Summer Tomato & Zucchini Quinoa Pizza

               Summer Tomato & Zucchini Quinoa Pizza

This summery Tomato Zucchini Quinoa Pizza is a simple, flavorful, plant-based pizza recipe that makes a wonderful meal or appetizer! And thank you to Sabra for sponsoring today's post!

I've been on this insane pizza kick lately. I can't explain it, but I literally crave it all the time. Whenever I think about dinner, pizza is the first thing that pops into my head.

Luckily, if we ❤️ pizza AND like eating healthy, there are options. Not all pizza is filled with gluten, cheese, and grease.

We can make pizza out of cauliflower, we can make it out of sweet potatoes (you gotta try these Sweet Potato Pizza Bites!), and we can even make it out of quinoa!

If you're new the site and haven't dug into the archives, then you might not have seen my 5-ingredient quinoa pizza crust recipe, but it's far away from the most popular recipe on the entire site.

But like, I totally get it. Healthy pizza. 5 ingredients. Minimal clean-up. It doesn't get much easier!

Today I'm going to show you how to make my traditional quinoa pizza crust with a little twist. We're still using the soaked quinoa, but swapping out the olive oil and some of the water for…hummus!

Roasted red pepper hummus to be exact!

My go-to hummus brand is Sabra, you guys know that by now, and their roasted red pepper flavor is actually insane. It's got their signature creamy texture, the perfect balance of tahini and garlic, with just the right amount of roasted red peppers. And you get that incredible flavor with every bite!

I'm using it two ways with this summery quinoa pizza. First, we're using it in the crust to mellow out the quinoa flavor, while also increasing the protein content of the meal. Second, we're using the rest of the hummus as our base. So rather than slathering up on tomato sauce (or pesto), we're using the creamy roasted red pepper hummus and it's damn good!

I will say though, if roasted red pepper ain't your thing, no big deal. Sabra has tons of flavors to choose from and many of them would work. I'd suggest trying…

• Basil Pesto
• Spinach & Artichoke
• Roasted Garlic
• or Sun Dried Tomato

Okay… now, I'm getting hungry again. Trying all of those combos next time I want pizza!

For toppings, we kept it simple and summery. Freshly sliced tomato and thinly cut zucchini layered across the top and sprinkled with vegan cheese.

While I'm totally game for topping your pizza with ALL the things, sometimes simple is better. And in this case, that's 1000% the case!

What's great about this quinoa pizza recipe is that you can serve it in a variety of ways. Not only does it make an awesome weeknight meal, but it's also great for entertaining.

Throwing a party with your girlfriends? Backyard BBQ? Honestly, who wouldn't LOVE to go to a party and seeing a platter of healthy pizza? Umm… me please!

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup white quinoa soaked in 3 cups water
• 1 10 oz container Sabra Roasted Red Pepper Hummus, divided
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 small zucchini
• 2 to matoes
• 1 cup shredded vegan cheese or regular cheese
• Finely chopped basil & roasted red pepper flakes to garnish

Instructions

• Soak quinoa in warm water for at least two hours, preferably overnight. 
• When ready to make, preheat the oven to 425ºF and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Drain and rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh sieve, then add it to a blender along with 1/4 cup hummus, 2 tablespoons water, baking powder and sea salt. Blend on high until smooth and a thick batter forms.
• Pour the batter onto the parchment-lined baking sheet and spread it out into a rectangle with a spatula. You want the crust to be about 1/4 - 1/8" thick.
• Bake on the center rack for 10 minutes, then remove and flip the crust directly onto the baking sheet and bake another 8 minutes.
• While the crust is baking, finely slice the zucchini and tomatoes into rounds.
• Remove the crust from the oven and spread the rest of the hummus out in an even layer (this acts as our "sauce"). Top with the zucchini and tomato slices (I arranged them in rows, but you can do it however you like), followed by the cheese.
• Bake for another 6 - 10 minutes until the cheese has melted and vegetables are hot.
• Remove and slice into squares. Sprinkle with fresh basil and crushed red pepper and serve.