lay a sheet of parchment paper on top and roll it flat to about ¼ inch thick using a rolling pin. 9 Bake for 15 minutes at 230C/450F. 10 Make the Mozzarella Cheese: Boil the cashews for 15 minutes or until soft. Drain. 11 Puree the boiled cashew and all remaining ingredients in a blender. 12 Pour this puree to a saucepan over medium heat and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring continously. 13 Make the Marinara Sauce: Sautee garlic in olive oil. 14 Add all remaining ingredients and simmer for 10 minutes. 15 Puree in a blender. 16 Assemble the Pizza: Spread marinara sauce over pizza crust. 17 Top with “mozzarella cheese.” 18 Add sliced tomatoes. 19 Bake for 8 minutes at 230/C/450F. 20 Top with fresh basil leaves.

About

This recipe could be fun for the kids to do for a healthy father’s day, Pizza isn’t often considered a healthy meal but this option definitely is.
Let’s look at the base – Cauliflower – high in Choline which helps liver function, brain development and nerve function, and Oats – contain beta-glucan, a soluble fibre that reduces blood sugar and LDL Cholesterol levels. Now for the cheese topping – Cashews contain Magnesium, older people can quite often be deficient in Magnesium and this is linked to Osteoporosis, Coronary Heart disease and Insulin Resistance. A last look at the sauce and topping – Oregano – a potent anti-oxidant and a good source of fibre that binds toxins and removes them from the body while Tomatoes contain Lycopene that has been linked to Prostate Cancer prevention and also protects the eyes from age-related Macular Degeneration.
We think this is a great way for kids to show their dads’ how much they care. Happy Father’s Day.