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24
Jun
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Grain-Free & Heart-Healthy Mila Pizza Crust |
Our lil’ peanut is four months old now and still keeping me very much away from the kitchen. Somehow I’ve managed to compose a “rotation” of simply but relatively healthy dinners. This whole rotation thing is new to me – previously, I could count on one hand (ok, maybe two) the number of meals that we enjoyed over and over again. And that’s not because all the others were bad. Nah, I just couldn’t keep my brain away from coming up with new things. Nowadays I don’t think as much about food and I’m quite content with meal repetition. Like they say when it comes to infants, you do what works. The first few month are all about survival. After that, I suppose I’ll have to make her nap in her crib and ditch her swaddle habit… and come up with some new dinners.
But for now, I’m psyched that we have a weekly pizza night. I finally found a crust that’s nutrient-dense, nicely textured, and EASY. I like easy. It’s non-starchy without being made of soggy cauliflower. (Sorry, cauliflower crust peeps – I loooove me some cauliflower but it does not make a good pizza crust.) As an added bonus it is a vegan crust, perfect for those avoiding dairy and eggs. I can’t take credit, it’s actually Brittany’s recipe appearing on her blog, Real Sustenance. It’s thin, slightly chewy, but holds up well. You can actually pick up a slice with your hands without making a big mess (take that, cauli-crust. It’s comprised of a main ingredient that packs in plenty of heart-healthy good fat and fiber: almonds.
I did change things up a bit, though. Instead of flax as the binder, I used another incredible plant-based source of omega-3’s: Mila. Mila is ground chia seeds, but it’s not just any ol’ chia. Here’s why I prefer Mila over other brands of chia:
- Mila is the cream of the crop. It is specially sourced from regions that are shown to produce the highest-quality, most nutrient-dense chia. It is certified non-GMO. After harvesting, it is cleaned in a special 5-step process. Every batch is tested to assure it contains the optimal amount of omega-3’s, fiber and antioxidants. Mila gives me more energy, better digestion, and reduced stress. It has taken care of my husband’s psoriasis without the needs for medication or light treatment. It has helped countless others with depression, aches and pains, better sleep, and autoimmune disorders.
- Lifemax is a fair-trade company that gives back to the farmers who grow the chia seeds. The regions where chia is optimally grown tend to be some of the most impoverished areas. Because of Lifemax, these farmers get to reap both the nutritional benefits of chia and fair income for producing it.
- Lifemax offers people a way to get this food for free and achieve financial goals for themselves and others. The truth is that everyone from you to your grandma and even your pet could use more omega-3’s! Please get in touch with me if you’d like to purchase some Mila, get it cheaper as a preferred customer or distributor, or learn about how you can earn extra income by sharing it with others. It’s a lot easier than you might think!
To make your own heart-healthy, omega-3-packed grain free pizza crust with almonds and chia, please visit Real Sustenance and view Brittany’s recipe for “Best Ever Crispy and Flaky Gluten Free Thin Crust Pizza” and note the following changes and tips:
- I choose to cut the recipe in half to make one pizza crust.
- Instead of 2/3 cup flax seed, use 1/2 cup Mila or ground chia for the full recipe (or 1/4 cup Mila to make half the recipe for ONE pizza crust.) All other ingredient amounts remain the same.
- Consider using herb-infused oil – it adds great flavor!
- When you roll out your crust, it will naturally be thinner at the edges and thus brown more quickly. If this bothers you, trim a bit from the edges before baking so your crust will be of even thickness all around.
We keep the toppings simple. Jarred organic marinara, assorted roasted veggies (thank you, Wegmans salad bar!) and Daiya non-dairy shredded mozzarella-style cheese (melts beautifully.) What are your favorite pizza toppings?
I'm Cara, lover of creative, clean food and healthy living. Pumpkin, goat cheese, and eggplant make me swoon. I have an insatiable sweet tooth and desire to lift heavy things. 
Hallie @ Daily Bites — June 24, 2013 @ 4:06 pm
Yay, little peanut, for instituting pizza night! 🙂 This looks amazing!!
Ricki — June 24, 2013 @ 4:11 pm
So nice to see your name pop up in my Google Reader! (and boy will I miss that reader next month!!). I agree–whatever works. The pizza looks terrific–I think you’ve inspired me for tonight. 🙂
Dawn @ Florida Coastal Cooking — June 25, 2013 @ 5:29 am
I can’t wait to try this! I love that you add vegan recipes into the rotation. What a great lesson for everyone even if they aren’t interested in giving up meat. Every little bit helps! Also – I love that the mila is fair trade. That is SO important to me!
Carolyn — June 25, 2013 @ 7:54 am
Good stuff! I think meal rotation is critical when you have kids (especially tiny ones!). And this looks delicious and easy, just what you need.
Wendy — June 25, 2013 @ 10:55 am
Glad I’m not the only new Mommy relying on rotations. We do pizza night every week too! (And taco night.) I’ll have to give this crust a try. Have you tried making it in bulk and freezing?
Cara — June 25, 2013 @ 4:34 pm
Hi Wendy! Hope all is well with your newest addition! I have not yet made this crust in bulk, though Brittany recommends making two at a time and freezing one after baking 🙂
Maggie — June 25, 2013 @ 11:10 am
And now I am totally craving pizza! I think it’s amazing that you’re already making your own dough – even if it is easy 🙂 Your pics look beautiful!
Allison — June 25, 2013 @ 12:28 pm
We have “Artisan pizza night” parties every few months at my house. I typically just add Mila to the sauce (I like my pizzas with lots of sauce) but not yet into the dough. We are definitely using your recipe next time. The pictures look so yummy!
Kate — June 26, 2013 @ 1:01 am
We’ve only now started doing the rotation thing – so I have time to run at night while it’s light out. And pizza is definitely on our weekly meal plan.
Alisa — June 26, 2013 @ 2:41 pm
You are turning into a chia queen Cara! I hadn’t heard of Mila, but definitely need to check it out.
Shannon — June 28, 2013 @ 4:58 pm
pizza night is never a bad thing, especially when you’ve got dough like this! yum 🙂
Katrina — July 11, 2013 @ 5:57 pm
Yum! This sounds delicious and I’m impressed (but not surprised) that you’re whipping up great meals with a newborn. I think the thing that surprised/impressed me the most was the amount of iron in Mila compared to spinach. I’m always lacking I iron so it’s nice to find a new source!
Katie — July 12, 2013 @ 7:54 pm
This totally looks good. I usually just buy the bag of dough from the store, but after speaking with you and watching the video about all of the benefits of Mila, I would love to try it out. I desperately need to clean up my diet, and I liked hearing that it could help with joint pain:)
Robyn Donaldson — July 29, 2013 @ 9:25 pm
This looks good, I’ve been looking for a good, healthy pizza recipe, especially the crust because I have a sensitivity to wheat. Thanks, I will try this and let you know how it comes out!
Cara — July 29, 2013 @ 9:31 pm
We just had this again tonight!
Marco — October 6, 2014 @ 6:12 pm
Looks amazing! At last a (paleo/low carb/NSNG) crust without cauliflower! But when I click the link for the “Best Ever Crispy and Flaky Gluten Free Thin Crust Pizza”, I get a 403 forbidden error.. Could you please look into that? Thanks so much
Cara — October 6, 2014 @ 7:41 pm
Hi Marco, we love this crust! I just tried it myself and the link within the blog post worked for me. Does this work for you? http://brittanyangell.com/best-ever-crispy-and-flaky-gluten-free-thin-crust-pizza-graineggdairysoy-free/