Meet & Greet (#MtaGt) - May - Urban Naturale

Welcome to Meet & Greet, a regular series designed to grow our green community.

Banner by Art Ist

Grab our banner for your site:<br /> <a href="http://reducefootprints.blogspot.com/p/meet-greet.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><img alt="A monthly link-up party for green blogs on Reduce Footprints" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDkes4Ye110zbirkxMV6FAevl_7ymkBSWTCsXC7Li1_Vqm5HuIZkn81pN-CFX8iYJkLxAnDNccMjfHmFEMX8Hy8kFjkepmewEnRhBII4indKyexo3L1n6QDC0YrS0jY5Jy94ZyCLUx-_sg/s220/meet--and-greet-003-1000.jpg"/></a></a>
The rules:

1. Use the link-up tool below to share your green-living posts.
2. Visit at least one other blog and/or the featured site and leave a pertinent comment.
3. The link-up will remain open for a month.
4. Random.org determines the featured site each month.

Please meet Deborah and her fabulous blog, Urban Naturale. Do you love great recipes, practical tips on green living, and ideas for maintaining health? Perhaps you are looking for creative inspiration, while maintaining an Eco-friendly life ... or you enjoy do-it-yourself projects around the house. Urban Naturale offers this information and more. On Earth Day, Deborah shared 21 easy way to go green. Each suggestion, like #7 about combining shopping trips, has the added benefit of saving us money. One of my favorite sections is under the tab "Doing Good". Deborah takes green living a step further by making our actions not only count for the environment, but for others as well. For example, in a recent post entitled Help Mom “Chill” with Mother’s Day Gifts That Change Lives, readers are encouraged to buy Mother's Day gifts which are fair trade and Eco-friendly, and which are made by women who are struggling to support their families. Brilliant! In addition to great articles, one will find a couple of fun link-ups, Healthy, Happy, Green & Natural Party Blog Hop and Plant Based Potluck Party Link Up. Urban Naturale's content is timely and informative, but what makes this blog truly special is Deborah's enthusiasm and positive outlook. She helps readers feel joyful about walking gently on the earth.

For previous features & blogs, check out the Meet & Greet Page: http://reducefootprints.blogspot.com/p/meet-greet.html.

Our link-up is live. Please list your blog, visit and have fun!

Let's switch things a bit this month ... let's share posts. You are welcome to link up to four (4) articles from your blog. These can be articles which you've already written or posts which you'll share between now and the second Monday of June.






Sneak Peek: Join us Wednesday for another exciting CTWW challenge and, later in the week, we'll please your palate with a delicious recipe.

Vegan Recipe - Pizza

Please welcome Deborah, head "chef" at Urban Naturale. Deborah has a goal ... to live healthy, green and natural ... by design! "Urban Naturale" encompasses all aspects of that goal and offers readers a ton of great information. I was particularly interested in a section entitled "Nourish" where I found yummy recipes like one for black bean soup and another for oven baked kale chips. That section, however, isn't just about recipes. Readers will learn about nutrition, too. Curious about plant-based calcium sources? How about the healing powers of moringa? Deborah shares that information and more.

While browsing through "Urban Naturale", I came upon a Pizza recipe which made my mouth water! Deborah graciously gave me permission to share it with you. I hope that you'll give it a try!

Whole Wheat Pizza Dough

Ingredients

1 teaspoon Raw Sugar
1 1/4 ounce-package Active Dry Yeast
1 cup lukewarm Water
3 cups Whole Wheat Flour (or substitute with a Gluten-free Flour)
1/4 teaspoon Sea Salt
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
Additional flour for dusting

Directions

• In a bowl, combine water, sugar, and active dry yeast and let it sit for at least 5 minutes.
• In a mixer with a dough hook attachment, combine dry ingredients for dough and mix lightly.
• Add yeast mixture and olive oil and mix until well-combined.
• Transfer into a bowl and cover with cloth.
• Let stand for about 1/2 hour or until the dough doubles in size.
• After the dough rises, release any excess gas by thumping it down on the counter.
• Sprinkle the counter with flour and put the dough on it.
• Press the dough and roll it using a rolling pin.
• Lightly grease a 9-inch spring-form pan and place the dough into it.
• Make sure that the sides of the pan are also covered with dough, since we are making deep-dish vegan pizza.
• Preheat oven to 450 F.

Note: If you do not want a deep-dish pizza, you can divide the dough into two and roll them out thinly for a crispy, thin-crust vegan pizza.

Tomato Based Pizza Sauce

Ingredients

Olive oil, as needed
2 Onions, chopped
2 cloves Garlic, minced
1 (8 ounce) can organic tomato sauce or fresh organic tomatoes
1 tablespoon dried Oregano
1 tablespoon dried Basil
Sea salt & Pepper, to taste

Directions

• To prepare the sauce, sauté garlic and onion, add the rest of the sauce ingredients and let simmer until reduced into a thick sauce.
• Brush the crust with olive oil.
• Spread sauce on the crust.
• When ready, layer toppings on the sauce.

Pizza Toppings

Ingredients

Olive Oil, as needed
Vegan Mozzarella Chesse
Sauteed Broccoli
Shitake Mushrooms – sauteed
Maitake Mushroom – sauteed
Caramelized Onions
Roasted Garlic
Sliced Tomatoes
Vegan Feta Cheese

Directions

• Brush the crust with olive oil.
• Spread tomato sauce on the crust.
• Layer sauteed sauteed broccoli, caramelized onions, roasted garlic and vegan feta cheese on the dough.
• Top with mozzarella cheese and repeat the process until all the ingredients are used.
• Top with tomato slices.
• Sprinkle with herbs.
• Bake until edges are crispy and toppings are set, about 10-15 minutes.
• Slice and serve while hot.
• Sprinkle your slice with red pepper, garlic powder or oregano, as desired.

The original recipe, along with alternate topping ideas and more mouth-watering photos, can be found HERE.

If you have a vegan recipe which you'd like to share, please contact me HERE. And for all the recipes we've shared so far, be sure to visit our recipe page using the tabs at the top of this blog ... or by clicking HERE.


Sneak Peek: Want to make a positive impact on the earth? Join us tomorrow for Change The World Wednesday, your chance to make a difference!