Quinoa Pizza Crust: Yes, this is real life.

Due to popular demand, I am FINALLY posting my 

quinoa pizza recipe! 

Just a warning, I will not be winning any awards for presentation in this blog post. But I promise you this is yummy! 

I am obsessed with pizza. It's my favorite food in the whole wide world. Unfortunately, it's very difficult to work into a clean diet. In fact, it's impossible.....until now! 

This recipe makes two pizzas. They are 100% clean and they are crispy and delicious! Let's get started!

What you'll need:

For the crust:

• 3/4 cup uncooked quinoa
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• Ground pepper to taste

Toppings: You can use whatever you like!!!

Here is what I used:

• 3 oz shredded chicken 
• 1/4 cup sugar free pasta sauce
• 1/4 cup low fat mozzarella cheese
• 1T grated parmesan cheese
• Sautéed onions and baby bella mushrooms 

Soak 3/4 cup of uncooked quinoa in water for at least 2 hours. I typically soak it overnight.

Scoop out the quinoa with a slotted spoon and drop it into a magic bullet or blender. Add in whatever spices you prefer. I keep it simple with salt, pepper and minced garlic. Add in 1/4 cup water and blend until it's a pancake batter consistency.

Split the batter between two parchment-lined cookie sheets. Spread it out to your desired thickness. Personally, I like to spread it out very thin so that's it's a crispy flatbread. Plus, it makes me feel like I'm eating a huge pizza!

Once you have the batter spread out, bake in the oven at 450 degrees for 13-15 minutes until it's golden brown.

This got a bit more brown than I typically like, but it's still going to be great!

Now get your toppings together!

Peel the parchment paper off the crust and add all of your toppings. Put the pizza under the broiler for about a minute until everything is melty and amazing!

Now it's time to eat! 

Enjoy!!!

Crock Pot Yogurt

Prepare to have your life changed.

That is....if you spend a lot of money on yogurt on a weekly basis like I do.

This recipe is nothing new. I found it on Pinterest and I just had to try it out. AB and I fly through large yogurt containers every other day and it's costing us a fortune!

Now that we've mastered this yogurt experiment, I had to share the news!

Here's what you need:

• 1/2 Gallon of milk-This can be whole milk, nonfat, 2%...whatever you prefer. I use 2% milk.
• Crock pot
• 1/2 Cup of plain natural yogurt
• One or two heavy bath towels
• Colander
• Paper Towels
• Large bowl (large enough for the colander to sit over it)

Let's get started!

  

One thing to note: You will only need to purchase the plain yogurt once. Once you have made your first batch, you can save a 1/2 cup of your crock pot yogurt and use that as your "starter" for your next batch.

You have endless options with this. Throw it in your protein shake, add fruit, honey...use your imagination!

Enjoy!

Sweet Genius

Last night A.B. and I were in the mood for a yummy dessert but we didn't feel like leaving the house.

All I had on hand were some Nilla wafers, strawberries and cool whip. Kind of a no-brainer... but I couldn't just toss a box of crackers and a tub of cool whip at A.B.!!!

I grabbed some martini glasses, crushed up some wafers and put my knife skills to work.
I did a layer of cool whip, layer of crushed wafers, layer of chopped strawberries, and then repeated....ending with an ADORABLE strawberry heart. 

How did I do? :)

My Favorite Theme: Love.

If you've followed me for any given amount of time, you know how much I ADORE themes.

I especially love Valentine's Day. A day that celebrates LOVE and HEARTS and PINK... I can hardly contain myself!
Here are just some heartfelt pieces from my work week.

So, you can understand my excitement to celebrate my first Valentine's Day with A.B.! 

(I didn't think to warn him.)

I kicked off this day of love with cranberry mimosas and heart-(ish) shaped cinnamon rolls. 

These were far cuter BEFORE I put them in the oven.

Later on, I began working on my tablescape for dinner. I made a vegetarian lasagna and salad...but who cares about that? All I cared about was the table! 

 

I feel so lucky on a daily basis with A.B., so I hope that my little "day of love" made him feel just as special as I do. 

Hope you all had a lovely Valentine's Day!