Friday, February 19, 2010

four mushroom pizza

i always see these delicious pizza ai funghi on the menus at italian restaurants i visit, which is really just a fancy way of saying mega-mushroom pizza. they always look so delicious, but i usually can't have them because their sauces are cream based, or i'm not sure about the crust ingredients, or something other vegan related. i finally decided to combat this unfortunate situation with my own italian culinary skills.


  • 1 batch pizza crust
  • 2 cups sliced mushrooms
  • 1/3 cup walnuts
  • 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
  • 2 tablespoons sunflower seeds
  • pinch of salt
for the sauce:
  • 1/3 cup blanched almonds
  • 1/4 cup nutri yeast
  • 1½ tablespoons bragg's aminos
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/8 cup spelt flower
  • 1/2 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 1 tablespoon tahini
  • 1 cup unsweetened soy milk
  • 3/4 tablespoon light miso
  • pinch black pepper and salt
jessy and dan have a fabulous pizza crust recipe... so whenever i have time, it is definitely the recipe i use. after whatever crust you are using is ready, you will want to pre-bake it for about 5 minutes at 375°f. pull out and let cool for a few minutes. you can prep your sauce during this time - just put all the sauce ingredients in a food processor or magic bullet and blend until creamy.  you can also prep the topping sprinkle - use the walnuts, nutritional yeast, sunflower seeds and dash of salt. you can hand chop, but i just throw everything in the bullet and give it a few pulses.

    once your crust has cooled, layer on creamy sauce and then the mushrooms.  in this recipe i used equal parts shiitake, black, straw and button because that's what i had. the shiitakes gave a bit of oriental flair, but use your favourite mushrooms.  i'm thinking one with portabellos, button and creminis would be nice. before you put your sprinkle on top, you'll want to bake about 8-10 minutes on 375°f to make sure the mushrooms are cooked well.  pull out and sprinkle on the topping, and bake for about 5-7 minutes more. pizza is one of those foods that tend to vary on cooking times (depending on the the amount of toppings and crust), so you'll just have to keep an eye on it and make sure the center is heated through. 

      5 comments:

      Jen Treehugger said...

      Mmmmm that looks sooooo good.I never get round to making my own pizza crusts - I get these frozen wholemeal bases from my local supermarket and they are just so quick and convenient but I MUST try Jessy's recipe.

      Mike K said...

      This looks so good! I like how it incorporates so many nuts and seeds into everything, and you can never have too many mushrooms. I've never made a white sauce pizza, but I'll have to try this one.

      Mihl said...

      Mushorooms, nuts, and seeds on a pizza? You are awesome!

      jessy said...

      what a deeeelicious pizza, miss v! i loooove mushrooms, and dan FINALLY came around and enjoys them now, too! we're gonna have to have your four mushroom pizza! the walnuts sound like a brilliant addition, and your sauce sounds divine! we're so happyfaced you like our pizza crust recipe so much. yay!

      peteformation said...

      Interesting fillings and sauce for a pizza. Looks really nice!