Pizza pizza!
One of the cheesy foods I miss regularly eating is—you guessed it—good ole zaw!
I mean it’s hard to go wrong with cheesy carbs…
They’re so savory and satisfying.
And salty ha.
So this little recipe right here is a semi-homemade situation.
Which I’m all for.
Whole Foods makes a decent ready-to-go pizza dough (located in the refrigerated section next to their take-and-bake pizzas) so I figured why not take advantage??
Side note: I saw a gluten-free dough at my WF location too so that’s an option for you gluten-free folks!
The toppings are simple, so it’s extra important to use high-quality ingredients—we want the flavors to really come through and treat your taste buds right!
We’re talking bright tomato sauce reduced down for a rich tomato flavor, herbaceous dried oregano, spicy crushed red pepper flakes for a nice kick, extra virgin olive oil for the right amount of classic pizza grease, Miyokos liquid pizza mozzarella for some melty, bubbly cheeze action, fragrant basil leaves for a hit of freshness, plus cracked black pepper and pink sea salt to bring everything together.
Bake until hot and lightly golden brown.
I might have to do this more often…
P.S. If you have a favorite pizza dough recipe or premade dough go ahead and use that, especially if the Whole Foods dough isn’t an option for you.
P.P.S. Canned pizza sauces tend to be too sweet or not “fresh” tasting so that’s why I prefer using regular tomato sauce then reducing it down a bit. You don’t want your sauce to be too liquidy because it will make your dough sog! And soggy pizzas are a no no.
P.P.P.S. I scored a bottle of coveted Miyokos liquid pizza mozzarella at Grocery Outlet for a deal and a half, although if you’re unable to obtain this gem feel free to utilize your favorite vegan mozzarella or even feta! I guess it wouldn’t really be a margherita at that point but if it tastes good that’s what matters most, right? Oh and don’t overdo it on the liquid cheeze because your crust won’t be able to bake up nice and crispy. Less is more!
P.P.P.P.S. Season season season. Season your sauce. Season your crust. Season your pizza before you chow down. You get the point.
P.P.P.P.P.S. I know this is a lot of Ps but feel free to thinly slice your basil so it gets evenly distributed in every bite! Full leaves are pretty though, so it’s your preference of course.
Easy Single Serving Vegan Margherita Pizza
Ingredients
Dough
- 5 to 6 ounces raw pizza dough ball (I used 1/4 of Whole Foods' refrigerated pizza dough ball)
- Extra virgin olive oil, for greasing bowl
Sauce
- 1/3 scant cup tomato sauce (I used an organic lightly seasoned canned tomato sauce)
- 1 pinch dried oregano
- 1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
Toppings Pre-Bake
- Extra virgin olive oil, for brushing crust perimeter
- Pink sea salt, for seasoning crust perimeter
- 1/4 cup Miyokos liquid vegan pizza mozzarella
Toppings Post-Bake
- Extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling
- Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
- Pink sea salt, to taste
- 1 handful fresh basil leaves, chiffonade (thinly sliced) if you like
Instructions
- Lightly grease a medium-sized bowl, then put the pizza dough ball in the bowl. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel then allow the dough to rise/rest for one to two hours in a warm place—it won't rise much since it's been refrigerated.
- Place a large metal baking sheet on the center rack of your oven then heat the oven to 500 degrees. Allow the baking sheet to heat up for at least 30 minutes.
- While the dough is resting and the oven is heating up, spoon your tomato sauce into a small pot and season with the oregano and red pepper flakes. Heat over the lowest stovetop setting for 10 to 20 minutes or until it has thickened to a pizza sauce consistency—if the sauce is too watery it will make your crust soggy. Set aside to cool.
- Take the rested dough ball and gently grab, pull and stretch the dough while rotating it in the air. You don't have to throw it, just let gravity do its work as you move your hands around the perimeter. Once the dough is about 9 to 10 inches across lay the dough on a piece of parchment. Spread the dough edges out with your fingers to even them out if necessary. The shape doesn't have to be perfect!
- Spoon the cooled reduced pizza sauce evenly onto your dough, leaving a bare perimeter for the crust edges. Lightly rub olive oil on the exposed crust edges then season the bare crust with salt.
- *Carefully* remove the hot baking sheet from the oven, slide your pizza topped parchment paper onto a cutting board, then slide the pizza topped parchment paper onto the hot baking sheet. Drizzle the vegan cheese evenly over the top of your pizza (you should be able to see some of the sauce still, too much cheese will result in a soggy crust). Bake for 12 minutes or until the crust and cheese are golden brown and the dough is cooked through. The time will depend on your oven, baking sheet, and dough. So start watching at the 9 minute mark.
- Carefully transfer the hot pizza to a cutting board, drizzle lightly with olive oil, season with salt and black pepper, then top with the fresh basil. Slice and enjoy!