The Casual Vegan

As far back as I can remember, pizza has always been my favorite food. During the progression of my gradual diet change to a whole-food plant-based diet, cheese was the last on my list to go. It’s the stronghold of omnivores everywhere: If only were it not for the cheese, they say.

Well, I can’t promise you a facsimile of cheese on this side of eating, but I can tell you that there are many tasty approximations, and with the new variety of foods you find without cheese and the health benefits that take immediate hold going dairy-free, I can also tell you that you do get over the hold that cheese once had on you.

That said, let’s talk about this pizza. I’ve experimented with soy cheeses, and I’m sure there are many that are better than the ones I had, that melt better and taste better. But I’m not really interested in finding them, because I’m not a fan of soy cheese and other soy products that attempt to mimic dairy and meat products. They have way too many ingredients for my everyday consumption. They’re what I now consider to be my junk food, only allowing myself to eat them on occasion.

This pizza recipe uses a nutritional yeast sauce that’s simple to make on the stove. Nutritional yeast flakes can be found in the bulk section of Whole Foods or other health food stores, in other grocery stores sold by Red Star, or they can be ordered online from companies like Bob’s Red Mill, who makes really great products in my personal opinion.

Nutritional yeast is usually fortified with B12, which is great for a vegan diet, and it has a nice smooth, savory flavor.

nutritional yeast “cheese”

1/2 c. nutritional yeast
1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1 tspn salt
1/2 tspn garlic powder
2 c. water
1 tspn mustard
1/4 c. olive oil

-mix dry ingredients in sauce pan/pot
-whisk in one cup of water on high heat until thick and bubbles
-remove from heat add oil and mustard
-return to medium high heat and slowly add the rest of the water, stirring constantly, cook until thickened

whole wheat pizza crust

4 c. whole wheat flour
1 tbsp yeast
2 tbsp agave (or honey)
2-3 tbsp olive oil
1 tspn salt
1 1/3 c. water

-put flour, salt, sweetener, and oil in large mixing bowl
-if fast-activating yeast, pour the yeast on top and add the warm water to let it sit on top of the flour for a minute – you’ll be able to smell the yeast
-if not, activate yeast in normal way and add to the mixing bowl with the rest of the water
-stir with a fork until all the water is absorbed
-then get in there with your hands and knead to make a dough ball
-the dough ball should be solid, all the flour used up, and a little elasticky
-cover with a cloth and let it sit for at least ten minutes to rise some, more if you can, but not that important
-split in half, makes two pizzas
-roll out or stretch out thin

I rolled the dough in cornmeal before stretching it out for a little crunch.

prebake crust 5-8 minutes
cook pizza (with sauce, “cheese,” and toppings) for 30 minutes

Related:

• Vegan Gravy
• Vegan Banana Walnut Bread with Molasses
• Raw Vegan Hot Wings?
• Cats as Casual Vegans
• Vegan Pregnancy

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