College kids are not renowned for their culinary traditions, and if one tradition occurs, it usually revolves around Jack-In-The-Box munchie meals or Cup of Noodles. One of my friends from the cycling team, Charlie, is a bit more sophisticated.

Every friday for the past two years that I’ve known her, she has made homemade pizza for her house and other guests. I’ve been one of the guests, also known as the “sharks”, benefitting from her kindness. Recently, I learned that her pizza was vegan, and I decided to give it a go.

The first step was locating a pizza dough recipe. I used a basic recipe from Bob’s Red Mill: https://www.bobsredmill.com/recipes/how-to-make/basic-pizza-dough/ and included the basics of this recipe in my own creation. This dough comes out perfect, soft and chewy and yet still firm enough to hold all your pizza-y goodness.

I wanted to make a pizza that would encapsulate the season of fall, so I chose to put pumpkin as a prominent flavor in this dish. I first started with a pumpkin marinara (recipe https://cookieandkate.com/creamy-pumpkin-marinara-recipe/) as the sauce and then used squash, apple, and vegan apple sausage (Field Roast) as the toppings, with a vegan cheese (Daiya Cutting Board) to seal the deal.

I prepared the sauce and the toppings, and then it was time to prepare and cook the pizzas. We chose a deep dish approach, but you don’t have to! Any pizza size or shape will do 🙂

Cook between 20 to 30 minutes at 450 °F, until desired level of firmness. Enjoy 🙂

Print Recipe

5 from 2 votes

Pumpkin Apple Pizza

Homemade vegan pizza. Pumpkin and apple theme.

Prep Time1 hr 30 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Total Time2 hrs

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Vegan Friendly

Servings: 2 pizzas

Ingredients

Pizza Dough

• 1.5 tsp sea salt
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 cups warm water
• 1.5 tbsp active dry yeast
• 6 cups white all-purpose flour

Pumpkin Marinara Pizza Sauce

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp onion powder
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp granulated garlic
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp dried tarragon
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 15oz can diced/crushed tomatoes
• 1 15oz can pumpkin puree
• 1 tbsp vegan butter
• 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
• freshly grated black pepper to taste

Pizza Toppings

• 1 12-14oz pack vegan sausage (I used Field Roast Vegan Smoked Apple Sage)
• 1 6-8oz pack vegan cheese (I used Daiya cutting board mozzarella)
• 1-2 fresh crisp apples
• 1 small delicata squash

Instructions

• In a large mixing bowl stir yeast and salt into warm water, add olive oil.
• Add flour gradually into the bowl of yeast water until the dough is stiff (usually 5-5.5 cups for me). Let dough rest for about 10-15 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining flour onto a dry work surface. Knead dough for 10 minutes. Cover dough with a damp towel and let rise until pizzas are ready to be baked (at least 1 hr).
• Now take a 30 min – 1 hour break, until ready to prepare the pizzas.
• Chop the apples and delicata squash. Sauté for 5-10 minutes over medium heat, until they have begun to soften. Then, set aside for the time being.
• Chop the vegan sausage. Sauté for 5-10 minutes over medium-high heat, until they have begun to brown a little. Then, set aside for the time being.
• Add all sauce ingredients to a pot, and simmer covered for ~15 minutes, and uncovered for ~5 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 450 °F. 
• Oil two 14” pizza pans. Sprinkle the pans with a little corn meal.
• Punch dough down and roll out into two dough rounds/rectangles. Pinch and pull dough to fill pan(s). Prick each dough in about 6 places with a toothpick. Brush crust lightly with olive oil (optional). Spread sauce, toppings, and vegan cheese.
• Bake the pizzas in the oven for 20-30 minutes, depending on the area of the pizza (thinner = less time).
• Enjoy 🙂