Unintentionally Vegan Pizza

Well I may not be a vegan, but I sure have been eating like one lately! Thanks to a recommendation from my friend Marilyn, I whipped up some delicious dairy and soy free pizza for dinner. It was actually a random coincidence that after she mentioned her favorite pizza toppings - sun dried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, and caramelized onions - I found them all on sale at Safeway (all in on spot on display, too - it was DEFINITELY a sign.)



I have a confession to make - I had no idea how to caramelize onions. I am, however, an expert at burning them :) Thanks to eHow.com, I muddled through it! I LOVE that site!!



It's like I've been doing it my whole life!!



I used an old focaccia bread recipe I had for the crust (I took a cue from Buddy the Cake Boss) and the pizza was absolutely delicious. I can't take credit for the crust recipe though, it's from Breaking Bread with Father Dominic. The recipe used to be posted online, but I can't find the link anymore so I'll go ahead and share it with you! For the record, it's slightly altered because I don't have a bread machine and it was originally intended to be a loaf, not pizza crust...


Focaccia Bread Pizza Crust

1 cup + 3 Tablespoons warm water
1 1/2 teaspoons yeast
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons rosemary
3 cups flour
Mix yeast and warm water together. Stir in oil, salt, and rosemary. Slowly add flour until dough forms an easy to handle ball. (I mixed with my hands at the end.) Place dough ball on a lightly floured surface; cover and let rest for 5 minutes. Form pizza crust on pan greased in olive oil (I made two personal pizzas, but you could very easily make one large crust). Cover and let rise in warm place for about 30 minutes. Add desired toppings, and bake at 425 degrees for about 20 minutes.


I think the only thing I will change for next time is to make the crust thinner. What can I say - I'm from New York! Enjoy!!