Candida Friendly Pizza and Vegan Paleo Pesto

After my promise of pizza recipes “tomorrow” after my last post, well, a week isn’t so much different then a day, right?  This masters program is truly taking up every moment, including all those moments I had been using on my blog. I really thank you for your patience as I navigate these waters.

Anyway, pizza.

Pizza so good that we’ve had it three times in 8 days.   Is it overkill? Absolutely.  Is it candida friendly? 100% (provided you are ok with nightshades, which many are not. I am.) Is it totally, and completely, and utterly delicious? You betcha!

The first time I attempted paleo/candida friendly pizza, I used pure almond flour with some egg and baking soda.  While it was completely divine – indulgent, buttery, and crispy – after two small slices, I felt so over stuffed that I didn’t want to eat for a week. It felt like a very special treat, but I wanted to find a way to pizza it up more than once in a while. Before the ACD, we had gluten-free pizza around once a fortnight, and it was our common indulgence. I really wanted to find a way not to give up that delight, but also make it both candida friendly and not so high calorie that I felt stuffed from a tiny bit.

So, I did a little research, and rediscovered my favorite primal blog (save for the INCREDIBLE Mark’s Daily Apple.)  Primal Palate is a sophisticated blog with fantastic recipes, including the one for this crust.  The only way I edited it was by using 1/4 cup LSA instead of flax meal, so for the full recipe, check them out here.

Here’s what the crust looked like after I made it on the second attempt (Anthony did his perfectly the first night, but was on a conference call while I made the second batch.)  Not the prettiest, but it sure tasted divine.

The important thing to know about this pizza is that it takes a LONG TIME to cook, in comparison to other crusts.  It takes around 50 minutes to cook the crust, before adding toppings. However, it’s totally worth it. Trust me on this one.

For our first pizza, since I’ve been trying to rotate my nightshades and not have more than 1-2 per meal, I decided to top it with a spicy pesto sauce and not a tomato. Excellent choice. I know vegan paleo is a contradiction in terms, but it does fall under both categories!

Vegan Paleo Rocket Pesto

Grain-free, dairy-free, nut-free option, sugar-free, paleo, candida friendly

Prep-time: 5 minutes

Cook-time: 0 minutes

Total time: 5 minutes

Recipe by: Kat Reiner

Ingredients:

• 2-3 cups rocket (or basil, or parsley, or a combination. Even mint would be yummy.)
• 1/4 cup-ish olive oil
• 1/2 lemon’s juice
• 1/4 cup-ish walnuts (or freshly toasted sunflower seeds for nut free)
• 1/4 cup water (for making a pizza, or smoother sauce)

Instructions:

Put all ingredients in a food processor except for the water and oil. Blend until a thick paste.  Add combination of olive-oil, water, in your preferred proportions, until the pesto tastes how you’d like it to.  Enjoy on crackers, pizza, veggies – you name it!

Candida Pizza Topping ideas;

• Goat Cheese (if tolerating daily)
• pesto
• grilled vegetables
• roasted zucchini
• beef or chicken mince
• grilled chicken

Hope you enjoy!