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Do you ever just crave pizza? I know I do. It’s not about the gooey cheese anymore after all of these years, but I just can’t find a vegan, gluten free pizza that I like. The one that I do like has a wheat crust with roasted veggies and not even vegan cheeze, and I can’t have that any longer. The one brand of vegan and gluten free pizza available locally to me is horrible and I don’t understand how anyone could like it. I did find a frozen gluten free pizza dough locally which I want to try but haven’t yet. But I also wanted to try to figure out a pizza made from whole foods and without any oil. I had tried making a plain red lentil wraps similar to this recipe, so I thought I’d give it a try and these are delicious!

This recipe takes some time to make, but it’s so worth it. Truly, you can use any toppings that you’d like, but these were the ones that I chose because they were similar to the ones on my favorite Amy’s roasted vegetable pizza, which has a wheat crust. I used caramelized onions, artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers, and marinated mushrooms as well as an oil free pizza sauce. Next time I make them, I’m going to try some with green chile or pineapple to add to these toppings. These freeze well, so you can have any variety you choose at the ready in just 17-22 minutes for a lazy Friday dinner with a soup, salad, and a piece of fruit to round the meal out.

So let’s go through this in the order that you need to make it.

First, you’ll need to start with the caramelized onions. The simplest way to make caramelized onions it to just slice the onions up and leave them on low in the slow cooker for 18-24 hours. Truly as simple as that. My slow cooker fits 4-6 onions depending on their size. These onions freeze really well, so I always make extra than what I need so that I can take out a proportioned amount to add to whatever calls for an onion. So if I use 4 onions, I portion the end result into 4 equal amounts since that would equal 4 cooked onions. This should take approximately 1-2 onions worth, because you’ll want a good layer of them on each pizza, as they will add such a rich flavor. There will be juice in the slow cooker when they are finished and that can be used just like any other broth. It will taste similar to a french onion soup broth. So, you’ll need to do a bit of planning to make these pizzas, but the forethought is worth it for sure.

Next, you’ll need to soak your red lentils. Measure out a cup into a sieve and pick out any stones, misshapen, or dark pieces. Rinse well. If you’ll be making the pizza crusts the day you soak the lentils, then place them directly in the blender with the water, seasonings, and tamari and soak for 3-4 hours. You can also soak them overnight in a smaller container and put them in the fridge. Do not rinse or drain the water that they’ve been soaking in before you blend them. The 2 1/4 cups of water at the start will make the perfect consistency. Feel free to adjust the seasons to your preference if you like more or less of a particular seasoning. You could also use a different seasoning blend than Italian seasoning if you have one that you like, although you will have to experiment with the amount needed. You should be able to smell the seasonings in the batter.

For the toppings. I started with an oil free vegan pizza sauce from Trader Joe’s. It was from awhile back, so I’m not sure that they still carry an oil free version. I understand that there is an oil free sauce at Aldi, if you have one nearby, and there may be one of the big brand names that has an oil free sauce as well. Or you can always find your own sauce online. The difference between marinara and pizza sauce, is that the pizza sauce is thicker and does not have as much liquid, as that would make the pizza soggy. If you have a favorite oil-free marinara recipe, you could try using extra tomato paste and simmering longer to boil off the extra liquid. I used approximately 1 cup of the sauce, using about 2-3 tbsp per pizza.

Next, I put on the caramelized onions. I drained the onions well before putting them on the pizza. I used approximately 1/3 cup of the onions per pizza for a good covering over the pizza sauce.

For the artichoke hearts, I used a can of the Trader Joe’s water packed artichoke hearts. After I opened the can, I poured the hearts into a fine mesh sieve and squeezed out as much water as possible from them. It’s okay is they get squished, as you’ll be cutting them small anyways. I quartered the hearts lengthwise and then cut them into thin strips. I used about 1/4-1/3 cup per pizza. I used about 2/3 of the can of artichoke hearts.

For the roasted red peppers, I used a tall jar of Trader Joe’s water packed roasted red peppers. I drained them well, scrapped off the blackened skins that weren’t already removed (this is a personal preference, but not necessary), and chopped them into 1/2” pieces. I used about 1/4-1/3 cup per pizza. I used about 2/3 of the jar of peppers.

For the marinated mushrooms, it’s just simply my marinated mushroom recipe cut in half. You can find the original recipe here. You’ll want to cook the mushrooms down until a syrup forms from the agave boiling down, but you don’t want too much liquid left as it will make the pizzas soggy. You’ll simply divide the mushrooms evenly between the six pizzas.

At this point, because I knew that I would be freezing 5 of the pizzas for later, I pressed down on the toppings so that they would stay on the pizza once frozen.

As far as optional toppings, the sky is the limit. If you want to stick to oil free, you could add nutritional yeast, other veggies, green chile, or even pineapple, if that’s your thing. You could also add more Italian seasoning or other seasonings of choice. If you don’t mind a bit of oil, you could add any of the cooked alternative meats or some vegan cheeze. I used some Violife mozzarella and Parmesan on on three of the pizzas and left the others plain. When I baked ones with the cheezes, the mozzarella melted but the Parmesan did not, but it did brown.

