Pizza: Quinoa + Brown Rice Crust w/ Sweet Avocado Sauce

(vegan, gluten-free, oil-free, sugar-free)

M y dad actually deserves a bit of credit for this recipe. Last time I made quinoa crust, which tends to have a softer texture, he suggested that I incorporate brown rice to make it more sturdy.

Dana, author of Minimalist Baker, posted a gluten-free pizza crust recipe last year, which is actually quite a bit different than mine. But in her post, she paraphrased a quote from Shauna Niequist which I really liked: "try a recipe once and follow it to a 't.' Try it a second time and make your own tweaks. Try it a third time by memory and it’s yours." A few months ago, I tried making a quinoa crust for the first time. It turned out well, but a little too delicate. The second time I made it, I eliminated some ingredients, eliminated the use of a pie dish, and refrigerated the batter. It came out more sturdy, but it was still too soft. The third time I made it, it truly was mine.

Servings: 4 mini pizzas

Ingredients
The Crust:

• 3/4 cup brown rice
• 3/4 cup quinoa
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp baking powder (I used double acting)
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• water
• [optional] seasonings: red pepper flakes, dried oregano

Toppings:

• simply natural tomato basil sauce
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 green chili peppers, minced
• 1 tbsp ginger, minced
• 1 small zucchini, thinly sliced
• frozen corn
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• himalayan pink salt
• spinach, chopped

Sweet Avocado Sauce:

• 2 small avocados
• 1 lemon, juice
• 1 tbsp stevia
• a splash of water (or as much as you need for how thin you want the sauce)

1. Rinse and then soak brown rice and quinoa together for 6-7 hours.

2. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Drain the rice and quinoa, and dump them in a large food processor. Turn on the processor. While the grains are processing, go get the salt, baking powder, optional seasonings, and vinegar. In this order, add these ingredients to the processor one at a time. Let the mixture blend for a couple of minutes until fairly smooth. Fill a glass with filtered water, and add 1/4 cup of water to the batter. Turn the processor back on. Gradually add more water, as much as you need to reach the consistency of a pancake-like batter. I used around half a cup of water, but it really depends on how much you drain the grains after soaking.

3. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silpat. I have been reusing parchment paper sheets, working on finishing up this last box for what seems like forever. I plan to move onto the silpat after this box finishes.
Divide the batter into four mini pizzas, two on each tray. Spread the batter with back of spoon as thin as you want your crust. I like mine thin.

4. Bake for 20 minutes. Poke the centre of the crust, which hopefully has golden edges, with a fork. It should come out clean.

5. Mix the sauce (how much ever you like) with garlic, peppers, and ginger. Spread it onto the crusts. Add the zucchini, onion, and corn. Sprinkle the salt, and then top with spinach.

6. Put the pizzas back in the oven for 10-13 minutes.

7. Rinse your food processor, and blend together your avocados, stevia, lemon, and water.

8. Pour/drop the sauce onto your pizzas.

9. Finally, stuff your face.

I would like to credit this genius for the awesome avocado cream idea.