Raw Pizza Night!
I always love experimenting with ingredients. Lately, I have been on a buckwheat binge. Buckwheat is gluten free and a great alternative to wheat. Did you know that buckwheat is not a grain? It is actually a seed that is related to rhubarb.
I have an affinity with buckwheat. When I was a little girl, my dad, ever the nutrition conscious chef, used to make us buckwheat pancakes for Sunday morning breakfast. I loved it when my dad cooked. Everything seemed more special, probably because he didn’t do it that often. Mom made beautiful, delicious dinners every night but turn Dad lose in the kitchen and somehow magic was born.
Buckwheat has amazing health benefits. First of all, it’s a great source of Manganese. Why is that important? Manganese helps your body in many ways. It helps keep your bones healthy, and maintain healthy blood sugar levels. It supports thyroid function and protects your cells from free radical damage. If that isn’t enough, it also helps maintain healthy nerves.
Buckwheat is also great for your cardio vascular system. What more can you ask for?
Today’s raw pizza recipe takes advantage of that wonderful seed in it’s crust. I have had many requests for pizza so I finally dug in and made one for you. I must admit, this recipe is a complete winner. The recipe looks long but it you make the crust and mushrooms ahead and it is easy to throw together.
Raw Pizza with Buckwheat Crust
Buckwheat Crust
- 1 cup buckwheat, sprouted
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/2 cup walnuts, soaked 6 hours, drained
- 3 carrots, diced very fine
- 1 teaspoon Italian spices
- Sprout buckwheat: Soak 1 cup buckwheat in water overnight. Drain (the water will be slimy so drain and rinse a couple of times). Rinse 3 times a day until little tails sprout. Use when tails are the same length as the seed. This will take 1-2 days.
- Place buckwheat and olive oil in the food process and pulse until a mash is achieved.
- Add walnuts and pulse until well blended.
- Add carrots and italian spices, blend well.
- Form into 6, 4-inch squares on a non-stick dehydrator sheet. Dehydrate at 140 for 45 minutes. Turn down heat to 115 and dehydrate until the tops are dry. Remove from non-stick sheet to screen and continue to dehydrate until mostly dry. You want these a little soft, not brittle.
Marinated Mushrooms and Onions
- 1 cup mushrooms, sliced
- 1 cup onions, sliced thin
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup Nama Shoyu
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- Toss together mushroons and onions. Place in glass container.
- Whisk together, olive oil, Nama Shoyu and maple syrup.
- Pour over mushroom, onion mix. Stir to coat. Place in refrigerator for at least 4 hours to marinate.
- Remove mixture, drain. Place on non-stick dehydrator sheets and dehydrate at 115 for 4-5 hours.
Marinara Sauce
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 cup sun-dried tomatoes, softened
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/2 lemon, juice from
- 1/4 cup raisins, soaked
- 1/2 cup soaking water from raisins
- 1 teaspoon italian spices
- With food processor running, drop garlic in and chop fine.
- Add remaining ingredients. Process until smooth.
Spinach Walnut Pesto
- 2 cloves garlic
- 3 cups spinach
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 1/2 cup walnuts, soaked, drained and dried
- 1/2 lemon, juice from
- With food processor running, drop in garlic.
- Add remaining ingredients and process until a paste is formed.
Cashew Cheese:
- 3/4 cups cashews, soaked overnight, drained
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- pinch Himalayan Salt and pepper
- Place all ingredients in food processor. Pulse until a cottage cheese texture is achieved. Add a little water if necessary.
Assembly
- Place crust on plate. Spread a layer of the marinara sauce, then a layer of the spinach walnut pesto, some of the cashew cheese, the mushroom onion mixture and then top with more cheese and onions.
For more great recipes, check the recipe list here: Recipes
Lauren wrote on November 20, 2012
I attempted this but unfortunately mine have just gone completely crumbly! Not sure what I did wrong… I used almonds instead of walnuts and dehydrated for about 8 hours. How long do you leave them in there? Thanks 🙂
Debé wrote on September 14, 2012
Hi Susan, First I would like to say “THANK YOU” for all your wonderful recipes. I’ve been enjoying eating raw and have found your website so informative and the recipes are fantastic. I have a question though. I bought buckwheat and play to sprout it to try this recipe. I went to a Raw Vegan Recipe and had their pizza with a buckwheat crust and LOVED IT. Is there a difference between buckwheat and buckwheat for sprouting? I bought both kinds and was just wondering if they will both work.
Thanks again.
D
Colette wrote on September 14, 2012
Fantastic! I’ve been wanting to try your recipe for so long and so glad I finally did! My one cup of buckwheat turned into 3 once sprouted to I doubled the crust recipe. Good think I did because I have loads of sauce and pesto leftover!! Next time I will have to play with the crust, perhaps add some flaxseed like mentioned before. Mine crumbled all over the place! The marinated onions and mushrooms were amazing! My husband was eating them off the tray!!
Susan wrote on September 16, 2012
If your crust seems crumbly, you can add more water when you make it. I did not have that problem with mine. Cheers!
Val wrote on September 9, 2012
Hi. Just made the recipe as described. Crust also crumbled. Any other suggestion other than adding flax seeds? What is it I could have done wrong? Too long in the dehydrator? Too thin? What else?
I loved it anyway! It is fantastic!
Natalie Parker wrote on April 6, 2012
About how long does the crust take to dehydrate?
Jesse @ Happy Go Lucky Vegan wrote on August 6, 2011
This looks great! I love the idea of pairing soaked almonds and buckwheat to make the crust. I’ll have to try this one!
Michele wrote on July 3, 2011
What is a good substitute for walnuts? My husband is allergic to walnuts, but I sooo want to try this pizza recipe. 😉 Thanks!
Susan wrote on July 3, 2011
In this recipe you could try almonds or Brazil nuts. 🙂
Victoria wrote on April 6, 2011
Ha ha… I DID read through the recipe first – actually a couple of times – but I STILL missed 1/2 cup of walnuts!! Too eager after 31 days of juice, I suppose! lol. I didn’t like it! I LOVED IT!! Still having some everyday after work! YUMMMMMM!!!! 😛
Victoria wrote on April 4, 2011
Yay!! I finally made it. Hit a few speed bumps along the way, but overall, it came out GREAT!!
The only trouble I had was I over-marinated the onions and mushrooms and boy oh boy, where they strong!! Phew!! And then there was a minor problem with my crust … it crumbled!! So I soaked some golden flax seeds and mixed them with the crumbled crust and re-dehydrated and that worked. My marinara sauce is darker than yours but dang, that stuff is delicious!!
Now that I have experience with this recipe, I’m confident the next batch will be FANTASTIC! But seriously, it really can’t get much better. This is a WINNER!!! Thanks Susan!! YOU RAWK!!
**First timers tip** Highlight all the items that need soaking so you won’t miss any. It’s no fun to be in the middle of a recipe and realize you have to soak something for six hours! UGH!! =D
Susan wrote on April 4, 2011
Lol…or you could read through the recipe, first… Glad you like it!