Thin Crust Pepperoni & Benevolent Ba'con Pizza

Delicious vegan pizza topped with popular vegan favorites.

I'm always, always late for Vegan Pizza Day.
Well, here is something pleasing to make up for being tardy to the party-- five days late and on the first of a new month to be exact. Happy July!
This is my usual recipe for homemade pizza dough with the exception of substituting all purpose flour for whole wheat flour. I'll never get tired of making pizza dough. Since, I've yet returned to store bought. It's incredibly joyous relaxation process-- massaging the dough and working the ball in floured hands. Definitely a stress reliever. To make for a thinner crust, I cut the dough in half after rise and saved portion for a later recipe-- calzones or miniature pizza pockets. It's probably good for less than a week.
On top of the crust, Sweet Earth Foods Hickory Smoked Benevolent Ba'con adds a rich, charred flavor to traditional vegan pepperoni pizza and Daiya melts just right on tangy sweet tomato sauce.

Thin Crust Pepperoni & Benevolent Ba'con Pizza Ingredients and Preparation

Dough

1 cup warm water
2 teaspoon sugar
2 1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
1 teaspoon salt
3 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup olive oil
3 tablespoon nutritional yeast
2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
pizza sauce (I used Newton's Own Marinara Sauce and yes, it's for spaghetti, but it was super good)
2 cup Daiya Mozzarella Style Shreds
Yves Vegan Veggie Pepperoni
4 strips Sweet Earth Foods Benevolent Bacon, cooked and chopped

Activate yeast in warm water and sugar. Let sit for five minutes.
Add salt.
Stir in flour one cup at a time.
Massage dough with olive oil, nutritional yeast, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and black pepper. This should take ten to fifteen minutes.
In an oiled bowl (or just add oil to the bottom of your current bowl), add dough and seal with plastic. Leave it sitting, at room temperature, for an hour.

Ingredient prep. I love when the dough rises. Makes me smile.

Risen dough. Punch down and cut in half. Roll out thinly with rolling pin onto greased baking sheet.

Layer with pizza sauce, Daiya, veggie pepperoni, and benevolent ba'con. Top with extra cheese and bake for 15 minutes.

Straight out of the oven: hot melted cheese.

Slice of "meaty" heaven.

Three slices. Honest.

The crust was amazing.

Happy National Vegan Pizza Day! Broccoli & Pumpkin Pistachio Cream Pizza

It's National Vegan Pizza Day! Nom! Nom!

It's the last Saturday in June and every vegan knows what that means- National Vegan Pizza Day! Yippee! I've seen a lot of wonderful, creative pies today that have my mind spinning for next year (okay actually far earlier than that!). Gotta love our little glorious holiday to delight on warm crust piled high with various fixings!
I'm an avid lover of broccoli- well known fact about me. So it's no surprise that for National Vegan Pizza Day broccoli steals the show. Almost. Remember the amazing pumpkin pistachio cream from weeks ago? It serves as the perfect sauce to nooch drenched broccoli. The flavors are downright gratifying and rich- very a gourmet deliciousness.

Broccoli & Pumpkin Pistachio Cream Pizza Ingredients and Preparation

pizza dough
1 cup broccoli, steamed
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1/4 cup red onion
2 tablespoon almond milk
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/2 cup pumpkin pistachio cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease baking sheet any way desired - olive or coconut oil or nonstick spray.

Mix warm broccoli with nutritional yeast, red onion, almond milk, garlic, salt, black pepper and paprika.

Lay out pizza dough onto baking sheet however way desired (mine is all funky) and layer pumpkin pistachio cream on top.

Add broccoli and red onions. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Doesn't look like much difference- but broccoli is brown and pumpkin pistachio cream is a deeper orange shade.

Sprinkle crushed pistachios for extra texture and prettiness.

Incredible.

Happy Vegan Pizza Day: Vegan Broccoli & Mushroom Calzones With Avocado Cauliflower Cream

Folded over pizza pocket stuffed & topped with yumminess!

Happy Vegan Pizza Day!
Just in time for year two of being a pizza loving vegan, I have created deliciously unique combinations inside my experimental kitchen studio. There's fun making and rolling out homemade dough and conjuring up sauces/topping ideas!
There have been some good, bad, and ugly recipes, but at least pizza can never be boring because there are too many flavors competing over each bite.
Well, unless you've burnt the crust.
No joy in that.
Here are five personal favorite blog experiments that definitely came out above all right! Haha! :D

1. Vegan Pesto Mozzarella Pizza

Mushrooms are smothered front and back by delicious pine nut & hazelnut blended pesto & Daiya mozzarella.

2. Vegan Cashew & Cheddar Balsamic Brussels Sprouts Pizza

Daiya cheddar covers balsamic coated Brussels sprouts.

3. Vegan Green Pea & Spinach Not So Pesto Sauce & Portobello Mushroom, & Chive On Buckwheat Crust Pizza

Spinach pesto & mushrooms cover this gluten free crust.

4. Vegan Miniature Broccoli & Cashew Cream Pizzas

5. Vegan Falafel Pizza Pie

It's an inside out falafel with the Middle Eastern dough balls acting as crust topped with traditional ingredients.

Ah, but today's delightful calzone (basically pizza crust folded over some good stuff) may be my new numero uno! Mushroom and broccoli may sound unexciting and less adventurous than other innovations (that of which were inspired by great vegan bloggers), but these two vegetables make awesome magic together. Topped with an incredibly tasty avocado cauliflower, happy taste buds give thanks on this great occasion!

Vegan Broccoli & Mushroom Calzones With Avocado Cauliflower Cream Ingredients and Preparation

store bought or homemade dough cut into four

Filling

2 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon garlic
1 cup mushrooms
2 cup broccoli, steamed
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon paprika

Cream

1 1/2 cup cauliflower, steamed
1 ripened avocado
2 tablespoon olive oil
1/8 cup cilantro
3 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1 tablespoon almond milk
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon white pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and prep a baking sheet with oil or parchment paper.
Puree cream and set aside.

After cooking mushrooms for about five minutes, stir in steamed broccoli and set aside.

Cut dough into four equal sections.

Add filling and fold over.

Pinch corners with a fork, add vent holes at the top, & bake for 20-23 minutes.

Brush extra olive oil on top for a beautiful glow.

Top with Avocado Cauliflower Cream.