Naan Hummus Pizza

With a three year old picky eater, I need to always be on my toes to bring something innovative on the dinner table. It was one such evening when I had to make the dinner sound interesting. So here I am searching down the refrigerator and pantry shelves trying to cobble up into something colorful and edible. Turns out the end product was not only appreciated by the kiddo, but it turned out to be a wholesome dinner for all of us. Plus I turned it into decorate your own pizza project. It was so much fun for my little daughter!

So here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

• Naan bread (fresh baked from costco bakery) - 1 piece
• Butter - 1 tsp
• Organic Hummus  - 2 tbsp
• Organic grape tomatoes - 4 sliced
• Olives - approx 10 slices
• Cilantro - 2-3 twigs
• Shredded cheese - 2 tbsp
• Paprika - to sprinkle
• Crushed black pepper - per taste
• Dried Oregano - 1 tsp
• Salt to taste

Method:

• Spread the butter on the naan. Cover the edges to make the pizza toasty.
• Spread hummus evenly on the buttered naan
• Arrange the olives and tomato slices all over the surface
• Add cilantro twigs
• Sprinkle paprika, salt,black pepper and oregano
• Cover pizza with shredded cheese
• Quick bake in a toaster  oven at 350 deg F for approx 10 minutes or till the cheese begins to melt.
• Remove from oven and allow 3-4 minutes to let the layers set.
• Sprinkle some more paprika and oregano, cut the pizza into serving size pieces and serve hot.

Suggestions:

• Like olives and tomatoes, I have also used  jalapenos and pineapple combination. Another combination which works is red onions and bell pepper.
• Add garlic salt instead of salt to give a garlicky flavor.
• Buttering naan edges helps making the edges also crispy and edible.
• Try fresh parsley instead of cilantro.

Organic or non-organic

Over the past couple of years I have been amazed to see the increase in the variety of items in the organic food isle. When I go grocery shopping, the word "organic" enthralls me.

As per USDA , Organic is a labeling term that indicates that the food or other agricultural product has been produced through approved methods that integrate cultural, biological, and mechanical practices that foster cycling of resources, promote ecological balance, and conserve biodiversity. Synthetic fertilizers, sewage sludge, irradiation, and genetic engineering may not be used.
Ref: http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/nop

Even though organic produce is gaining its popularity, till date not all grocery stores sell organic food. Plus the price difference between organic and non-organic food item is still huge. So here is my dilemma - if I was told to pick non-organic produce, when its organic counterpart exists,  which should I pick?

After some research, I have now been following a very simple rule : if the fruit or vegetable has a thicker peel which you would discard when eating, I go for non-organic options. For example in case of a banana or avocado, because of the thicker peel, the inner flesh has less pesticide exposure compared to say berries which have thin and delicate outer skin.

So here is a categorized list from my shopping cart:
Always organic:

• All berries (strawberry, blueberry, raspberry etc)
• Zucchini
• Lettuce
• Celery
• Tomato
• Carrots
• Spinach
• Kale
• Chard
• Oats
• Pasta
• Milk
• Eggs
• Chicken 

OK to be non-organic:

• Banana
• Avocado
• Grapefruit
• Orange
• Pineapple
• Watermelon
• Cantaloupe

Of course at any time I would prefer buying all organic, just so that we can support the farmers  to grow more and more organic. I think of this as my way of eating healthier and also a my small contribution in working towards saving our planet.