As I discussed in my last post when you have a baby (or small child) at home, teamwork is a necessity; in fact, embracing teamwork is often the only way you’ll make anything happen. Even the simplest things – like taking a shower, getting groceries, doing laundry, or even cooking at home – require teamwork once you have a baby.
I’m pretty certain I’m not alone here: I think it’s safe to assume that anyone with a baby will tell you that babies make a lot of things difficult. And for me, one of the things that has been really difficult is cooking (even the simplest meals). In fact, during the the first few months cooking seemed like a pipe dream. I remember imagining myself in the kitchen, whipping up delicious things, perhaps with a drink in hand, only to be blasted back to reality and realizing I was actually half naked, covered in spit-up, and attending to a wailing, hungry baby. I think the most I “cooked” was making a smoothie or my morning dose (or three) of coffee.
With their unpredictable moods, urgent needs, and unreasonable demands for time and attention…oh, and of course their impeccable timing (oh, you’re at that crucial stir it so it doesn’t burn part…I DON’T CARE, PAY ATTENTION TO ME, anyway!) – it probably comes as no surprise that cooking with a baby around can seem totally impossible. As it turns out, food and screaming babies both require your attention.
But now that we’re nearing eight months in to this whole parenting thing, I’ve realized that giving up on cooking isn’t actually sustainable – for our health or our wallets. Since you can’t just leave your baby or your onions to fend for themselves, my husband and I have devised a simple strategy for preparing healthier, stress free meals, quickly and easily. We do a weekend grocery run and work together to prep food on Sundays. We stick to simple, delicious, trusted recipes that we can easily repeat week after week.
One of our favorite go to, easy weeknight meals is veggie pita pizzas – they’re quick to prepare, healthy and delicious, and they also require minimal clean up (a huge win, if you ask me!). Given how easy they are, and how much we enjoy them, it probably comes as no surprise, that they make an almost weekly appearance in our house.
We often change up the “sauce” (aka hummus flavor) and toppings on our weekly pizzas, but this one is likely my favorite.
Spicy Roasted Carrot and Pumpkin Seed Pita Pizzas
INGREDIENTS:
- Pita bread
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup pumpkin seeds
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 4 carrots, sliced
- 1 tub of Lantana Sriracha Carrot Hummus
- ½ cup full fat coconut milk
- 1 tsp curry powder
- Handful of kale (or other greens), chopped
- 8-10 cherry tomatoes, halved
- ¼ cup shredded parmesan (or other hard, salty cheese of choice)
If you have little ones, I suggest doing some of your roasting ahead of time (ahem, weekend!):
PREPARE THE PUMPKIN SEEDS:
- Preheat the oven to 375
- Place the pumpkin seeds in a small baking dish and sprinkle one tbsp olive oil, cumin, and chili powder over them as well as salt and pepper, to taste
- Bake for 10-15 minutes, checking and stirring them periodically to make sure they don’t burn
PREPARE THE CARROTS:
- Preheat the oven to 375
- Blend ½ cup of the Lantana Sriracha Carrot Hummus, coconut milk, curry powder, and salt in a blender and blend until smooth. Place the sliced carrots and the hummus mixture in a sealable container, and refrigerate at least 15 minutes (or at most, overnight)
- Place the carrots and extra hummus mixture in a baking dish and bake for about 15 minutes (stopping to stir and mix about halfway through) until carrots appear tender
PREPARE THE PITA PIZZAS:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees
- Meanwhile, toss your kale (or greens) with olive oil and salt and pepper (to taste) and then place in a pan and saute for about 5 minutes or until slightly wilted
- Place pita on a cookie sheet and top with layer of Lantana Sriracha Carrot Hummus, carrot mixture, kale, cherry tomatoes, parmesan and bake them in the oven for 7-10 minutes
- Remove and serve!
Disclaimer: This post was sponsored by Lantana Foods in partnership with the Sweat Pink community. That being said, all recipes, thoughts on cooking with babies, and opinions on pizza are my very own. I truly appreciate all of the brands that support the Sweat Pink community.
Nic says
December 6, 2018 at 8:19 amOh my yum. I need to make this a staple recipe in my house for sure! Pizza all day, every day!
Jamie says
December 17, 2018 at 1:32 pmI love that pizza is a regular thing…ha.
Liz says
December 6, 2018 at 3:35 pmYuuummmmm this looks so delicious!! I’m coming over for dinner, k? 😉
Jamie says
December 17, 2018 at 1:32 pmAnytime!