Check out this super fruit- in your pizza!
Rise & shine, beauty's! It's the beginning of a new week and I've never been so happy to see a Monday! On Wednesday, I'm off to England to see my brother-in-law and soon to be sister-in-law get married. We'll be spending a few days in Newmarket to spend time with family and attend the wedding, and then on Sunday we're off to London for a whopping 24 hours. But I'll take it! Our mission this time in London is to eat at as many vegan spots as we can find. Suggestions welcome! I already have a small list going, plus a few little shops along the way. Ugh- I cannot WAIT! And we are staying in the coziest of hotels in the heart of Soho. Follow my Instagram (@madeonmott) if you want to follow my trip to the UK!
So, to get back on the topic of food, let's chat about what's going on here with the pizza. Have ya ever had jackfruit? To tell you the truth, this is only my second time having it, and the first time was a terrible experience. I tried making this spicy vegan "pulled pork" jackfruit, and the seasonings were so off and bleh. It tasted so bad, and I never went back to trying it again.
Luckily, Lauren Toyota at "Hot For Food" re-opened my eyes to this magical fruit & got me back on the bandwagon. She made these awesome tacos, and to follow, a BBQ pizza with the remains. My mouth was watering, and I knew I had to try ASAP! So, I gave it another go, added my take on it, and BAMMM! Here you have my take on a vegan BBQ "Chicken" pizza. Totally vegan and filled with a TON of nutrients.
Whenever I try something totally new, I like to do my research on it first. After looking up what Jackfruit has to offer, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that it's super-duper good for you. It's rich in vitamins & minerals, and a niiiiice percent of your daily value for Iron. If you're a vegan/vegetarian, that's music to your ears! You don't have to rely on just eating a ton of lentils, beans, and spinach any longer. You can now incorporate this magical fruit! BUT as a heads up, when it's raw out of the can, it doesn't taste the best, and my friend from Jamaica warned me about this. DO NOT be discouraged! Once you cook it in some seasonings, it totally absorbs those flavors and you'll be amazed! Like in this case, it totally tasted like a bit of BBQ Chicken. Seriously, my mind was blown!
Ryan described this pizza as "out of this world delicious", and I hope that's enough to get you to try this. And with that ranch dressing, you will literally fall in love with a piece of pizza. Enjoy lovelies! Xx Sam
I N G R E D I E N T S:
*This recipe is enough for 2 large pies!
- 1 ball of pizza dough (1 pound)
- 1 20 oz. can of young green jackfruit (in brine)- I use the "Chaokoh" brand
- BBQ Sauce!
- 1/2 a red onion, sliced thin
- A large bunch/bag of Arugula, to top
VEGAN RANCH DRESSING - 1/2 cup of vegan mayo
- 1 Tbs of unsweetened almond milk (or water)
- 1 tsp of apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 tsp of onion powder
- 1/2 tsp of garlic powder
- 1/2 Tbsp of dried dill
- 1/2 Tbsp of dried parsley
- Pinch of salt & pepper
PREPARE: Start by mixing up all your dressing ingredients in a small bowl. Whisk to combine and set aside. Slice up your onion and cut your ball of pizza dough into 2 separate halves. NOW, to prepare your jackfruit- drain & rinse the jackfruit and press out as much liquid as you can. Pat dry. Trim the cores off + toss out, and break apart the remaining chunks of jackfruit with your hands. It'll resemble a pulled pork/ meat of some sort! Discard any of the seeds/pits you might find. Add some BBQ sauce (a few tablespoons should be enough) to your jackfruit and toss well to coat. Set aside until ready to use!
PIZZA: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Take half of the pizza dough and roll out thin enough to fit your [well oiled] pizza pan. Spread a small amount dressing to coat the dough, along with an equal amount of BBQ sauce. Just a thin layer of both! Top a generous amount of onion slices & half the BBQ jackfruit + some fresh cracked pepper. Pop it in the oven for 15-20 minutes, until the edges our crispy & golden. In the last minute or two of cooking, top with arugula just to wilt. Remove & squirt a bit of your dressing over the whole pie. Enjoyyyyyy! (and don't forget to repeat so you have an additional pie for later ;) )
*Notes: This recipe was adapted from Hot For Foods genius pizza ideas & killer vegan ranch recipe. Thank you for being so awesome with your recipes, Lauren!