A quick pesto made from carrot tops and basil gives these quick and hearty flatbread pizzas a kick of herbs and garlic. Carrot flatbread pizza | Me & the moose #meandthemoose #carrots #flatbread #easyweeknightmeals #flatbreadpizza #carrotpizza #carrottoppesto

This easy flatbread pizza uses all parts of the carrot; the tops go into a garlicky green pesto and the meat of the carrots is peeled or shredded as a topping. So, get dinner on the table fast and reduce your food waste!

I've been thinking a lot about the passage of time lately. Having a sick parent has made me feel more like an adult than any other milestone has, while simultaneously making me feel like a helpless kid. How am I old enough to sleep next to a hospital bed and interact with doctors who seem to think I know what I'm doing? And also, isn't someone else supposed to take care of this stuff? Like, the mom who's in the hospital bed?

Last week was also M's 3rd birthday and while I felt the obligatory, "How is this kid 3 already?" I also felt a little bit like, "How is he only 3?" In the best way possible, it feels like he's always been here.

So yeah, time. It flies and crawls.

M also starts school on Monday. Real school where I drop him off every day and he makes friends and has relationships with teachers and learns things that I don't know. We flirted with this type of setting before we moved last summer, but then we relocated and decided to get on a waiting list for a school we liked instead of jumping right in as soon as we got to Connecticut.

So! This means I'll be actually posting lunchbox meals over on instagram instead of talking about them theoretically.

This carrot pizza is a good place to start! First, it's "pizza" which is appealing to lots of kids. Carrots are also a good gateway vegetable because they're sweet, especially when roasted.

A couple of notes:

If you need a nut-free pesto for lunchboxes or allergies, swap in pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds for the cashews.
Use 2 packed cups of carrot tops and basil, in whatever ratio you want. My carrot tops usually measure between 3/4 to 1 cup. Be sure to pack the carrot tops and basil tightly.
Grated carrots cook the fastest, so if you’re concerned about the veggies having too much texture (ie, remaining too raw) in the final product, I would grate them or shred them. I like the long ribbons of peeled carrots for aesthetics, but they don’t cook very much while the cheese melts.
An alternative method for cooking these would be to use leftover roasted carrots or to roast some carrots specifically for this dish. I use raw because I’m very lazy and also, my kids don’t like carrots so in my house, these are for the grownups anyway.

Carrot flatbread pizza

Time: 15-20 minutes, all active
Yield: 4 flatbreads and extra pesto

Carrot top pesto
1-2 cups leafy carrot tops (see note above)
1/4-1 cup basil (again, see note above)
¼ cup raw cashews, toasted
1 large clove garlic
splash of lemon juice
½ tsp salt, and more to taste
5 cracks of freshly grated pepper
½ cup olive oil

Yield: about 9 oz, or 1.5 cups sauce

Preheat the oven to 350.

In a single layer, toast the nuts until golden and nutty smelling, about 4-5 minutes.

Add the toasted nuts and all other ingredients except the oil to a food processor. With the processor running, add the oil in a thin stream. Blend until well combined.

For the flatbreads
2-3 large carrots
Salt & pepper to taste
4 flatbreads
6 Tbsp ricotta
6 Tbsp carrot top pesto
1-1.5 cups shredded mozzarella
4 Tbsp parmesan

Shred or peel the carrots. Add a pinch of salt and pepper and mix with your hands.

To arrange the flatbreads: Mix together the ricotta and pesto (or spread them on the flatbreads separately). Spread 2 Tbsp of the cheese and pesto mixture on top of the flatbreads. Top with shredded carrots and then about 1/4 – 1/3 cup of mozzarella.

Bake for 8-10 minutes, until the cheese has begun to brown and the breads are crispy.

Spring vegetable baked gnocchi

Time: 25-30 minutes, all active
Yield: 4-6 adult servings, depending on your appetite

1 package shelf-stable potato gnocchi, cooked al dente
1 Tbsp butter
1 large shallot, minced
1 box baby bella mushrooms, chopped
1 box shitake mushrooms, chopped
3 large cloves of garlic, minced
1 bunch asparagus, woody stems chopped off
1-2 Tbsp water, if needed
½ cup full fat ricotta
½ cup parmesan
Several large pinches of salt
1 cup shredded mozzarella

Preheat broiler.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

While the water is heating, melt the butter in a sauté pan over a medium/ medium-low flame and cook the shallots until opaque, about 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook until they soften and begin to release some water, about 5-7 minutes. Add a large pinch of salt.

Add the garlic and asparagus and cook until the mushroom water evaporates. If the mushrooms don’t release any water, add 1-2 Tbsp of water with the asparagus and cook until it evaporates.

Once the water boils, add the gnocchi and as soon as they start floating to the top, scoop them out with a slotted spoon or strainer and put into a large bowl. If only a few gnocchi float at a time, scoop them out in small groups. If the gnocchi aren’t floating or some seem to be cooking at the bottom of the pot for longer than 3-4 minutes, test for doneness and scoop out as long as they no longer taste doughy.

In a large bowl (or right in the baking dish!), mix the gnocchi with ricotta, parmesan, sautéed veggies, salt and pepper. Transfer to a baking dish (if necessary) and top with shredded mozzarella. Bake under the broiler until cheese is brown and bubbly, about 3-4 minutes.

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Carrot flatbread pizza

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