Portobello Mushroom Pizzas

Life has been so crazy lately, I feel like I can’t catch up on the things I need to do! It’s been a great summer so far… our 10-month old is kinda almost walking and our 2 1/2-year old is hilarious with her ever growing vocabulary. Sorry I’ve lagged on posting recipes lately but things have been nuts! Hope all is well with you and your family!

Ok so pizza, who doesn’t enjoy pizza?! Pizza on portobello mushrooms? What’s better than that! No bloated processed pizza crust feeling, no processed food headache… you can have pizza ALL THE TIME this way! I make these when we go camping, they’re super easy to make on the grill or in our little RV oven!

Portobello Mushroom Pizzas

My hubby loved this so much he asked me to make it again this week. His last favorite, Ancho Lentil Bowls with Low-fat Vegan Cheese is fading out of heavy rotation here so we needed something new. Our toddler LOVED this pizza too, she ate a whole one and asked for more. We felt bad since we had already eaten the rest so I’ll have to make more next time.

Portobello Mushroom Pizzas

* 6-8 Portobello mushrooms (allow for at least two per person… three if you’re really hungry)

* 2 cups pizza sauce – I LOVE the Muir Glen Pizza Sauce when I don’t have time to make homemade. Use your favorite.

* Cashew Basil Cheese (see recipe below) – Sub seed cheese for nut-free

* Chopped roasted red & yellow peppers – I used half a jar of Trader Joe’s fire roasted red & yellow peppers in water

* 1 green pepper, chopped

* 1 medium onion, diced

* 1 can black olives, chopped

* fresh basil, chopped (add on top OR use dried italian seasoning)

* 1/2 – 1 tsp red pepper flake

Directions:

* Preheat oven by setting the broiler on low or just broil if that’s the only setting you have.

* Take a baking sheet and cover with a silicone non-stick baking mat or parchment paper for easy clean up.

* Make your Cashew Basil cheese (see below). Set aside.

* Remove stems of Portabellas and gently rub Portabellos with a wet cloth to clean. Place Portabellas ‘belly’ side up on the baking sheet.

* Spoon about 2 tablespoons of pizza sauce into each mushroom. Now spoon about 2 – 4 teaspoons of Cashew Basil Cheese on top of the pizza sauce (see recipe below).

* Top the portobellos with remaining ingredients, sprinkle with fresh basil and/or italian seasoning and a sprinkle of dried red pepper flake.

* Broil in the oven on the lowest temperature setting on the middle rack for about 10-12 minutes, watching closely as broiler temperatures vary. Serve immediately and enjoy!

The cashew nut cheese is an excellent addition to these pizzas! You could also use the Pizza Cheese recipe from a few weeks ago, that would be GOOD! I changed the original recipe to suit our tastes and nutritional needs. I plan on making the Goaty Cashew Cheeze (Thank you Melomeals!) next time and experimenting with different toppings. The possibilities are endless!

Cashew Basil Cheese

Ingredients:

• 1 cup raw cashews

• 1/3-1/2 tsp Himalayan sea salt, to taste

• 1/2 tsp leftover bean cooking liquid (or liquid from canned beans…. or water, that will work too!)

• 1 fresh basil leaf – I didn’t have this last time I made it so I added 1 tsp dried basil

• 1 small clove garlic

• 1.5 tbsp nutritional yeast

• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

* 1 tsp yellow miso paste

Directions: Place 1 cup of raw cashews in a bowl of water, cover, and soak overnight in the fridge. When cashews are ready, drain and place all ingredients (cashews, Himalayan sea salt, bean liquid/water, basil, garlic, nutritional yeast, miso and lemon juice) into a food processor and process until smooth, stopping to scrape sides of processor as necessary. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.