Our Veggie Kitchen

I've been playing with pizza doughs for a while, actually ever since I found Daiya Cheese. I've read articles, tried recipes and, finally, came up with something that I'm very pleased with. A crispy, chewy crust with good taste, that's easy to work with and relatively simple to make.

I ended up using two kinds of flour. Bread flour has a higher gluten content. It contributes a better crust and more interesting crumb, but it's more elastic and harder to from. It tends to spring back and when you roll out the dough. So I soaked the dough with water and a tiny amount of yeast (called a poolish) overnight to help develop the gluten and to improve the flavor. The next day, I added all purpose flour, which is softer and more workable. The result was a surprisingly workable dough that tasted delicious.

Olive, Artichoke, Tofu Feta, & Daiya Cheese:

Spinach, Mushroom, Pumpkin & Daiya Cheese:


The night before (Poolish):
2.5 cups bread flour
1.5 cups water
1/4 tsp rapid rise yeast

Mix all the ingredients together and stir until the flour is fully hydrated. This will look more like a thick batter than dough. Cover the bowl with plastic (I use a grocery bag) and leave on the counter for 3 or 4 hours, until the dough has doubled and air bubbles begin to form. Leave covered and refrigerate until needed, up to three days.

The next day:
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp rapid rise yeast (see note)
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tbs olive oil
2 - 4 tbs warm cup water

Three hours before you want to add toppings, remove the poolish from the refrigerator. Leave on the counter for an hour or more, to take the chill off the dough. mix together the all purpose flour, yeast and salt and stir into the poolish and oil. Stir vigorously, adding the water, a tablespoon at a time, until all the flour is incorporated and you have a tacky, slightly sticky dough. I use a stand mixer for this step.

Remove from the bowl and drop onto a counter top, dusted with flour. The dough will tacky and slightly sticky. Knead for 10 minutes, dusting with flour as needed, until you have a supple dough. When done, you should be able tear off a chunk of dough and stretch it so the dough becomes translucent when held to the light (illustration here). Coat a bowl with oil and place the dough into the bowl and cover. Leave on the counter top for a couple hours, until the dough has doubled in size.

This dough is wetter than a standard bread dough and will have a slight tendency to your stick to your hands and the counter top when kneading. It shouldn't be overwhelming, though, so dust with additional flour if it is too sticky. And it is easier to add flour while kneading than water, so I err on the side of too much water, then add flour, if necessary.

Form the Dough:
Preheat the oven to 500 degrees, leave the pizza stones or baking pan in the oven to preheat as well.

Split the dough into two equal balls. For each ball, flatten out into a eight (or so) inch circle, pressing from the center toward the edges with your fingers. Then work your way around the dough, gently lifting and stretching as you go. If you have any thin spots, just press dough from the surrounding area into the weak spot. Finally, press the edges out until you've achieved the desired dimension. I think I use 12 inch pizza stones.

Tear off a piece of parchment paper and lay next to the dough. Gently lift the dough off the counter and onto the parchment paper. As necessary, reform the dough into a circle. Let the dough rest for a few minutes. I let it rest while I'm making the other crust.

You can transfer the crust now, or after the toppings are added in one of several ways. The easiest would be a peel, but I don't have one. You can also use a large cutting board in a similar manner. Or, you can use my method, which works very well. Call in a helper. Each of you grab two corners of the parchment paper. Stretching the parchment paper so it remains taunt, lift and unison, and transfer to the new location.

And finally, cook the pizza:
Add the toppings to the pizza. I highly recommend Daiya Cheese vegan cheese (in the photos above), if you can get it. I have never used other brands, but I know that Daiya melts amazingly well. I use 1 1/2 cups (about 1/2 lb) for each pizza. Also, I have a tendency to overload the pizza with toppings, if you share this tendency, fight it, as I must. If you do want many toppings, use fewer of them.

Open the oven and slide out the rack with the preheated stone or baking sheet. Transfer the pizza using one of the methods described above. Do the same with the second pizza on the second rack (or cook separately). Close the oven and bake at 475 degrees until the crust is golden brown, lifting the bottom to make sure it is also done. The parchment paper will have become quite brown and appear charred in places. This is normal and perfectly OK. Just discard when done.

The cooked pizza will slide easily off the parchment paper. You will never have to wash a pizza stone again.

I used to gobble feta cheese, especially on pizza.  I've used a tofu feta recipe from the Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook that is pretty tasty, but it takes a week to marinade and the texture of straight tofu is a bit off.  Then I tried a recipe made with lemon juice and sunflower seeds.  It didn't taste much like feta, but it sent me on a journey, looking for a good feta flavor and texture using a mix of lemon juice, vinegar, miso and ground cashews.  This is the conclusion of that journey.  And like any good journey, it ends with pizza.

My Pizza Dough Recipe is posted 'here'.



Tofu Feta
1/2 lb tofu (frim, water packed)
1/4 cup cashews
1 1/2 tbs olive oil
2 tbs reserved marinade (from below)
Marinade:
2 tbs lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
3 tbs white wine vinegar
1 tbs miso
1/2 tsp salt
2 cloves garlic, whole, but smashed

drain the tofu and cut into 1/2 inch slices. Mix together the marinade ingredients and pour into a sealable container. Add the tofu to the marinade and refrigerate for at least 24 hours and, preferably 2-3 days. Turn, toss or shake the container every few hours to ensure even coverage.

When the tofu is done marinading, remove from the marinade and crumble with your fingers. Blend together the cashews with olive oil and 2 tbs of the marinade. pour over the crumbled tofu and mix thoroughly. It's messy, but easiest to mix with your fingers.

4 Servings: 130 cal (11g fat, 4g carbs, 5g protein)

Enchiladas are a real treat around our house. It's one of the few things that everyone in the house will eat. Today, I made the kids' favorite enchilada sauce and paired it with nacho sauce and a filling of broccoli, pico de gallo, brown rice and pinto beans. The filling was really good, but I think I would have preferred my black bean mole sauce.



Cheezy Broccoli Enchiladas
10 flour tortillas
1 recipe California Chili Enchilada Sauce or Black Bean Mole
1 cup nacho cheeze sauce (1/2 recipe)
Filling:
1 cup cooked brown rice
3 cups broccoli florets, chopped small
1 can (15 oz) pinto beans, drained
1 cup pico de gallo
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp salt

For the filling, steam the broccoli and plunge into cold water and drain.  An easy way to do this is to put the florets in a glass bowl, add a half cup of water, cover with plastic wrap and microwave for 5 or 6 minutes.  Combine the cooled broccoli with the remaining filling ingredients, then stir in 1/2 to 1 cup of enchilada sauce, enough to make the filling a little saucy.  Set aside.

Add a few spoonfuls of enchilada sauce into a 9x13 casserole, just enough to cover. Pour the remaining enchilada sauce into a pie dish For each tortilla, dip into the sauce and flip, so both sides are coated. Add 4-5 heaping tablespoons of filling. Wrap each tortilla and place tightly into the casserole.

Heat the nacho sauce in a sauce pan or microwave. Pour over the enchiladas. Then pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the tortillas. Cover with tin foil and bake at 350 for 30 minutes, until bubbling.

5 Servings:  582 cal (16g fat, 101g carbs, 17g protein)