Homemade Veggie Pizza!

Every kid's favorite food... pizza!!  This is one of my favorite recipes for a Friday night, mainly because pizza is perfect weekend food, and pizza is really easy to make vegetarian if you're trying to cut down your meat intake.  I generally eat meat only three times a week, so this is a delicious option for one of the meat-free nights of the week!  This pizza is also completely organic and refined sugar-free!

This is also my PERFECTED crust recipe!  I love cooking gluten-free, but not all of my recipes are gluten free because I believe that whole, organic grain is healthy and full of necessary nutrients.  So, this crust is made with whole wheat flour, and it's the perfect mix of crunchy on the outside, and soft on the inside!

Also, you can top with ANYTHING you like!  I topped this one with olives and peppers.  But I've also used fresh pineapple, mushrooms, cilantro, fresh tomatoes, really anything you like!  

Homemade Pizza!

Ingredients:
​
Dough:
1 1/3 cup warm water (between 100-110°F)
2 1/4 tsp. active dry yeast
1 Tbs. raw honey
2 Tbs. olive oil
3/4 tsp. salt
 3 1/2 cups whole wheat bread flour
sprinkle of cornmeal for dusting

Sauce:
1 12 oz. can organic tomato sauce
1/4 cup water
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder
1 Tbs. Italian seasoning
1 Tbs. basil
Cheese
​Desired Toppings

Directions:

1. Whisk the warm water and honey together together in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook.  Gently mix the yeast into the mixture and allow to rest for 5 minutes.  (If the yeast is live it should bubble up after you let it sit for a bit.)
2. Add the olive oil, salt, and flour.  Beat on low speed for two minutes.  Then knead your dough by mixing for another 2-5 minutes.  After kneading, the dough should feel a little soft.  Poke it with your finger and if it bounces back it's ready to rise.  Otherwise, turn it back on low and keep kneading.
3. Lightly grease a large glass bowl with butter, place the dough in the bowl and turn it to coat the dough in the butter.  Cover the bowl with parchment paper and let rise in a warm, dry environment for about 1-2 hours or until the dough has doubled in size.
4. Preheat oven to 375°F and place your pizza stones inside.  Allow the stones to heat inside as you shape the dough.  (This is what creates the crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside texture.)
5. Line your counter top with parchment paper and sprinkle cornmeal on top.  When it's ready, punch the dough down to release any air, and divide the dough in half.  Use lightly floured hands and a lightly floured rolling pin to gently flatten your dough into a disc your desired size.  Do this with both balls of dough on separate sheets of paper.
6. Spread your sauce, cheese, and other desired toppings on your dough, and slide the parchment paper with the dough on top onto your preheated pizza stones.  (They're super hot at this point so be careful and use oven mits!)
7. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown on top, and slice and eat immediately.
8. Store any leftovers in the fridge.

*Use Organic ingredients when feasible.