Quick Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

Ingredients:
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 package active dry yeast/instant yeast
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup hot tap water (120 - 125 degrees)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon honey or granulated sugar

NOTE: To obtain optimum health benefits, rising and baking times may be extended.

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. To prepare pizza dough, stir whole wheat flour; lightly spoon into a measuring cup and level flour.

In large mixing bowl, combine whole wheat flour, yeast and salt. Blend in water, oil and honey or sugar. Stir by hand vigorously until all ingredients are well mixed; about 3 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise to desired size.

Place dough in greased 15 x 10 x 1-inch jelly-roll pan or 12 to 14-inch pizza pan. Press dough to cover bottom of pan and up sides to form a rim.

Add pizza sauce of your choice and your favorite pizza toppings; bake in oven 15 to 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown and toppings are done.

Recipe makes 8 servings.

Suggestion: A bit of garlic powder and oregano to the dough can be added for a little extra flavor.

Nutrition information per serving: 146 calories, 5 g protein, 27 g carbohydrates, 4 g fiber, 2 g fat (0 g saturated), 0 mg cholesterol, 37 mcg folate, 2 mg iron and 219 mg sodium.

Quick Heart-Healthy Pizza Dough

Ingredients:
1-1/2 cup lukewarm water
One package rapid-rise yeast
1-1/2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for oiling the dough
4 cups all purpose, unbleached flour
1-1/2 teaspoons salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 100-degrees. Pour water into bowl of full-size processor. Sprinkle yeast and sugar over water and pulse twice. Add oil, flour, salt, and process until dough comes together. Process another 30 seconds. Dough should be soft and slightly sticky. If too sticky to handle, add one or two tablespoons flour and pulse once or twice.

Turn dough out onto a floured work surface; knead to form a smooth ball. Put dough in deep, lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Place in warmed oven. Let rise for 30 minutes, or until doubled. Remove dough, punch down and turn out onto lightly floured surface. Divide into four balls.

At this point, dough may be refrigerated or frozen. Bring to room temperature before rolling.

To Roll: Place ball in center or work surface sprinkled lightly with flour or cornmeal. With rolling pin, roll dough from center to edges, to a ten to 12-inch circle.

To Grill: Brush both sides of dough with olive oil. Pick up circle by edges (like a wet T-shirt) and gently place on preheated grill.

Prepare toppings: Because baking time is short, some toppings should be precooked or blanched: meats, thinly sliced potatoes, peppers, eggplant, asparagus, broccoli, garlic, zucchini. For best flavor, grate or crumble cheese just before topping pizza. Have all ingredients ready before placing crust on grill. If using a sauce, warm before spreading on dough.

A Slimmer Slice: Fresh Tomato & Chicken Pizza

Ingredients
Nonstick cooking spray
1 tablespoon cornmeal
1 10-ounce package refrigerated pizza dough
3 medium plum tomatoes, thinly sliced
4 ounces cooked chicken, cut into 1-inch cubes
3 tablespoons snipped fresh basil
1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper
1 cup shredded reduced-fat mozzarella cheese

1. Coat a 12-inch pizza pan with cooking spray; sprinkle with cornmeal. Press refrigerated dough into pan, building up edges.

2. Arrange tomato slices and chicken on dough. Add basil and pepper, and top with mozzarella.

3. Bake in a 425-degree F. oven for 13 to 18 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly.

Nutrition facts per serving (1/4 of pizza): 281 calories, 20g protein, 31g carbohydrate, 8g fat (3g saturated), 2g fiber
Healthy Cooking Tips

Shake the Salt
Subbing tomatoes for store-bought sauce reduces sodium and belly bloat. Plus, packing your pie with produce ups the filling factor.

Choose Chicken
Swap out greasy pepperoni for grilled chicken. "Season it with oregano and basil," says chef Juan-Carlos Cruz, author of The Juan-Carlos Cruz Calorie Countdown Cookbook.

