Meal Plan Monday {and recipe}

Although this is posting on a Tuesday I wrote it on a Monday night, so technically I can still call it a “Meal Plan Monday” right?

We got in a lot of exercise this weekend, but we also caved to some bad eating.  Between a date night on Friday and all the Easter food and candy I’d give us about a 6 out of 10 on the clean eating scale.  Our meals themselves were actually very healthy, it was what we did in between that needed some work.  A handful of mini Cadbury eggs here, a mimosa or two there…everything in moderation right?  I guess the holidays are for indulging, but I know we could do a lot better when it comes to the sugar intake, especially for the boys.  Next year I would love to take a few tips from my friend Samantha who made homemade “Peeps” and put those in her kids’ Easter baskets.  Who really likes those sugary things anyways?

We have either thrown away or hidden all the leftover candy, and it’s time for us to get back on track.  Here is what I have lined up for this week:

Monday- Cauliflower crust pesto “Pizza” with Roma tomatoes and fresh basil {will share the recipe below}

Tuesday- Clean eating- Vegetarian split pea soup {have leftover ham to add for boys if they would like to add}

Wednesday- Hummus crusted chicken with roasted veggies

Thursday- Ground turkey taco salad with homemade guacamole

Friday- Mama is leaving town for a Bachelorette party so, sorry fam….you can fend for yourselves!  I’m kidding.  I am actually so nervous to be leaving the boys for 2 nights since I have never left them before, but they will have a great time with Daddy.  Friday I have everything for Greg to throw in the crockpot for a shredded chicken, black bean, and veggie chili.

Saturday- I’ll probably be riding a mechanical bull somewhere in Austin, TX (not likely at all), and the boys are going to be watching the Syracuse game and ordering take-out from our favorite Persian restaurant.

Sunday- I’ll be home in the afternoon and we will  BBQ up some veggie, pineapple and chicken kabobs for dinner.

I added two new meals to try this week, the first being the “pizza” and the second being the split pea soup.  I read a few recipes on how to make a cauliflower pizza crust, made the cleanest version I could, and then added our own toppings.  I did exclude the cheese so it ended up being more of a flatbread I suppose, but it was yummy nonetheless.  Here is what I came up with:

CAULIFLOWER CRUST PESTO PIZZA

Adapted from Love&Lemons

INGREDIENTS FOR CRUST

-3 cups of ground raw cauliflower {ground in food processor/Vitamix}

-3/4 cup almond flour

-1/4 cup ground flax seed

-3 eggs

-1 teaspoon onion powder

-1 teaspoon garlic powder

TOPPINGS FOR PIZZA

-1 can organic tomato paste

– fresh pesto {you can use store bought or make your own}

– 3 roma tomatoes

– fresh basil

You can definitely add fresh mozzarella cheese but we opted out because Nathan doesn’t like cheese, and we have been eating mostly dairy-free.

Start by preheating your oven to 450 degrees.

Whisk the 3 eggs separately then add all the above ingredients listed to make the crust.  Gently knead/mix all the ingredients together.  This mixture will not feel like pizza dough and that is ok.  Press this “dough” mixture down onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Try to spread it to be a little less than 1/4″ thick.

Bake the crust on it’s own for 15-20 minutes.  Once removed from oven spread a thin layer of tomato paste over the crust.  Then spread the pesto sauce over top of that.  If you are using cheese this is when it should be added.  Then slice the Roma tomatoes thin and add those along with the fresh basil.  Once toppings are added put back in the oven and bake for an additional 15 minutes at 450 degrees.

This was totally easy to make, and was so tasty.  Definitely don’t expect the chewiness of a cheesy pizza, but do expect a ton of flavor and none of the guilt.  This recipe is definitely going on our weekly lineup!