Serves: 1-2
Time: 50-60 mins
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| Mushroom, Artichoke & Pesto Pizza, Topped with Rocket |
As you may have noticed I have been making lots of Italian inspired dishes lately, Italy is one of my favourite places and I have a real love for their cuisine, being vegetarian I made lots of Italian food but this is the first time since becoming vegan that I have had a good attempt at the main Italian dishes like carbonara, pesto and now pizza. When I think about Italy it really brings a smile to my face, it reminds me of when my family had a Campervan and we would travel Europe for a few weeks in the summer, one summer we spent three weeks in Italy and I absolutely fell in love. It's hard to decide on a favourite place, but I think my favourite memory was staying on a campsite by Lake Como, there was a restaurant right next to the lake that we went to a few times, it was just amazing to watch the sunset whilst eating beyond amazing food, pizza most definitely included! Food should hold memories & when I made this next recipe it brought me back to all the great memories of the few times I have visited Italy, definitely making me want to go back right now!
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| Mushroom, Artichoke & Pesto Pizza |
I'm so so excited to share this recipe with you guys, this may just be the best pizza I've ever had and that is saying a lot! The pizza toppings themselves are inspired by different combinations I've had over the years, the most recent being the 'Pianta' from pizza express which until now I thought could not be improved on. This pizza has a beautiful light & crisp homemade base, topped with a herby, & slightly spicy tomato sauce, slices of chestnut mushrooms, artichoke hearts & homemade vegan pesto, finished off with a handful of peppery fresh rocket. The depth of flavour and balance of all the aspects of this pizza is just exquisite and I'm already planning on when I'll be making it next. Saying that this pizza is near perfect however, does not mean it's complicated, in fact it's so simple you wont believe it! The dough is made from my flatbread recipe from earlier this week, which needs no time to rest or proof and still turns out perfect, the whole recipe can easily be made in under an hour, perfect for a Friday night treat! As it is not artichoke season yet, (bring on summer!) I used artichoke hearts from a can for this recipe, but if you can get hold of fresh ones, then use them instead!
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| Mushroom, Artichoke & Pesto Pizza |
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| A Slice of Mushroom, Artichoke & Pesto Pizza |
You'll need:
- Pizza tray/baking tray
- Mixing Bowl
- Chopping board
- Knife
- Spatula
- Measuring cup
- Spoon
Ingredients:
Sauce:
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1/2 red onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- 8 baby plum tomatoes
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp basil
- 1 tbsp oregano
- 1/4 tsp dried chili flakes
- Salt & pepper
- 1 cup self raising flour + extra for dusting
- 1/2 cup plain soy yogurt
- 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- Pinch salt
- Olive Oil
Toppings:
- 3-4 chestnut mushrooms
- 3-4 artichoke hearts
- 2-3 tbsp vegan pesto
- Handful rocket
Method:
- Pre-heat the oven to 200°C.
- Dice the onion, mince the garlic and transfer to a frying pan with 1 tsp of oil on a medium heat for a few minutes. Thinly slice the tomatoes and add to the pan along with the balsamic vinegar, herbs, chili flakes and pinch of salt & pepper, simmer for 15-20 minutes until the tomatoes have broken down.
- Meanwhile, add the flour, yogurt, baking powder and salt to a mixing bowl and stir together until combined. Lightly dust the surface with flour and kneed the dough for a few minutes, before spreading out onto the pizza tray. Drizzle a small amount of olive oil onto the center part of the dough, spread it out with the back of a spoon, up to where you want the crust to be and bake for 5 minutes.
- Whilst the dough is par-baking, thinly slice the mushrooms and cut the artichoke hearts into quarters. Then remove the dough from the dough from the oven, spread out the sauce onto the base & top with mushroom slices, artichoke hearts and spoons of pesto, bake the pizza for a further 10 minutes until it is lightly golden brown.
- Remove the pizza from the oven, serve with a sprinkling of fresh rocket and enjoy! Cassidy xx