Make the Cut
To chop basil, stack the leaves in a neat pile and roll lengthwise, like a cigar. Use shears to slice across the bundle.

Say Cheese
Low-fat cheese melts better than fat-free. Before baking the pie, mist with cooking spray. "A bit of oil helps the cheese melt," says Cruz.

hummus recipes

Ingredients
2 cups chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained
1/4 cup tahini (sesame paste)
1/4 cup water
1/6 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
juice of 2-3 lemons (about 3 Tbsp)
3/4 tsp salt
1 Tbsp cumin powder


Ingredients
2 cups canned garbanzo beans, drained
1/3 cup tahini
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
2 cloves garlic, halved
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pinch paprika
1 teaspoon minced fresh parsley

2 versions of black bean dip

Salsa Salad (Lauren Crosby)

Ingredients :: Dressing ::

1 can black-eyed peas 1/8 tsp. black pepper
1 can black beans ¼ tsp. salt
1 can corn 1 ½ T. olive oil
½ c. red onion (chopped) 1 pkg. dry Italian dressing mix (good
2-4 ripe tomatoes or 1 c. cherry tomatoes (chopped) seasons works well)
¼ c. cilantro (chopped) ½ c. white vinegar
2-4 ripe avocados (chopped)
lemon juice (to taste)

Drain black-eyed peas, black beans and corn. Combine. Add onions, tomatoes and cilantro, mix gently. In a separate small bowl combine all ingredients for dressing. Stir half of the dressing into mixture (set aside remaining dressing for later). Chill for at least 2 hours to allow flavors to combine.

Just before serving, chop avocados (sprinkle with lemon juice to help reduce browning or simply add lemon juice to taste). Stir in gently to chipped mixture. Drizzle remaining dressing on top.

Serve with tortilla chips. Makes about 8 cups.




Harding recipe:
Black Bean Veggie Dip

1 green pepper, diced
2 avodados, diced
2 roma tomatoes, diced
½ cup oil
1 T. lime juice
1 can corn, drained
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 packet dry italian dressing mix
cilantro, finely chopped
green onion, chopped

Place peppers, tomatoes and avocados in serving bowl. Add Lime Juice to keep avocados green (can be done before or after they are added to the others, doesn’t really make a difference).
Add corn and black beans to bowl. Add chopped cilantro and green onions to taste (amount is up to you on how much you like). In a separate bowl, reconstitute Dry Italian Mix with oil and water (The packet will say to put vinegar in, DON’T). Add/stir into veggie bowl. Serve fresh with tortilla chips!

ginger bread

Ingredients

* Nonstick cooking spray
* 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
* 1 cup whole-wheat flour
* 3/4 cup turbinado sugar
* 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 cup light molasses
* 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
* 1/2 cup canola oil
* 1/2 cup buttermilk
* 2 teaspoons baking soda
* 1 cup boiling water
* 1/2 cup firmly packed minced fresh ginger
* Confectioner's sugar, for dusting

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees with rack in the lower third of oven. Spray a 9-inch square baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Line the bottom of the pan with waxed paper, then spray the paper. Dust the entire pan with flour and shake out the excess.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, turbinado sugar, cinnamon, and salt; set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together molasses, eggs, oil, and buttermilk.
4. Dissolve baking soda in the cup of boiling water. Fold the baking soda and molasses mixtures into dry ingredients until combined. (Do not overmix.) Fold in the minced ginger.
5. Scrape batter into the prepared baking pan; bake until cake is set around edges and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Cool 10 minutes in the pan, then invert onto a cooling rack. Serve warm or at room temperature, dusted with confectioner's sugar.

Molasses is very thick, and I don't think maple syrup would be an adequate substitute. Not only because of the consistency, but also flavour. Molasses gives gingerbread its traditional flavour and colour. Turbinado sugar is raw sugar that has blond-coloured crystals, with a delicate molasses flavour.