I can talk about pizza for way too long. It’s the food that never gets old to me. My mom once lost me as a toddler and found me hiding in a closet eating pizza. So you can say this obsession started early on. Plus I have learned that everything can be a pizza. Brussel sprouts, jump in! The water’s fine. How bout you, kale? Maybe we’ll make some chunky kale pesto with sunflower seeds and spread that on a ball of dough and call it pizza. There’s nothing you can tell me doesn’t go on pizza.
With that in mind, I made this ultra-green pizza with roasted zucchini, balsamic glazed shaved brussel sprouts, kale pesto and some kale leaves. It’s to die for. Like salad on bread. What could go wrong?
Well, I had a few hiccups with this one. I had to use an immersion blender to make the pesto because my trusty food processor that I bought from Sears 6 years ago broke. This technique is not recommended. Get yourself a food processor. Other than that, it was smooth sailing. It takes a lot of work, but really try to get your dough to spread all the way across the pan. It should be pretty thin, but there shouldn’t be holes in it.
Let’s get started! First you’ll need to make your pesto. Blend up all the ingredients and drizzle in the olive oil. Use a little more than this recipe calls for if you want it to be more runny. Also roast your zucchini slices until they’re a bit browned and remove from the oven.
Dress your shaved brussel sprouts in balsamic and toss.
Spread your dough out on an oiled baking sheet. Make sure you get it to stretch almost to the edges if you can. Spread the pesto all over the pizza. Then I like to put on the toppings before the cheese to keep them from getting too roasty. Top with the zucchini, kale and brussel sprouts.
Sprinkle on the mozzarella and parmesan cheese and bake it! I like to put it in the lower third of the oven to keep the bottom nice and crisp. Bake for about 20 minutes or until browned and bubbly.
Let it cool then slice into squares or triangles.
So much delicious cheese!!! I hope you love this recipe! See the full recipe below.
- 1 cup chopped kale
- 1 cup basil leaves
- juice of ½ lemon
- ¼ cup sunflower seeds
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese, grated
- 1 tsp red wine vinegar
- a pinch of salt and pepper
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 ball pizza dough
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 zucchini, ends trimmed, sliced
- a handful of kale, stems removed, chopped
- 1 cup shaved brussel sprouts
- 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
- ¾ cup shredded mozzarella
- ¼ cup grated parmesan
- To make the pesto, in a food processor, add the kale, basil, lemon juice, sunflower seeds, parmesan, vinegar, and salt and pepper. Pulse to chop. While the food processor is running, drizzle in the olive oil through the vent. This will be a rough pesto. Set aside.
- Place an oven rack on the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 475. On a small baking sheet, add the zucchini and a tablespoon of the oil and bake for 10 minutes until zucchini has softened.
- In a bowl, add the shaved brussel sprouts and balsamic vinegar and toss. On a large baking sheet, drizzle the remaining oil. Spread out the pizza dough to cover the baking sheet. Spread the pesto over the pizza dough. Add the zucchini, brussel sprouts and kale. Sprinkle the mozzarella on top. Then sprinkle the parmesan cheese. Bake for 20 minutes in the lower third of the oven.
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