Easy Gluten free Vegan Pizza made with a basic gluten free & vegan crust and topped with vegan cheese, delicious pesto, spinach, mushrooms and flavourful sun-dried tomatoes. This pizza requires just one bowl and it’s ready in 30 minutes!
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WHY MAKE THIS RECIPE
You are going to love this vegan pizza! The dough is super easy to make, almost no kneading is required and all you need are 4 basic ingredients. Oh, and the best part is that it’s ready to bake in 20 minutes.
This is a thin and crunchy pizza crust, which means less bread and more toppings to taste. Sometimes a thick crust can mask those delicious fresh toppings, like the ones you’ll find in this recipe.
This Gluten Free Vegan Pizza is also equipment-friendly. It calls for one bowl, a wooden spoon, parchment paper and an immersion blender or food processor to make the pesto sauce.
If you have a stand mixer, it will help you with the mixing and kneading.
RECIPE INGREDIENTS
INGREDIENTS NOTES AND SUBSTITUTIONS
Flour. Gluten free all-purpose flour is what I usually use here. If you happen to run out of it, substitute all-purpose gluten-free flour for all-purpose flour at a ratio of 1:1.
Vegan Cheese. There is a wide variety of vegan cheese nowadays. For this recipe I use a curated cheddar type, one of my favorite for pizzas.
Spinach. I prefer to use fresh spinach but feel free to use frozen if that’s what you have on hand. Make sure it’s completely drained before adding to the pizza.
Mushrooms. Those can be frozen too if well drained.
Pesto. You can use store bought pesto or homemade. You’ll find a step-by-step recipe below to make you own vegan homemade pesto.
Nutritional Yeast. This is an optional ingredient and it’s basically used to substitute cheese in vegan pesto. It has a strong, rich, and savory flavor that resembles cheese. It also adds more texture to the pesto sauce.
HOW TO MAKE THE DOUGH
- To make the dough: In a bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the flour, instant yeast, and warm water. Let it sit for a few minutes to activate.
- Add the olive oil and the salt and mix in.
- Knead for a few seconds into a soft slightly sticky dough. Fine-tune the dough: If it’s too sticky, add more flour. If it’s too crumbly, add more water.
- Gather the dough into a ball and let it sit for 15 minutes in a warm place.
HOW TO MAKE THE PESTO SAUCE
- To make the pesto: In a blender or food processor, pulse the basil, pine nuts, garlic, salt and nutritional yeast until smooth and combined.
- Then, add the olive oil and lemon juice.
- Puree until the mixture is smooth and well mixed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl or cup if needed. If you like a thinner pesto you can add a little more olive oil or water.
HOW TO ASSEMBLE THE PIZZA
- To make the pizza: Carefully roll out the dough on a lightly floured parchment paper into a 13 to 14 inch size oval (don’t use too much pressure). You can stretch it a bit with your hands until it has the right shape.
- Top the pizza dough with vegan cheese, pesto sauce, spinach and fresh mushrooms. Drizzle the veggies with some more pesto.
- Bake the pizza for around 18 minutes or until golden on the edges. Enjoy!
RECIPE FAQs
Pizza dough can be made 2-3 days ahead. Once the dough is kneaded and formed into a ball, refrigerate it. It will slowly raise in the refrigerator. Keep it covered or it will get dry.
Once the pizza is cooked, the leftovers can be stored in the fridge and reheated in the oven or the microwave before using them.
Once the dough is kneaded and formed into a ball, double wrap it in plastic wrap and place in the freezer. Alternatively you can also wrap it in plastic wrap and then place it in a freezer bag or zip bag. It can be frozen for up to three months.
Sure! Feel free to use your favorite veggies, herbs and spices to make this vegan gluten free pizza. Fresh asparagus, sliced zucchini, sliced tomato, broccoli and onion rings are a great match, and absolutely delicious on top of the pesto sauce.
Also, I always have dried oregano for my pizzas, to sprinkle over the toppings.
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RECIPE
Gluten-free Vegan Pizza
Equipment
- Mixing bowl
- Wooden spoon or spatula
- Parchment paper
- Immersion blender or Food processor
Ingredients
For the Gluten Free Vegan Pizza Crust
- 1 ¼ cup all-purpose Gluten Free flour
- 1 teaspoon active yeast
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon virgin olive oil
- ⅓ cup warm water
For the Toppings:
- 8 ounces vegan cheese grated or shredded
- ½ cup pesto sauce
- 2 cups fresh spinach
- 2 ½ cups mushrooms portobello, yellow-foot, washed and sliced
- ¼ cup sun-dried tomato halved
For the Vegan Pesto Sauce:
- 2 cups fresh basil
- 3 tablespoons pine nuts or walnuts or sunflower seeds
- 2 cloves of garlic peeled
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast optional
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup olive oil
Instructions
For the Crust
- To make the dough: In a bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the flour, instant yeast, and warm water. Let it sit for a few minutes to activate.
