To keep the how-to-make-pizza-healthier topic going, here's another idea we came up with. Another way to pile up those veggies while enjoying a slice, without feeling guilty about it.
We called this vegan pizza "Mexican style", because it combines a lot of the typical flavors you would find in Mexican cuisine. Once again, extremely popular, but typically pretty high in fat and calories.
The inspiration for this recipe actually came from one of my husband's favorite things to eat when I first met him: a 7 layer burrito from this place I had never heard of. Almost every thursday for game night, he would ask me to pick up one of those for him to take for dinner. This burrito was filled with rice, refried beans, avocado, cheese, sour cream, lettuce and tomato. Huge. Now, he was a strict vegan back then, so he skipped all the dairy stuff (which I believe made it a 5 later burrito) but still... that thing looked to heavy I couldn't even understand how someone as skinny as he was, could put it down so easily.
BecauseĀ we didn't grow up around Mexican food and certainly didn't have the slightest idea how to fold a burrito properly, I figured I could try to put together all the flavors of the 7 layer burrito into a pizza. And try to make it a little bit healthier while we were at it.
For this recipe, we made our own version of "refried beans", by just blending organic black beans (high in fiber and protein) with a touch of olive oil, some spices and fresh cilantro.
Back then, the options for non-dairy cheese weren't many, so the easiest think was to just skip that part all together. Thankfully nowadays, there are plenty of great cheese alternatives in the market. One of our favorites, as you probably know by now, are GO Veggie! Products. For extra "cheesy" goodness, we used their Dairy Free Mexican Style Shreds here,Ā that are not only delicious but also vegan, free of dairy and cholesterol, lower in saturated fat and calories than dairy cheese. Perfect for anyone with dietary sensitivities or simply looking to improve their heart or overall health!
And to top it all off, we added fresh tomatoes (packed with antioxidants and vitamin C), organic corn as a lighter alternative to rice, jalapeƱo peppers for some heat and fresh avocado for a dose of healthy fats.
Hope you enjoy it!!
Mexican Style Pizza
- Total Time: 26 mins
Ingredients
- 1- 15.5oz can organic black beans
- Ā½ cup tightly packed fresh cilantro
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Ā½ tsp chili powder
- Ā¼ tsp salt or to taste
- 1 ā cups GO Veggie! Dairy Free Mexican Style Shreds
- 1 cup diced fresh tomatoes
- Ā½ cup frozen organic corn kernels
- 1 jalapeƱo pepper, sliced (optional)
- 1 Hass avocado, diced small with a pinch of salt and the juice half a lime
- Chopped cilantro for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F. Drizzle about a teaspoon of olive oil on the pizza crust and bake for 6-8 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly
- In the meantime, prepare the bean layer. Combine beans, cilantro, olive oil, chili powder and salt in the food processor. Pulse until creamy
- Spread bean mixture on the pizza crust. Top with cheese, diced tomatoes, corn and sliced jalapeƱos and bake at 400F for about 8 minutes
- Top with diced avocado and chopped cilantro
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 16 mins
- Category: Entree
- Cuisine: Kosher / Vegan
This post was sponsored by GO Veggie! - All the opinions are our own.
Claudia says
So delectable! That looks irresistible.
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you!
Ronnie Fein says
I absolutely love this and looks fabulous for my dairy-free daughter. We are all lovers of tomato and avocado too.
Vicky & Ruth says
Let us know what she thinks of it! It's one of our favorite combos too!
The Steaming Pot says
Pizza and healthy - now that's the ideal sort of combination one wants in food! Love the colors and mix of toppings.
Vicky & Ruth says
Yes! Absolutely! Best of both worlds š Glad you liked it!
Jenny @ BAKE says
I want this pizza so bad! I love mexican food, and it sounds so tasty pilled high on a pizza crust!
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you Jenny! Pizza & Mexican food make a pretty tasty combo š