Saturday, November 7, 2009

It's easy being vegan

When we went vegan I thought that was the end of pizzas. Boy, was I wrong. I experimented for a while, and now I think i have a pretty good recipe.
I like a thick crust. My crust recipe for a large pizza is:
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 1/2 teaspoon yeast
1/8 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
flour as needed to make moderately firm dough
a tablespoon or so of flax meal is optional
part of the flour can be whole wheat.

Make the dough and cover it while you prepare the toppings.
Preheat the oven to about 400, or 375 if it's a convection oven.

I use about a cup and a half of thick seasoned tomato sauce. I usually use a small can of hunts tomato puree, or a petite diced tomato can, unless, of course, I have fresh tomatoes which is always the best. I flavor the tomato with1/8 teaspoon asophoetida (hing) heated in a little olive oil, a tablespoon of molasses, a teaspoon of basil, and a half teaspoon of oregano. I cook it until it is pretty thick.

Another topping I generally use is 1/3 tub of tofu, drained, and mixed with a shot of olive oil, a shot of brags liquid aminos, and a teaspoon of basil. Fresh basil is really great to use.

I also slice a green pepper thinly, and slice about 5 pepperoncinies thinly.

Next I oil the pizza pan. Then I roll out the dough and place it on the pan. Then spread out the tomato sauce. Then I usually put some vegan pepperoni around the edge. Then I spread the tofu mixture around. Then I but on the peppers and pepperoncini. Then I grate 1/3 pack of Follow your Heart vegan cheddar cheese and 1/3 pack of Monterey Jack Follow your Heart Vegan cheese.
Bake it for 17 to 20 minutes. I broil it for the last 2 minutes, it melts the cheese nicely.

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