"without recognizing" is a perfectly valid phrase that can be used in written English.
Example sentence: Without recognizing it, he had stumbled into a situation far more complicated than he had imagined.
She walks right by, without recognizing him.
People walk by without recognizing him.
Another customer overheard Tyree's request without recognizing him.
We curse their blindness without recognizing our own.
"Too many people try to find intangible reasons without recognizing the tangible reasons.
"Anthropologists walked past those clam gardens for years without recognizing them," he said.
Without recognizing it, we have already stepped over the threshold of such a change.
Trump has also championed the fracking industry without recognizing this conflict.
Be careful though — you don't want to invisibly promote your people without recognizing their contributions.
Without recognizing the seeds of terrorism, they reason, how can you combat it?
"I've even passed by my son and daughter without recognizing them".
