I am a zombie.

I am walking around with glazed over eyeballs, ragged breaths and outstretched arms looking for my next victim.

By victim, I mean plush object to cuddle and nap with for 23 hours.

I just returned home from a long work conference where I had, on average, 4 hours of sleep each night. I am fully grown adult who needs at LEAST eight hours of beauty rest to even look and act like a human being. Nine is preferable – I find the extra hour adds just the faintest glow to my complexion. By the end of the week, I was struggling to form sentences and conceal the bags under my eyes. At one point, I was going down an escalator and saw some folks I needed to connect with coming up & I proceeded to practically bark at them….but also stutter?? Like, I tried to get my point across, but the combination of no sleep and the moving staircase I was on made it tricky. Another time, I found myself riding the escalator up, only to ride it back down immediately because I forgot something, and then do it all over again. The passersby found it amusing at least. I came home and fell asleep during yoga, so really doing well on fitness goals, too.

Now why did I think it was a good idea to plan a vacation immediately after this requiring me to get up at 3:00am for a flight????

 

 

Time: 1 hour (prep + cooking) | Serves: 2 pizzas

Ingredients:

• 2 cauliflower crusts
• 1 eggplant, peeled + sliced in 1/4 inch thick discs
• 1 cup of tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup of raw cashews, soaked overnight
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 2 tbsp. of unsweetened almond milk
• 1/2 of a block of firm tofu, water drained
• 1 tbsp. of ground flax seeds
• 1/2 tbsp. of all-purpose flour
• 1 cup of panko
• 1 tsp. of italian seasoning
• 1 tsp. of oregano
• 1/2 tsp. of crushed red pepper
• S+P, to taste
• Olive oil spray
• Basil, for serving

How to:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• Place eggplant rounds in a colander + sprinkle with salt, let drain for 20-30 minutes
• Meanwhile, pulse cashews in food processor
• Add lemon juice + tofu + S+P, process on high + slowly add in milk until smooth
• Adjust seasoning to taste and place in fridge until ready to use
• Meanwhile, combine flax seeds + 1/3 cup of water in a bowl, set aside for 10 minutes
• Add panko + Italian seasoning + oregano + crushed red pepper + S+P to another bowl
• Dredge eggplant disc in flax egg, then panko, place on a sprayed lined baking sheet, repeat with remaining dics
• Bake 30 minutes, flipping once in the middle of cooking
• Spread the crusts with tomato sauce + top with eggplant slices + tofu ricotta
• Bake another 10 minutes
• Serve warm with basil
• Fold a slice like a lil pizza boat + swim it right down your cavernous gullet

 

Adapted from here!