Another Canadian Holistic Nutritionist, Yuri Elkaim, recently shared his Plantain Pizza recipe. I was so curious to know if a green plantain could make a decent pizza crust, I had to try this one out. Of course, I always put my own spin on recipes, so it hardly resembles his original, but I have to thank Yuri for this elegant solution to a grain-free crust! I fell in love with plantains on a trip to Costa Rica – hence the title.
- 1 green/semi-ripe plantain (not pre-frozen)
- ¼ Cup almond flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 fresh juicy tomato (save ½ to halve and slice as wedges for garnish)
- 2 sun-dried tomatoes, soaked for minimum 10 minutes
- 1 garlic clove, flattened & minced
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- ¼ cup fresh basil (save a couple to garnish)
- 6 grinds of salt mill
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- Dash of cayenne pepper (optional)
- Bottom Line: Mix it up, be creative - e.g. pre-steamed zucchini & pepper slices are also delicious to add
- Preheat the toaster oven/oven to 400 degrees.
- In a high speed blender, puree plantain, almond flour, baking soda, sea salt and 1 Tbsp lemon until smooth and creamy. Pour this mixture onto a parchment-lined baking sheet (the toaster oven sheet is perfect size). Alternatively a disposable aluminum pie baking pan or Pyrex pie plate would work well too.
- Spread out the batter with a spatula until the mixture is ½ inch thick.
- Bake 15-18 minutes (without toppings) in middle of oven, or just until the crust turns a light golden brown. Remove and cool slightly.
- Topping: In mini-processor, combine ½ the tomato and rest of the ingredients until you have a coarse chunky sauce. Spread on pizza crust and garnish with a couple basil leaves and remaining ½ tomato wedges. Serve with a ready-made salad, so as not to let the pizza crust get cold.
Crust
I had both a ripe and a green plantain so I compromised and used half of each as part of me could not believe this rock hard green plantain would work. Next time I will try the green one entirely as it is supposed to beneficially serve as a prebiotic and feed our good bacteria in our guts. It would also technically cause less fermentation in our guts being less ripe. It would not typically be an alkaline dish to combine a high sugar fruit with meals, so the less ripe plantain would mean less sugar (less sugar-less acid). I omitted the egg from the original recipe to try it as a vegan option and it worked. I also used baking soda instead of baking powder as the powder has corn ingredients (i.e. not grain-free). I also substituted the apple cider vinegar (ACV) for lemon juice to be more alkalizing. Next time I try this recipe, I would like to try coconut flour to see if that works as well as the almond flour did, as it is a sensitivity for some.
I used my Vitamix to blend the crust dough. I ended up with a couple chunks of green plantain by accident in my final crust, so be sure to stir enough as it is a sticky dough.
This is spread in my 8×9 inch toaster oven metal tray.
As you can see, my crust is darker than intended. Next time, I will use a proper timer rather than relying on the approximate timer of the toaster oven.
Topping
For the topping, I picked some Thai purple basil from my garden – so fragrant! I also used an heirloom tomato I found at our local Independent Grocery store.
Here is a snapshot of the topping ingredients.
Friday night Pizza night – ready to serve, in my favourite place to eat (other than Costa Rica) – my backyard, with nature all around!
And…proof that you can eat this pizza with one hand (unlike the rice tortilla crusts I used for a few years) – woohoo!
Nutritionally yours,
Laura
You outdid yourself Laura wonderful tips clients should stand on your doorstep to experience your talent
Thank you so much Ingrid!!