Gluten Free Vegetarian Pizza Featuring Caulipower Crust

I love to create my own Gluten Free Pizza using Caulipower Crust. The crust is the blank canvas upon which I create my masterpiece.

So Many Choices...Where Do I Start?
When I create a gluten free pizza one of the first things that goes through my mind is deciding whether I will make a vegan, vegetarian, or  meat included pizza. The pizzas I create have toppings in heaping portions compared to the manufactured pizzas. The amount of cheese (regular or vegan) that I use is less than a packaged pizza.

Now That I have Chosen My Pizza Style, What Do I Do?
The second thought that goes through my mind is flavor profile. I decide with what I will line the crust and build my base from there.  Options I use quite a bit include pasta/pizza red sauce, olive oil, hummus, crushed white beans, and pesto.

Flavors Decided. Then What?
After I have made the decision on the type of pizza and flavor, I must decide how to flavor it. I pick vibrant colors so that the pizza not only looks appetizing (since we eat with our eyes first) but also provides me with a variety of nutrients.

Now, It's Time To Prepare ... Have Patience ... And ENJOY!

Today I decided to create GLUTEN FREE VEGETARIAN PIZZA. A swap for vegan cheese would have made this a GLUTEN FREE VEGAN recipe.

Ingredients:
1 Caulipower Pizza Crust
1/4 cup roasted red pepper hummus to line the crust
Sprinkle of crushed red pepper flakes
3 cloves of garlic (diced)
1/4 cup onion (diced thin)
1 orange bell pepper (sliced into even long slivers)
1/2 cup yellow squash (sliced into tiny slivers)
1/2 cup Italian Cheese blend or combination of Parmesan and Mozzarella

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 425
Line the crust with hummus and sprinkle with the crushed red pepper flakes
Prepare the onion and garlic then sprinkle evenly over the crust
Prepare the bell pepper and squash. Decorate the crust with the bell pepper sliced in a radial pattern and add the squash between the pepper slices.
Top with the cheese and cook about 15 minutes or until cheese melts and edges of crust start to tan.

Handfulls Snacks ... Enjoy by the Handful or in Your Favorite Recipe

I have fallen in love with Handfulls Snacks! Their Crunch Bites line of products are great to enjoy BY THE HANDFUL or to add to salads for some extra CRUNCH and protein!

Crunch Bites add a rice cracker shell, a crunch, to the California Almond! They come in a variety of flavor profiles for you to enjoy!

Crunch Bites or Fusions can be added to a salad to add flavor and texture. The image below shows adding a HANDFUL of Crunch Bites to a salad! Read my recipe for A Simple Salad With A Crunch.

Handfull Snacks Fusion line of nuts, seeds, and dried fruits are great BY THE HANDFUL as well as used in recipes! They come in a variety of flavors, savory and sweet! I have enjoyed baking Fusions into gluten free breads, sprinkling them on my Greek Yogurt for breakfast, adding them to salads, and adding them to fried rice. The possibilities are endless! The flavors are superior! 

I enjoy adding Fusions to recipes. I made Strawberry Nut Bread using CABO CATAMARAN CRUNCH and created a gluten free bread that was moist, flavorful, and satisfying!

Breakfasts can be made magical with the addition of Handfulls Snacks.  A Gluten Free Breakfast with a Fusion of Flavors includes Denali Mountain Mix with adds great flavor and texture at the start of a HOT day!

Blogfest 2018 ... Fitness, Food, Friendships, and Learning

BlogFest at IDEAWORLD 2018 was an amazing experience! I believe in the saying, everything is better when you can share it with another person! I was lucky to be able to share my time at BlogFest with a great friend.

BlogFest provided both of us an opportunity to meet, learn from, and begin to collaborate with others! It was inspiring to be in a room filled with people who share your passions and goals! Our great speakers provided their insight, experience, and motivation. Casual conversations with one another provided connections to our blogging communities.

San Diego 

San Diego was a great host city with the convention's location near the airport. The downtown area was walkable and provided many options for restaurants and entertainment.

Fitness

Blogfest was past of IDEAWORLD 2018. When not attending BlogFest workshops, we had the opportunity to attend the EXPO and IDEAWORLD classes. The classes were opportunities to experience new trends in the industry and learn from experts; they were a blast! Thanks Frog Fitness for the workout and being one of our sponsors!

