A homemade, gluten-free flatbread is a straightforward way to squeeze fiber-rich plants onto your plate, especially when a salad doesn't spark joy. The dough takes less than 20 minutes to set, while the verdant pesto can be made with any greens you have left in your crisper drawer. The nutty white sauce is courtesy of nutritional yeast and sunflower seeds, which provide B12, selenium, and vitamin E—nutrients that support cognitive function, hormone health, and the skin barrier. Jammy onions and leeks, roasted artichokes, and slightly-charred zucchini strips provide flavor complexity, making this a meal you'll turn to weekly. It's delicious for kids, on an evening with guests, or solo (you'll be blessed with leftovers, too). Above all, it's a versatile vehicle to get in an abundance of life-changing plants.
Ingredients:
FLATBREAD DOUGH:
- 2 cups gluten free flour (suggested: Bob Red Mills 1:1 baking flour)
- ¾ cup water
- 2 flax eggs (2 tablespoons flaxseeds to 6 tablespoons water; let sit for 5 minutes and it will congeal)
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
SUGGESTED TOPPINGS:
- 1 zucchini, sliced
- 1 can artichoke hearts
- 1 shallot or half of an onion, sliced
- ½ leek, sliced
- 1 teaspoon wildcrafted honey
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- Handful of fresh, organic greens for topping
- Salt to taste
PESTO:
- 1 cup greens of choice (suggested: carrot tops, nettles, spinach)
- 3 garlic cloves
- Juice from ½ lemon
- ⅓ cup seeds of choice
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- Salt + pepper to taste
SUNFLOWER SEED CREMA:
- ½ cup sunflower seeds, soaked in hot water for at least 30 minutes
- ¼ cup cashews, soaked in hot water for at least 30 minutes
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- Salt + pepper to taste
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 450F.
- Make crema sauce. Place sunflower seeds, cashews, nutritional yeast, vinegar, salt + pepper into a blender on low. After 1 minute, turn blender to high, adding water ¼ cup at a time until it starts to resemble a creamy sauce. Blend until completely smooth, adding water as needed.
- Make pesto. Place all ingredients in blender and blend on high until it reaches desired consistency.
- To prep toppings, place a small pan on medium heat and add in 2 teaspoons of olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, shallots, leeks, and honey. Stir frequently and after about 5 minutes, add 1 tablespoons water + 1 teaspoon vinegar. Continue to cook down until browned and jammy, another 3-5 minutes. Once jammy, set in a bowl to the side.
- Lay sliced zucchini flat in the pan with 1 teaspoon of olive oil and turn heat to high, cooking for 2-3 minutes on one side, NOT stirring, and allowing the one side of the zucchini to become slightly charred. Once they are browned, turn off heat and set to the side.
- Make the flatbread dough. In a medium mixing bowl, combine water, flax eggs, vinegar, olive oil, and salt. Add flour, ½ cup at a time, mixing well until it comes together into a dough ball. It should form easily, not crumble, and not be too wet. Add more flour or water if the dough is leaning toward one extreme.
- Place dough on baking pan lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle a few teaspoons of flour onto the parchment paper. Place the flatbread dough ball on the parchment. Coat your hands with a small amount of flour or olive oil to keep the dough from sticking and gently press + flatten the dough out into a rectangular flatbread.
- Place the flatbread dough in the oven and bake for 8-10 minutes.
- After 8-10 minutes, take flatbread out, top with pesto, zucchini, and artichokes and cook for another 8-10 minutes.
- Take flatbread out of oven and finish topping off with jammy shallots + leeks, greens, sunflower seed crema, salt and pepper. Enjoy.
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