Spelt Pizza with Charred Fennel, Green Cabbage & Tofu Cream

Spelt Pizza with Charred Fennel, Green Cabbage & Tofu Cream

by Sophie Gordon

This brilliant vegan pizza recipe is from Sophie Gordon’s book The Whole Vegetable. The base is made with stone-ground wholemeal spelt flour - for a satisfying texture and subtle nutty flavour - and raised with baking powder instead of yeast, making it quick and easy to throw together.

Sophie’s book shows how to cook more sustainably with as little food waste as possible. Embracing often-discarded parts of vegetables like the leaves, stalks, tops, flowers, seeds and even peelings, as well as reinventing leftovers and eating with the seasons.

Here'ss Sophie's ‘waste tip’ for this recipe:

“If you are feeling a little more adventurous, adding thinly sliced potatoes to pizza makes a really nice change, and given that many potato types are in their prime during the early summer months, you’ll have plenty to choose from. The dough will keep for a few days in the fridge if you don’t happen to use it all up: roll it into a ball and leave it covered in a bowl in the fridge. The same goes for the sauce. Of course, you are not tied to the vegetables above, and using whatever you have left over is a great way to make a pizza a little different and creative.”

Ingredients

For the Base
  • 300g Spelt Flour
  • 4 tsp Baking Powder
  • A pinch of Salt
  • 5 tsp Dried Oregano or Mixed Herbs
  • 250ml Water
For the Tomato Sauce
  • 1 small White Onion, finely chopped
  • 2 Cloves of Garlic, finely chopped
  • 12 Cherry Tomatoes (6 larger ones), quartered
  • 2 - 4 tbsp Tomato Purée/Paste
  • 6 Sundried Tomatoes, roughly chopped
  • 250 - 375ml Water
  • A handful of fresh Basil, roughly chopped
  • 2 tsp Dried Oregano
  • Salt and Pepper, to taste
For the Tofu Cream (makes 1 small jar, approx, 580ml)
  • 300g Silken Tofu, drained
  • 1½ tsp Apple Cider Vinegar
  • 2 tsp Dijon Mustard
  • 1 Clove of Garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 small Lemon, juiced, plus a dash of zest
  • 2 tsp Dried Oregano
  • Truffle Oil (optional)
For the Toppings
  • 1 medium-sized Fennel, thinly sliced top to bottom
  • 1 small Red Onion, thinly sliced
  • A couple of large handful of greens of choice (spinach, kale, cavolo nero)
  • ¼ a small head of Cabbage (any green variety), thinly sliced, including any core
  • Fresh Basil, roughly chopped
  • Dried Oregano, to sprinkle
  • Nutritional Yeast (optional)
  • Salt and Pepper, to taste 

Method

  1. Preheat your oven to 200°C fan. To make the base, put the dry ingredients into a large bowl and mix well. Slowly add the water until the mixture starts to stick together.
  2. Using your hands, knead the mixture into a dough, adding more water if necessary or flour if it is sticking too much. Place to one side (leaving in the bowl) while you make your sauce and prepare toppings.
  3. For the tomato sauce, sauté the onion in a dash of water until it starts to become translucent. Add the garlic and continue to fry for another minute or so. Add the tomatoes, tomato purée/paste, sun-dried tomatoes, water, basil and dried oregano. Season with salt and pepper and allow to simmer on a low heat for about 12 minutes. You want the sauce to become thick and rich, but if it starts to dry up slightly, add a dash more water. Leave to simmer very low for about 10–12 minutes while you do the next steps. Once cooked, turn off the heat and allow the sauce to sit. You can either leave it chunky, or blitz it slightly using a blender/processor to make a smoother tomato sauce.
  4. To make the tofu cream, put the silken tofu into a blender along with the apple cider vinegar, mustard, garlic, lemon juice, zest and oregano, plus some salt and pepper. Blend until you have a smooth creamy texture. Set aside or place in the fridge. If you are opting to use truffle oil, you can stir it in after removing from the blender.
  5. To char the fennel, take your slices and hold them over a flame for a few seconds, turning them over to brown each side. Use a pair of tongs to do this. The fennel will continue to cook in the oven.
  6. Sprinkle some flour on a clean worktop and split your dough in half or quarters depending on how many pizzas you are making. Using a rolling pin, covered with flour to avoid any sticking, roll each piece into a base. Make sure to flip halfway through. You’ll want it to be around ½–1cm (depending on the thickness you like).
  7. Transfer the bases to a baking sheet/parchment paper that will fit on an oven tray or wire oven racks.
  8. Using a ladle or a large serving spoon, cover your bases with sauce. You don’t want them to go soggy, but don’t hold back.
  9. Add the onions, charred fennel, greens, cabbage and half your basil. Depending on how many pizzas you are making, you can mix this up and get creative with arranging. Place your baking sheet on the middle shelf of the oven and bake for around 8 minutes. Again, either on the wire racks or a tray.
  10. Add the dried oregano and nutritional yeast and season with salt and pepper. You want the base to be cooked through, making sure the dough is not soggy. Cook for another 4–5 minutes or so, until the vegetables are tender and cooked through. A few minutes before the end, drizzle over the tofu cream, letting it cook ever so slightly – it will start to turn a yellow-brown colour.
  11. Once cooked, serve hot with any other garnishes.

The Whole Vegetable by Sophie Gordon (Penguin Michael Joseph, £28) – photography by Issy Croker




Sophie Gordon
Sophie Gordon

Author



Leave a comment

Comments will be approved before showing up.


Also in Recipes for Pulses, Grains, Seeds, Flakes, Flour, Ferments...

Mushy Pea, Parsnip & Potato Cakes
Mushy Pea, Parsnip & Potato Cakes

by The Cook and Him

These pea, parsnip and potato cakes from The Cook and Him are great for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Marrowfat peas are best known as the traditional pea for making mushy peas though they're also fantastic in soups, dips and casseroles.

Read More

Chocolate, Tahini & Brazil Nut Granola Bars
Chocolate, Tahini & Brazil Nut Granola Bars

by Amy Oboussier

A splendid diversity of flakes, nuts and seeds goes into these easy granola bars, easily adding up to over 12 plant species depending on the mix you choose. This is a great recipe to make with our Granola Bundles.

Read More

Cardamom & Brazil Nut Diversity Granola
Cardamom & Brazil Nut Diversity Granola

by Amy Oboussier

Boost your breakfast's diversity with this granola, packed with flaked grains, seeds and Brazil Nuts, and flavoured with sweet and fragrant vanilla and cardamom.

Read More