"Cheezy" Pizza Hemp Kale Chips

For my trip to Michigan I have been preparing lots of snacks so I can continue to eat healthy on the road and while I'm away from home. If you eat like I do, you know how hard it is to eat out with friends and family who eat the SAD (Standard American Diet). So, to make it a bit easier, I've been dehydrating fruit, sprouting and drying nuts, making energy bars and today... kale chips!



I decided to go with a "pizza" flavor since I had a bunch of sun-dried tomatoes on hand. Most recipes for kale chips use cashews as a base for the topping, but I was out and instead I decided that I would use hemp seeds! I prefer hemp seeds over cashews for more savory dishes. I really I love hemp seeds, they have a mild nutty flavor and they get nice and creamy when blended, and the nutritional benefits are superior to cashews!



These "cheezy" pizza kale chips are dairy free, for those of you who have never used nutritional yeast, it is an inactive yeast that has a very cheese like flavor. It is also very high in B vitamins. It is quite nutritious and delicious if used properly in recipes. The great thing about nutritional yeast is that it is high in protein and very high in the B-complex vitatmins, nucleotides and several anit-oxitants. It is often also fortified with B-12. Here is a good article on the benfits of nutritional yeast. So not only is it really tasty, it is so good for you. So tasty that I hope I have some left for my trip!

Pizza Hemp Kale Chips:
1 large bunch of curly kale
1/2 cup hulled hemp seeds
1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4-1/2 cup water
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp sea salt or to taste
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp dried basil or a sprig of fresh
1/2 tsp dried oregano or a sprig of fresh
sprinkle to taste crushed red pepper

Directions:
The kale- Be sure to wash your kale well and dry if off as best as you can, a salad spinner works great for that if you have one. Also, another important thing is to de-stem the kale. I simply use my fingers to strip and tear off the leaves. If you leave the larger stem, you will end up with stick like stems, and you won't enjoy that! Also, I highly recommend curly kale for this. The curls hold the sauce much better than the flat kind. It really makes a big difference. Once you have it de-stemed and washed, toss it in a large bowl and set aside.

For the "Cheezy" Pizza Sauce- Add tomatoes to the blender and process till they are diced. Add in the rest of the ingredients except the crushed red pepper, and start with a 1/4 cup of water. Add more if needed to process. The less water the better, but you need enough to blend and you need it liquid enough to coat the kale leaves. You'll want it a similar consistency to peanut butter. You can taste it and add more or less of the ingredients to taste. Once it is blended well, poor over the kale and mix well, until each leaf is coated nicely. Sprinkle on the crushed red pepper lightly and mix.

Lay out the kale on the dehydrator sheets and to keep the nutrients in tact as much as possible, set the temp at 105-115 degrees for 12-24 hours. Foods dehydrated at 115 degrees or less are still considered raw or uncooked. The beneficial digestive enzymes in veggies die and nutrients are reduced when the temp goes over 118 degrees.  Drying time will depend on the humidity in your home and a few other factors. Check them after 12 hours to see where they stand. Mine ran last for about 18 hours or so. When they are done they will be crisp and melt in your mouth!