To freeze the pizzas, I lined an 11”x17” baking sheet with a silicone mat. Five pizzas fit on there in a rows of 3 and 2, staggered. I laid them flat in the freezer, uncovered, overnight. The toppings were securely attached. The next day, I individually wrapped the pizzas in foil lined with parchment paper by laying them on the paper and gathering up the foil on top to hold it in place. I cooked some of these from frozen over the next week with good results. I’m guessing that they will be fine in the freezer for 3-6 months, but I have some in there right now that I’m testing out for how long that they’ll be fine. These will not keep in the fridge.

I used a round, perforated pizza pan to bake my pizzas on. I baked them at 425º, although you may be able to get a crispier crust at 450º, but I have not tried this yet. I also have not tried it on my pizza stone, nor placing the pizzas directly on the oven rack. So you may have to experiment with your baking times depending on your choice of how you wish to bake the pizzas.

At 425º on the perforated pizza pan, I baked the room temperature pizzas for 10-12 minutes and the frozen pizzas for 17-22 minutes. These times gave me crispy edges to the crust, heated the toppings, and, if present, browned the vegan cheeze. Your oven times may vary and may take a bit of adjusting. Every time I’ve baked the pizzas, I can tell that they are done when I have been able to smell them for about 2-3 minutes. As far as the crust, what you’re looking for is browned and crispy on the edges with a slight give in the center.

I hope you enjoy!

Vegan Gluten and Oil Free Red Lentil Pizza

Pizza Crusts

-1 cup red lentils

-2 1/4 cups water

-2 tbsp Italian seasoning

-1 tsp garlic powder

-1 tsp onion powder

-1 tbsp tamari

Soak lentils and water 3-4 hours, or overnight. Add to blender along with seasonings and tamari. Blend until smooth and the consistency of pancake batter.

To cook the pizza crusts, preheat a very nonstick pan to low to medium low heat, approximately a 2-3 on a scale of 10. Once the pan is heated, pour exactly 1/2 cup of the batter into the pan in a circle about 4 inches across. Flatten to about 5 inches across with the back of the measuring cup but do not make it too thin or the crust will not hold the toppings. Cover the pan and set your timer for 4 minutes. Do not try to turn it before 4 minutes as it will stick and tear until it is completely set. After 4 minutes, carefully, with a large pancake spatula, flip the crust over. Cover and allow to cook for another 4 minutes. Place the cooked crusts in a clean, folded dish towel on a plate to allow them to steam and finish cooking. This will make exactly 6 pancakes.

Toppings

-1 cup Oil Free Pizza Sauce

Caramelized Onions

-2 medium sweet onions

The day before making the pizzas, slice the onions into half moons. Place into a slow cooker for 18-24 hours on low. No need to stir. Drain well, when ready to use. Juice can be used as broth for another dish.

Artichoke Hearts

-1 14oz can of water packed artichoke hearts

Drain as much water as possible from the artichoke hearts. Quarter each heart if they are not already, then chop.

Roasted Red Bell Pepper

-1 jar roasted red bell peppers

Drain well in a stainer. Chop into 1/2” pieces.

Marinated Mushrooms

-8oz baby Portobello mushrooms, sliced

-2 tbsp tamari

-1 tbsp lime juice

-1 tsp vegan and gluten free Worcestershire sauce

-1 tbsp agave

Place all ingredients in a sauté pan and cook until then liquid has mostly evaporated and the remaining liquid is turning to syrup.

Optional Toppings

-Nutritional Yeast

-Vegan Mozzarella

-Vegan Parmesan

To assemble:

Set up the pizzas in 2 lines of 3 across. Spread 2-3 tbsp of pizza sauce on each crust. Divide the caramelized onions onto each pizza, about 1/4-1/3 cup each. You may have extra depending on the size on your onions. Approximately 1/4-1/3 cup each of the artichoke hearts and roasted red bell peppers. Then divide the mushrooms evenly between the pizzas. Press down on the toppings to make them adhere better. Add any of the optional toppings that you prefer.

You can bake these from room temperature or frozen. To freeze, 5 of the pizzas will fit on an 11”x17” baking sheet (half sheet) and they can be frozen flat on the baking sheet over night. Then transfer to parchment paper lined foil and gently pull the excess paper and foil to the top, covering the pizza. Place these in a freezer safe zip top bag or other freezer safe container.

To cook:

On a perforated pizza pan:

From room temperature, bake 10-12 minutes on the middle rack

From frozen bake 17-22 minutes on the middle rack

The outer edge of the crust should be crispy, the toppings will be hot, and the inner crust will have a bit of give to it.

If you’re gluten free, have you missed having a good pizza? Have you ever had a whole food, plant based, no oil pizza before? How do these compare? What are your favorite pizza toppings?