I never buy pizza crusts. They are easy to make and inexpensive compared to store-bought. You can also vary them with different flours, or herbs. This recipe is very forgiving as long as your water is not too hot (it kills the yeast).
Add the yeast and maple syrup to the warm water and whisk them together. Let the mixture sit until it starts to foam.
Add the salt and, using a whisk, stir in 1 cup of the flour.
Beat the dough for 3 minutes, slowly adding in more of the remaining flour.
When the dough becomes too stiff to use a whisk, turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead it by hand, adding more flour until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes.
Cover the dough with a damp towel and let it sit in a warm place until it has doubled in volume, about 45 minutes.
Punch it down and let it rise again, about 15 minutes.
Divide the dough into two pieces and shape into two round, flat crusts.
Let it rest, covered, for 15 minutes before using it in your pizza recipe
I’ve made many versions of cheese sauce over the years, and this is one of my favorites. It has that stretchy texture and a smoky flavor that I love and is perfect for pizza or Mac and Cheese.
Adapted from the The China Study Family Cookbook, by Del Sroufe
This sausage is perfect for several dishes that I like to make. I use it as a topping for Pizza, as a breakfast sandwich on homemade biscuits, or any time that sausage is called for in a recipe. You can make extra and freeze the patties to use later in your favorite recipe.
Combine the water and millet in a 2-quart saucepan with a tight-fitting lid. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pan, and cook until the millet is tender, about 20 minutes (see note).
While the millet cooks, sauté the onion in a small skillet over medium-high heat until it turns translucent and starts to brown, about 5 minutes. Add water 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time, as needed, to keep the onion from sticking to the pan.
Add the garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, tamari, sage, fennel, and red pepper flakes, and sauté for another minute to toast the seasonings.
Remove the skillet from the heat. Add the flaxseed meal soaked in water, nutritional yeast and cooked millet, season with sea salt, and mix well.
Using a ¼-cup measure or small ice cream scoop, shape the millet mixture into patties and place them on a nonstick or parchment-lined baking sheet. Flatten the patties slightly.
Bake for 15 minutes, turn over the patties, and continue to bake until the patties are firm to the touch and lightly browned, another 10 minutes or so.
Everyday is a good day for pizza. Chef Del has all of the best recipes and tips for making your whole food, plant-based pizza party rock.
Pizza Tips for a Whole Food Plant-Based Kitchen
Yes my friend I do eat pizza on a whole food, plant-based diet, though, I insist on healthy ingredients. A WFPB pizza cooks differently from a traditional pie. For example, a whole grain pizza crust will burn in a traditional oven heated to 700 degrees. Here are some more of my best tips for a delicious pizza pie.
Oven Temperature
In the traditional oven at home, we strive to get the oven temperature as hot as possible. Pizza joints heat ovens to as high as 800 or even 900 degrees, temperatures far above what is possible in the home kitchen, and that is probably a good thing. Whole grain crusts burn much more readily than traditional white flour crusts, so you’ll see most of my recipes between 375-400 degrees.
Don’t Use Cold Dough
If you are using a refrigerated dough, take it out of the refrigerator about an hour before baking it so that it can warm up to room temperature and the gluten(if making a wheat flour dough) can relax- allowing you to stretch your pizza into shape easily without overworking it (which makes the dough tough).
Don’t Roll Out Your Dough
This is true mostly for wheat based crusts. The texture of your crusts comes in part by the nooks and crannies created as it rises. Rolling the crust out deflates the crust and gives you more of a cardboard texture. Instead, put the ball of dough on a floured pizza peel and use curved fingers to gently pull from the center to make a round or oval shape with a raised crust at the edge. Work your hands around the edge, lifting so that gravity does the work to stretch the dough to the desired thickness.
Don’t Over Sauce your Pizza
Too much sauce makes a soggy pizza. By the same token, if you are using fresh tomatoes, slice them thinly. If you are using canned tomatoes, drain any excess liquid from them before using them in your recipe.
Preheat Your Baking Surface
No matter what type of bakeware you use to cook your pizza, if you want a crispy crust, a preheated surface will go a long way towards that end. Pizza stones are great but not absolutely necessary for good pizza
Consider Using Parchment Paper
If you are making several pizzas for that big pizza party you promised the kids, then parchment paper is a must so that you won’t spend all night cleaning dishes, or so that you don’t have to go out and buy a bunch of baking dishes
Pre-cook Your Toppings
Many vegetables will not cook in the short time they spend in the oven becoming pizza. If you do not like raw veggies on your pie, then consider cooking them first. And, if you are going to cook them, you might as well up the flavor game and season them too. Also, some greens like spinach and kale which have a lot of water in them benefit from cooking and then squeezing the excess liquid from them-remember nobody wants a soggy pie. If you are going to add raw vegetables, chop them small so they will cook some, and so that they don’t dominate the pizza. flavor.
Rotate Your Pizza Once it is in the Oven.
Do this about half way through the cooking. Most home ovens bake unevenly and most dishes benefit from rotating them while cooking.
Add Fresh Herbs After the Pizza Comes Out of the Oven
Tender herbs like basil will burn quickly when baked on top of a pizza. Adding them after the pie comes out of the oven preserves all that delicious flavor.
This dip is for garlic lovers. Toum is usually made with a lot of oil, but I make it with pureed cauliflower or silken tofu with great results. I often serve it with my Ginger Tamari Baked Jackfruit or Tofu, and I make sure that I am not having company that day.
Here you’ll find new recipes to make your picnic stand out from the crowd. They are healthy, delicious and easy to prepare. Scroll down to see the recipes.
From an upcoming cookbook, By Del Sroufe
I make this with tofu often and use it in any number of ways, on a salad, in a wrap, or with stir fry vegetables and rice. It is full of flavor and easy to prepare. When I have a guest who doesn’t eat tofu, I make it With mushrooms or jackfruit.
I made a version of this sauce using peaches instead of pineapple for a private cooking class because my student could not eat tomatoes. I used apple butter in place of the tomato sauce with tasty results. Then one day I wanted to try some other fruits. Pineapple is my favorite because it is sweet enough to flavor the sauce without additional sugar.
I’ve been a big fan of mock tuna salad recipes for years. I make them like my mom used to make tuna salad, with mayo and pickle relish, but every now and then I want to kick it up a notch. This recipe is one of the ways I go “next-level” with my chickpea salad.
Place the drained and rinsed chickpeas into a medium sized bowl and roughly mash them with a potato masher. Alternatively, pulse chop them in a food processor until mashed but not puréed.
Add all the remaining ingredients and dressing, mix well.
Serve as a sandwich with lettuce and tomato, or on a bed of greens.
