Watermelon Fresca

It was a hot and beautiful day here today which calls for some sunbathing.  I spent hours laying out and finishing up Gone Girl.  (Good book, terrible ending.)  All that time in the sun meant I was hot and dehydrated.  I decided to make watermelon fresca to cool off.  Most fresca recipes include sugar, but you really don't need it here.  This watermelon was very sweet on its own.  I started with a 5lb watermelon and cut it in half.

Then I started to cut the rind off.

Tune was hot, too, and happily gobbled up a bite of watermelon.

I cut the watermelon in cubes to make it fit in my blender, and then blended until smooth.  

Today is laundry day and Tune is having one last nap before the sheets are washed.

This is the finished product. (Yes, I drink out of jars with the label still partly attached.)  

Ingredient:

1 watermelon, chilled

Directions:

Blend until smooth and enjoy

Variations:

-add fresh mint or any other herbs that sound good

-watermelon margarita anyone?

-pour in popsicle mold and make pops

Chickpea Flatbread with Pesto

I was craving something different and heartier than my usual salad/roasted veggies/quinoa bowl for dinner, when I found this recipe.  A delicious chickpea flatbread with homemade pesto.  After watching this video and this video, I was motivated to make pizza.  I figured I could turn the flatbread into a pizza crust, and have pizza and salad for dinner. 

I started by making the tomato sauce described in the videos.  I just roasted cut tomatoes and garlic - no oil needed.

Then I mixed the batter for the flatbread.

The batter calls for almond meal.  You might try subbing another flour or making your own almond meal.  Generally, almond meal is pretty expensive.  The only exception I've found to this is Trader Joe's.

Flatbread cooking and tomatoes roasting.

Ingredients for homemade pesto sauce.  Pictured below is basil, almonds (I would typically use walnuts or pinenuts, but any nut will work), sea salt, and apple cider vinegar.

Spread the blended pesto on the flatbread.  Variation: instead of making a spreadable pesto, make it thicker like they do in the video.  This will create a thicker cheese-like texture.  The reason I chose not to do this is because I wanted the pesto flavor to evenly coat the pizza, instead of bits of it scattered.

Leave your blender dirty.

Add the roasted tomatoes and garlic, and blend.

Something magical happenes when you blend roasted tomatoes and roasted garlic.  This sauce was so flavorful and creamy, and it only has two ingredients!

Extra pesto and sauce for leftovers/eating by the spoonful late at night.

Add sliced onions and bake until just a few minutes, until the crust is firm and the sauce has set.

Julienne chard/kale/spinach etc and toss with leftover pesto thinned with some vinegar.  Serve this alongside the pizza.

This is an awful picture, but I served the salad right on top of the pizza and added an avocado. 

Ingredients:

Flatbred (adapted from Veggie Nook):

-1 c chickpea flour

-1/4 c almond meal

-1 c water

-2 tbsp olive oil

-1/2 tsp sea salt

Mix all ingredients well.  Grease a dish (I used a pie pan), pour in batter, and cook at 400 degrees from 25 minutes.

Tomato Sauce:

-4 roma tomatoes

-5 cloves of garlic

Put ingredients in an ungreased pan and bake until browned.  Blend.

Pesto:

-basil leaves

-apple cider vinegar

-nuts of choise

-sea salt

Put all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.  To make a thicker cheese-like pesto, use very little vinegar.

Bake flatbread.  Spread on sauces, onions, any other toppings and bake until crust is firm and sauces are set.  Serve with a side of salad.

Variation:  Make flatbread batter, slice red onions, grease a pan, lay red onions in pan and pour batter over.  Added any herbs or seasonings you desire.  This is flavorful enough to serve plain, alongside a salad or soup.

Red Lentil Pancakes

These pancakes would be great for any meal or snack, but we happened to make them for breakfast.  They are inspired by this recipe.  You start by soaking lentils overnight, and blending them with chia seeds (in place of eggs), water, and spices.

I added about a quarter of an onion, a thai chili from our garden, and some Eat Well Salts.

Stopping for a little snack before breakfast is ready.  It's normal to eat chocolate before breakfast, right?

Some of the spices we added to the blender.

And try not to spill tumeric on anything as it stains everything it touches.

Blend until smooth, adding water as needed.

Cook like pancakes.

Top with honey, or ketchup, or avocado, or hot sauce, etc.

Ingredients:

1 cup red lentils, soaked overnight and drained

2 tbsp whole chia seeds (I did not grind them first as the original recipe called for)

1 Thai chili pepper, or any other pepper/spice to give desired level of heat

spices to taste: garlic powder, tumeric, curry powder, garam masala, ginger, etc

Blend all ingredients with 1 1/4 c water.  Pour onto greased pan over medium heat.  Cook until bubbles form and pop.  Flip pancake over and cook for a few more minutes until golden brown.  Serve with whatever toppings you desire!

Variation:

Try adding a little more water and making a crepe instead.