Homemade Vegan Margherita Pizza Recipe. 20 Minute Pizza crust, 5 minute Pizza sauce and a creamy cashew mozzarella cheese sauce. Vegan Soy-free Recipe. Gluten-free and nut-free options.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 20 minutes
  • Cook time: 30 minutes
  • Total time: 50 minutes
  • Yield: 8 pieces
  • Category: Main, Pizza
  • Cuisine: Italian

Ingredients

For the Pizza Dough

  • 1 tsp active yeast
  • 1/2 cup + 1 tbsp warm water
  • 1 1/4 cup flour (, divided, (unbleached all purpose or half of all purpose and half whole wheat pastry flour/spelt))
  • 1 tbsp semolina flour (or use wheat flour)
  • 1/3 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp olive oil

For the Pizza Sauce

  • 1/4 cup unsalted tomato paste
  • 1/3 cup water
  • 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 clove of garlic minced or 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp each dried oregano (dried basil)
  • 1/4 tsp dried thyme or rosemary
  • 1/8 tsp onion powder
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • dash of black pepper

For the Cashew Mozzarella Cream

  • 1/2 cup cashews (soaked in hot water for 15 mins)
  • 1 cup water
  • 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tsp flour (use rice flour or [adjustable]2 tsp[/adjustable] tapioca starch for gluten-free, or use both (see notes))
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • 1/4 tsp onion powder
  • 1/2 tsp miso (use chickpea miso for soy-free, or use [adjustable]1-2 tsp[/adjustable] nutritional yeast)
  • Fresh basil (extra virgim olive oil and pepper flakes for garnish)

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 435 deg F (225 C). Soak the cashews in hot boiling water if you havent already.
  2. Pizza Base: Mix the warm water with yeast and 1 tbsp flour. Mix well and let sit for 2 mins.
  3. Mix the salt and semolina into the rest of the flour. Add the flour and oil to the yeast mixture and mix. Mix till just about combined. Let it sit for a minute.
  4. Oil your hands and bring the dough together till just about smooth. Use a tsp or so more flour(or water if you used wheat flours), if needed. Don't knead it longer than a few seconds. Cover with a towel and let it sit near the preheating oven for 15 mins.
  5. Cashew Mozzarella Cream: Drain the cashews. Add to a blender with the rest of the ingredient. Blend until smooth. Add to a skillet over medium heat. Cook to thicken evenly. 4 to 6 mins. Stir occasionally to avoid sticking at the bottom and lumping.
  6. Optionally, you can place dollops of the cashew mozzarella cream in briny ice water (1 cup water mixed with 1 tablespoon salt and some ice) to make mozzarella balls to use in Caprese sandwiches or elsewhere. You can store it in a closed container in the brine.
  7. Prep the pizza sauce: Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Taste and adjust salt and flavor. Add a pinch of sweetener if needed.
  8. Oil your hands and transfer Pizza dough to a parchment lined baking sheet. Using some flour shape the dough into a flat ball, then spread using your hands. Keep spreading to make a large pizza or make 2 small pizzas (see video). You want to spread the dough thin, as it will rise quite a bit during baking and make a bready crust if it was too thick to begin with.
  9. Spread the pizza sauce all over. Add some fresh basil and place tomato slices over the basil. Sprinkle a pinch of salt. (you can also add other thinly sliced veggies at this point). Add spoonfuls of the mozzarella cream on the pizza.
  10. Drizzle a tsp of extra virgin olive oil. Then Bake for 13 to 14 mins. (Broil for a minute if needed), Remove from the oven and add fresh basil and pepper flakes. Slice and serve, See Storage and Freezing instructions in notes.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.