Food
Many of the bloggers at blogfest focus on food as well as fitness. I loved our presenters, sponsors, and exhibitors at the EXPO. Each came with a wealth of knowledge to share with us so we could get the message out to our audience. I want to thank Be Better Bars for the extra bars they gave out to us. Not only were there enough for us to try each flavor, but we were given extra to give out to people in our classes or as an online giveaway. I used the bars as an incentive in class during the month of July.

I am so excited that California Almonds gave us a cute tin to store a serving of almonds (23). I now carry one tin in my purse and one in my yoga mat bag (instead of the almonds in Ziploc Bangs I had been using) so I always have a healthy snack if I need it!

California Almonds inspired me to make a batch of gluten free almond granola. Read my recipe for Gluten Free Almond Granola ... Start Your Day the California Almond Way!


PreCon to PostCon
BlogFest started in advance of our gathering in San Diego. We had a great opportunity to participate in an online learning PreCon. The speakers were top notch and I want to give a shout out to each and every one of them. I learned so much about blogging and gaining an audience through each person's perspective. A goal I have for the rest of the year is to learn more about PodCasts and to incorporate Facebook Live and Instagram Stories into my blogging. If you do not already, follow me on Instagram @healthyrecipevariations.

A Gluten Free Breakfast with a Fusion of Flavors

When the weather is in the summer is at its peak, I prefer a cool breakfast! I prefer to keep it simple on a hot day. I tend to turn to Greek Yogurt as my breakfast "blank canvas" and I create my masterpiece from there. I purchase PLAIN LOWFAT Greek Yogurt so I can customize the flavor profile and control the sugar that I have each day.

I do not stop using the oven or stove on hot days. If I need to do any baking, I do it after breakfast when the house is still cool! I love to cook and do not let the outside temperature stop me from eating healthy, real food!

I follow a simple formula to create my breakfast, then I add variety based on the format:

1 cup FRUIT + 1 cup GREEK YOGURT + 1 TBSP FLAVOR (or honey) + 1/2 cup SEEDS/NUTS/GRANOLA

I have found that the riper the fruit, the sweeter it is. If I wish my breakfast to be a bit sweeter one day than another, I dice my fruit and warm it in the microwave for 30 seconds.

My favorite flavor to add is cinnamon as it helps reduce blood sugar and diabetes runs in my family. I also enjoy adding ORGANIFI RED JUICE to my yogurt along with red berries for an antioxidant boost!

HandfullsSnacks Fusions are a great addition to yogurt for breakfast. Pictured here is DENALI MOUNTAIN MIX on top of Greek Yogurt and Peaches! I did not add flavor to my yogurt as the Denali Mix provided the flavor (and texture) boost!

NOTE: This could be made into a dessert by adding some honey and/or a few gluten free chocolate chips to the add-in mixture. 

A Simple Salad with CRUNCH

During the HEAT of the summer many people enjoy eating COOL foods. A salad can become a meal with the addition of flavors, textures, and nutrients. Your salad can be made to fit your dietary needs.

A GLUTEN FREE addition to a salad can be Immuno-Viva Core. A teaspoon added to the salad (as part of oil and vinegar dressing) can help support the heart, skin, and immune system.

A GLUTEN FREE addition to a salad can be HandfullsSnacks Crunch Bites or Fusions. The picture below includes Crunch Bites Sea Salt added to a salad along with raisins and red pepper. My salad was made from zucchini spirals and red cabbage (diced/shredded).

Recipe for one salad:

• 1 cup shredded zucchini (or yellow crook neck squash)
• 1 cup diced/shredded cabbage
• 1/2 cup diced bell pepper
• 1/2 cup dried fruits
• HANDFULL of Crunch Bites (about 1/2 cup) 
• Oil and vinegar dressing ... with a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes to taste

Active Lifestyle and Active Travel Requires Nutrition to Go

I lead an active lifestyle and take active vacations. I love real foods, natural sugars, and limited ingredient products (when I purchase packaged foods). NuGo Nutrition has products that meet my needs and I am sure you will love them as much as my husband and I do!

NuGo bars are healthy choices as the company believes in using fresh, NON-GMO ingredients. They are committed to keeping artificial hormones, sweeteners, and maltitol (which causes digestive distress in some people) out of their products.

NuGo has a variety of bars that meet a variety of dietary needs including gluten free, vegan, soy free, low fat, and low sugar. Pack one in your gym bag, suitcase, or pocket today!

Gluten Free Almond Granola ... Start Your Day the California Almond Way!

Start Your Day the California Almond Way ... Bring Back the Jingle!

