VEGAN CHICAGO STYLE DEEP DISH PIZZA WITH SPICY SAUCE

Mmm.. Vegan Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza.. It’s like a pizza and a pie all in one! I really love eating pie so I am basically obsessed with this Vegan Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza. The crust is thick and hearty. The sauce is chunky and spicy. The vegan mozzarella is melty and gooey. It is everything a pizza should be, you won’t even be able to tell it’s vegan. Use this pizza to convince all your friends to give up cheese! 

The sauce only takes about 15 minutes and you can roll out the dough while the sauce cooks. If you make the cheese ahead of time, this Vegan Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza comes together pretty quickly!

Most pizza dough is vegan, but be sure to check the label. There could be butter or cheese hiding in there. For this Vegan Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza, we used a garlic herb pizza dough. We tried the recipe with whole wheat pizza dough but the crust came out a little too chewy, so we recommend a traditional white flour pizza dough for the best flavor and texture.

Ingredients

• 4 cups small tomatoes chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped basil
• 3 cloves large garlic minced
• 1 small can tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon fennel seed
• 3/4 teaspoon sea salt
• Vegan Pizza Dough
• 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon corn meal
• 2-3 tablespoons flour to roll out dough

Vegan Mozzarella

• 1/2 cup raw cashews soaked for 2 hours or boiled for 10 minutes
• 1 1/4 cups water
• 1/4 cup tapioca flour
• 1 1/2 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp white pepper
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 450. Prepare the Vegan Mozzarella according to the recipe below and set aside. For the sauce, we recommend small tomatoes because they are more flavorful and hold their shape better in the sauce. We used mini San Marzano Roma tomatoes cut in halves or thirds. Cherry tomatoes also work well cut in half.
2. Heat a medium skillet on medium. With a small amount of water or cooking oil, sauté the chopped tomatoes, garlic, and tomato paste for 5 minutes. Stir in the basil, salt, fennel seed, and red pepper flakes and cook for an additional 10 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking.
3. While the sauce is cooking, stretch out the pre-made pizza dough into a semi-flat disc on a floured surface. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of corn meal onto the dough a few tablespoons at a time, kneading it into the dough until it's mostly uniform. Roll out the dough to a 10"-12" circle and sprinkle the remaining 1 tablespoon of corn meal into the bottom of a 9" cake pan. Carefully place the dough onto the cake pan. The dough should slightly hang over the edges or it will want to retract into a smaller piece. This part can be tricky. If the dough won't stay, try stretching it out a bit so more of the dough hangs over the edge. This will keep the dough in place.
4. Using a spoon, spread the Vegan Mozzarella evenly onto the bottom of the cake pan. Top it with the sauce and smooth out the top. Unfold the edges of the dough from the lip of the cake pan. It will sink down into the pan a bit. You want it to be slightly taller than the filling. Use your fingers to even out the top of the dough. It doesn't have to be perfect. The rustic look will add to the finished pizza!
5. Cook your Vegan Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza for 25-30 minutes at 450 until the crust is golden brown. Let it cool for 5 minutes before slicing. Serves 2-3 hungry people!

Recipe Notes

*If your dough is not very sticky, you may need a bit less corn meal. 

*Make the cashew mozzarella ahead to save time.