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or until the mixture begins to thicken (it will continue to thicken as it sits). Drizzle about half of the sauce (or as much as you like) over the tortilla chips and bake for 5 minutes, or until the cheese sauce has hardened and the chips are starting to brown just a little. Transfer the remainder of the cheese sauce to a bowl to serve as a dip with the nachos.

3. Remove the nachos from the oven and sprinkle with the diced tomatoes and avocado, if using. Serve the hot nachos, salsa, and cheese dip immediately.

If You Have More Time

Replace the refried beans with homemade (see page 229).

SPICY TOMATILLO SALSA

Luckily our very good friend, Gustavo, clued us in that tomatillos don’t need to be roasted to make them into salsa. You don’t need to use any lime juice, either, in this raw variation, because the tomatillos are quite tangy enough. Depending on the tomatillos, you may want to use a fine-mesh strainer to strain out some of the water (start with straining just a little and work your way up. This blended type of salsa is more watery than the usual store-bought salsa.)

MAKES 2 CUPS

10-12 tomatillos

2 garlic cloves

1 serrano pepper, seeded, or ½ teaspoon cayenne

¼ cup fresh cilantro, minced

¼ teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon sea salt

Blend all of the ingredients in a blender for 20 to 30 seconds, until a thick liquid consistency is reached.

PESTO PIZZA

Fitting a pizza into a thirty-minute time frame is all about the premade crust. If you have more time, the way to go is to use the Herbed Flatbread (page 192) as the crust. At our restaurant we served a designer pizza du jour, where the chefs came up with creative combinations every day—Thai pizzas, Mexican pizzas, Indian pizzas, you name it. Now it’s your turn. Check out some of our suggestions listed below, think out of the box, and have fun.

SERVES 4 TO 6

1 (12-inch) premade pizza crust

1 recipe Pesto (recipe follows)

2 large tomatoes, sliced

1 (10-ounce) package vegan mozzarella (optional)

8 kalamata olives, diced

1 cup seeded and diced bell peppers (assorted colors) (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Place the pizza crust on a baking sheet or pizza stone and place in the oven. Cook for 5 minutes.

2. While the pizza crust is cooking, prepare the pesto according to its recipe. Remove the pizza from the oven and top with the pesto, tomatoes, and cheese, if using. Sprinkle with olives and bell peppers, if using.

3. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Que bella!

Variations

• Go to town with creating your own designer pizza. Replace the pesto with Tomato Sauce (page 101) and add artichoke hearts and roasted or grilled vegetables (see page 20).

• Replace the pesto with BBQ Sauce (page 123) and top with roasted tofu or tempeh cubes (see page 28).

• Replace the pesto with Spicy Peanut Sauce (page 193) and top with steamed mixed vegetables.

PESTO

MAKES 1 CUP

1½ cups tightly packed fresh basil

¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons pine nuts

½ cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

2-3 garlic cloves

½ teaspoon sea salt, or to taste

¼ teaspoon black pepper, or to taste

2 teaspoons nutritional yeast (optional)

Pinch of cayenne

Combine all of the ingredients in a food processor or strong blender and blend until smooth.

Variations

• Replace the pine nuts with cashews, macadamia nuts, pecans, or walnuts—use raw or toasted.

• You can add ½ cup more olive oil to create a pesto sauce. Serve with Macadamia Nut-Crusted Tofu (page 224), Pasta Primavera (page 222), Monk Bowl (page 114), or Zucchini Roll-ups (page 295).

• You can replace the oil with an equal amount of avocado, to create a version free of refined oils.

• Add 6 ounces of silken tofu before blending and add soy sauce to taste, for a Creamy Pesto Sauce.

• Replace the basil with fresh cilantro.

• Replace half of the basil with mixed fresh herbs, such as parsley and sage.

Quicker and Easier

Skip the pesto and just brush the cooked crust with some olive or flax