If you ask me, pizza just isn’t pizza if it doesn’t have three things; a rich and tasty tomato sauce, copious amounts of fresh basil and a creamy cheesy topping.
Luckily, my vegan Margherita pizza ticks all those boxes!
And going vegan doesn’t mean that you have to miss out on the cheese!
And although there are some really great/convincing mozzarella alternatives for sale in the supermarkets these days, it’s super easy to make your own quick, delicious and healthy vegan mozzarella sauce that goes great as a pizza topping.
If you really want to impress your dinner mates, then this recipe is for you. Not only do we make the pizza dough and the mozzarella sauce from scratch, you can also make my easy 5 ingredient tomato basil sauce for the base.
Each element of the recipe is really simple to make, there’s just a little waiting time involved in letting the pizza dough rise and for soaking the cashews if you don’t have a high-speed blender.
If Friday night is pizza night in your house, and you don’t have time for all the meal prep on the night, you can definitely make up big batches of each of the pizza dough and sauce and freeze them for later use.
I’d recommend rolling out the pizza dough and doing a little pre-cook of five minutes. Then let the pizza base cool, wrap in foil or cling film and place it in the freezer for when you want to use it.
The mozzarella sauce could also be frozen, just make sure to thaw it completely before using.
Want more vegan Italian-inspired recipes? You got it!
The Best Pizza Dough Recipe to Make Butternut Squash and Spinach Pizza with Butternut Cream Sauce
Mushroom, Celery Root, and Spinach Ragu
20 Delicious Vegan Pasta Recipes
Asparagus Risotto with Mushrooms
Make your own fresh vegan pasta
Vegan Margherita Pizza
Ingredients
Pizza Dough
- 1 cup warm water 105°F – 110°F
- 1 packet active dry yeast
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tsp Kosher salt
- 2½ to 3 cups 00 flour or all-purpose flour
Mozzarella Spread
- 2 cups raw cashews soaked and drained
- 1¼ cups water or nut milk
- 2½ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 garlic clove
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
Toppings
- 2 cups crushed canned san marzano tomatoes or pizza
sauce - 1 cup fresh basil leaves
Instructions
Pizza Dough
- In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water for five minutes.
- Add the oil, salt, and then gradually add in the flour while stirring with a spoon.
- Knead the dough in the bowl for a few minutes, adding additional flour if the dough is too sticky.
- When the dough is shiny and smooth, rub olive oil over the dough and on the inside of the bowl. Cover with a clean cloth or plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm area for 1 hour.
- After the dough has risen, punch it down and knead for a few minutes more. If making two round pizzas, divide the dough in half and form two dough balls. Cover the dough once more for 15 minutes.
- Lightly flour a work surface. Start rolling and stretching out the dough to your desired shape.
Mozzarella Spread
- If not using a high-speed blender, soak the cashews for a couple of hours or overnight. Drain and place in the blender.
- Add rest of mozzarella spread ingredients and blend on high for a few minutes or until creamy and smooth without any graininess.
Assemble the Pizza
- Slide the dough onto a sheet pan or pizza pan. Add the sauce and bake at 450°F until almost done (8-10 mins.). Remove from the oven.
- Add the chopped basil and pour over the mozzarella spread. Place back in the oven for 3 minutes.
This looks like such an excellent recipe I’m going to give it a try. Is there something you can recommend other than the yeast for the cheese to give a deep umami taste? I can’t tolerate the yeast and it seems to be such a common ingredient in vegan cheese. Maybe some miso and a bit of lemon juice? Thank you.
Miso would definitely work. You could make a mushroom tea from dried mushrooms or a kombu dashi and use that as the liquid. The tomato sauce will also give you a nice umami punch. Hop you love it!