Bean Crust Butternut “Pizza”

Welcome autumn with these warm flavours

Autumn has arrived and the chill is creeping in. It is time to pull out a thick coat and some hearty recipes.

This “pizza” is exactly what I was looking for. It is full of the deep and rich flavours of fall; the sweet onion and butternut balance wonderfully with the tangy rocket and goats cheese.

The base has a satisfying texture: chewy in the center and very crispy at the edges. And what a fabulous way of incorporating some more pulses into my meals.

The list of ingredients seems very long, but it really is not complicated. It will take little over an hour including baking time. Also you can prepare the “pizza” ahead: I made a double the amount and stored half the topping in the fridge for about four days. The crust I froze by way of experiment. I allowed the crust to defrosted a little, threw the topping on and had another dinner ready in no time.

Ingredients
(found on the blog ‘Natural Noshing’)
Serves 2

Pizza
1 can (19 oz or 540 ml) beans (giant, white kidney or navy beans)
60ml (1/4 cup) extra virgin olive oil
120ml (1/2 cup) unsweetened soy- or almond milk
4 tsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp chia seeds
2 tbsp tapioca, potato or corn starch
60gr (1/4 cup) buckwheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp fine sea salt
1 tsp dried basil

Toppings
1 small butternut squash
2 tbsp olive oil
salt, pepper
2 red onions
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
small handful rocket (arugula, NL/DE: Rucola)
100g goat cheese
optional: 1 tbsp fresh sage

 

Recipe

Pizza

1. Preheat oven to 190C (375F). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Rinse and drain the beans. Process them in a food processor until you have a chunky paste.
3. Grind the chia seeds in a coffee grinder or pestle and mortar.
4. Add to the beans together with all the remaining ingredients. Combine but do not over process.
5. Form into one or two pizzas on the baking sheet. (You can oil your fingers if the dough is sticking too them.)
6. Bake 30-35 min until edges and bottom is lightly browned.
7. The crust can be frozen at this point. Slide the parchment paper onto a chopping board and wrap in clingfilm and/or freezer bag. The crust will remain fragile even when frozen so handle carefully. Allow crust to defrost slightly before topping.
8. Top the crust and cook for 15-20 (individual servings) 20-30 (one large pizza).

Topping

1. Preheat oven to 190C (375F).
2. Peel the squash and cut into 2 cm cubes. Place on a baking tray and toss with 1 tbsp oil. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Bake squash for about 30 minutes until some edges have gone slightly brown. Toss once or twice during baking.
4. Cut onion into thin rings. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a small saucepan. Add onion and stir frequently until onion just begins to colour. Add balsamic and large pinch of salt. Cover and simmer on low heat. Cook for 25 min stirring once in a while.
5. Roughly chop rocket and crumble goats cheese.
6. Place rocket on the crust. Then onion, squash and cheese.
7. Cook for 15-20 (individual servings) 20-30 (one large pizza).

Tips & Variations

The original recipe asks for 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp (45 g or 1.6 oz) coconut flour. I did not have any. Maybe that is why my crust was a little cracked.

Serve with

A rocket salad. Add something fresh and crisp, apple for example.

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• freeze
• main meal
• make ahead
• pulses
• vegetarian