I enjoy making homemade granola to control the sugar that I consume. Many packaged cereals are loaded with sugar, and, as a granola fan, I need to make sure to limit my sugar intake since I have a tendency to eat lots of granola as cereal or a snack!

My recipe for granola is simple ... Gluten Free Oats + Flavoring + Oil + Honey + Mix-Ins

I love the versatility and simplicity of the granola formula. The flavors and quantity can be customized each time you prepare a batch!

California Almonds provide numerous health and nutrition benefits. The easy formula to remember is 1-2-3 ... one serving of almonds is 23

nuts. They add a crunch to a recipe, have a low glycemic index, have prebiotic potential and fiber, and contain "good" fats and contain to curb cravings.

Ingredients:
2 Cups Gluten Free Oats
46 almonds diced into slivers (I cut each into three or four slivers)
3 TBSP Almond flavoring
1/3 cup oil - I used avocado oil for this recipe
1/3 cup honey - I like to use local raw honey

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 350
• Combine ingredients in a mixer
• Line a cookie sheet with foil  (I use non-stick) 
• Spread the granola on the foil and back until done ... about 15-20 minutes until the edges start to look a bit brown. (You can bake for more/less time based on your taste preferences.)
• Let the granola cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Break up clusters created by the honey if you wish. 
• Once cooled, store in an airtight container.

Pumpkin Date Bread

I believe in experimenting with recipes to continually evolve them and create endless varieties!

This recipe started with my gluten free, eggless, vegan banana bread recipe posted on Valentine's Day 2018 and was modified as follows:



Modified for Pumpkin Date Bread:

2 cups Pamela's Baking and Pancake Mix
1 Cup Gluten Free Oats
2 FLAX EGGS
2 TBSP Pumpkin Pie Spice
1 1/4 cup pumpkin
1/2 cup dates diced into uniform pieces
1 cup low fat Greek Yogurt (I used OKIOS)
Replacing the coconut butter with Greek Yogurt adds moisture, but does not allow the bread to be titled VEGAN. I have wanted to make this substitution for a while to see how it changes the bread's texture and I am glad I did it. The bread is very moist and full bodied.

Yes, I will make bread using the Greek Yogurt again, but I will continue to make gluten free and vegan options to satisfy my entire household's needs!

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 and spray a loaf pan with olive oil or coconut oil
2. Prepare the flax eggs in your mixing bowl
3. Once the flax eggs set, add the wet ingredients and combine
4. Add the dry ingredients  one at a time and mix
5. Bake for 30 minutes and use a knife to check to see if done; if not, continue to check every 15 minutes until done. 

Serving Suggestions:

• Serve warm or room temperature. 
• Enjoy with fresh fruit or Greek Yogurt as a breakfast. 
• Top with a nut or seed butter for added protein post workout

 

Papa Steve's No Junk Raw Protein Bars

My husband and I loved the Papa Steve's No Junk Raw Protein Bars that arrived in my New Hope Blogger Box! They were amazing...when you opened the package you saw something that looked like it was actually made in your kitchen. It was not uniformly cut. It was HONEST, ALL NATURAL, GLUTEN FREE GOODNESS! A bar does not have to look perfect to be perfect for you!

I love food that is good for you and made from the heart. Papa Steve's creates food made from the heart and it is evident. Their 100% handmade bars are made with locally sourced ingredients and are Non-GMO, Gluten Free, and Soy Free. They are organic and have NO added sugars or preservatives.

When you do not have time to make your own protein bars, let Papa Steve's make some for you!

A New No Sugar Added Nut Butter in Town

Love finding products that have NO SUGAR ADDED! Since diabetes runs in my family, I try to find TASTY ways to eat healthy.

One place I look to avoid added sugars is in nut butters. I found Legendary Foods Peanut Butter Cup Peanut Butter recently and ENJOY it! who does not like CHOCOLATE and PEANUT BUTTER? 

 

After my workout yesterday, I added some to a rice cake and topped it with pepitas and hemp seeds. The flavors and textures were satisfying and it was a great recovery snack. Decorate your bread or rice cake with a smiley face or pattern and make it fun for a child too!  (TIP: Let a child "top" it to join in the healthy food preparation to make cooking and eating healthy fun. See picture below for an idea posted before.

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We are all looking for the secret to aging gracefully. I believe Life is a canvas; a masterpiece waiting to be created through food, fitness, family, and friends. 

 

 

NOTE: All of the Legendary Foods flavor profiles are unique, I cannot wait to use each one in recipes and share with you!