- Add the olive oil and the salt and mix in.
- Knead for a few seconds into a soft slightly sticky dough. Fine-tune the dough: If it’s too sticky, add more flour. If it’s too crumbly, add more water.
- Gather the dough into a ball and let it sit for 15 minutes in a warm place.
- Preheat the oven to 475ºF (245ºC) and place the rack in the lower third of your oven.
For the Pesto Sauce:
- To make the pesto: While the dough is resting, prepare the pesto sauce. In a blender or food processor, pulse the basil, pine nuts, garlic, salt and nutritional yeast until smooth and combined.
- Then, add the olive oil and lemon juice. Extra-virgin olive oil adds richness and a slightly deeper flavor.
- Puree until the mixture is smooth and well mixed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl or jar if needed. If you like a thinner pesto you can add a little more olive oil or water.
For the Pizza:
- To make the pizza: Carefully roll out the dough on a lightly floured parchment paper into a 13 to 14 inch size oval (don't use too much pressure). You can stretch it a bit with your hands until it has the right shape.
- Top the pizza dough with vegan cheese, pesto sauce, spinach, fresh mushrooms and the halved sun-dried tomatoes. Drizzle the veggies with some more pesto.
- Bake the pizza for around 10-15 minutes or until golden on the edges. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Additional Info
We’ve been doing meatless Mondays and this gluten free vegan pizza was this week’s selection. I don’t know that we’ll go back to making conventional pizza at home since this is tastier and healthier for us. Such a great recipe.
This is an incredible pizza recipe!!
Vegan pizza with pesto is my absolute favourite!! Definitely going to make it for the weekend, can’t wait!!
So glad I’ve found your recipe. This gluten-free pizza looks incredible! So delicious! Thanks for sharing the recipe, I have to try it!!
You’re so welcome! And thanks for the comment!
This vegan pizza was delicious! I used vegan mozarella. Oh, and I loved the added bonus of it being gluten free as well!
That is great to hear, Kayla! I am so glad that you love my recipe that much!
I’ve never tried pesto pizza and this one looks incredible. I’m going to make it soon! Love that it’s gluten-free too. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Shilpa, yes, this pizza is also gluten-free. Let me know how it turns out for you! XO
This pizza is so delicious! I love all the flavors and textures, and mushroom is one of my favorite toppings ever!
Mushrooms are a favorite here too Emily, I use them all the time. Thanks for the comment!
Such a delicious recipe!! Thank you!
You’re welcome Chantry, thanks for the comment!
My husband is gluten free and lovessss pizza! This crust turned out so good! I wish I could have found those gorgeous mushrooms, but we substituted and it was still great!
Thank you for sharing your review, Lauren! I’m really glad to hear the crust turned out so good for you! XO
I’m a big fan of pesto on pizza and love the way it is used for this recipe here. Looks tasty!
Hi Moop, I’m thrilled that you enjoy this vegan gluten free pizza! Thanks so much for letting me know!
This was fantastic! The toppings, the crust, DELICIOUS! And the homemade vegan pesto was so flavorful! Thanks for sharing!
Farrukh, I’m super glad to hear that! Thank you for letting me know. It always makes my day when someone sends me feedback about a recipe and really loved it!
It’s pretty simple – I hear PIZZA I go for it! 🙂 I love how you’ve made it super healthy, too. Delicious recipe!
Thanks so much, glad you enjoy the pizza, Elaine! As you said, it’s delicious, you have to try it! XO
I love that everyone can enjoy this pizza! The homemade pesto is so good and such a fun pizza topping! As are the sundried tomatoes!
Thank you so much, Layla! I’m super excited to hear that you like the pizza. The pesto together with the veggies and the sun dried tomatoes are such a delicious combo! Let me know if you make it!
Pesto on pizza is probably one of my favorites. Your vegan pizza looks absolutely delicious! I’m so impressed..definitely need to make this asap!
I’m so glad, Tammy! Vegan pizza with pesto is one of our favorites here too. Thanks for commenting!
What a wonderful recipe! The pizza looks delicious and healthy. Thank you for your post; I will definitely make this.
You’re so welcome, Jenny! It’s always a pleasure to read your comments! And thanks for stopping by!