Spicy Mediterranean Vegetable Pizza | Vegan

This is a paid collaboration with Banhoek Chilli Oil Company.

I'm a huge pizza fan. HUGE. But the one thing I have noticed over my three years of being vegan is that I haven't found any spicy pizzas that I genuinely love - good luck finding one in supermarkets either!

So, with my love of pizza and all things spicy combined, what better thing to do this weekend than to make my own spicy mediterranean vegetable pizza?!

With the help of Banhoek Chilli Oil, I have created one of the best pizzas I have tasted in a looooong time. Store bought, home made or even eating out, it's still up there as one of my favourites!

- SPICY MEDITERRANEAN  VEGETABLE VEGAN PIZZA -

Prep: 1 hour 30 mins       Cook: 20 mins

You will need:

For the base (adapted from Minimalist Baker) :

- 1 packet active dry yeast (just over 2 tsp)
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 tbsp Italian seasonings (oregano + thyme)
- pinch of salt
- 1 tsp white sugar
- 2 cups plain strong white flour
- 1 tbsp Banhoek Chilli Oil (plus more for coating)
- 3/4 cup warm water

Toppings :

- 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped into small cubes
- 1/2 red onion, chopped into thin strips
- 1/2 baby aubergine, sliced into thin circles
- 1/4 pack of Violife cheese (or any other vegan cheese alternative)
- 3 tbsp tomato puree
- drizzle of Banhoek Chilli Oil
- chilli flakes, optional

Method - 

1. To create the base, follow this method from Minimalist Baker up to step 4.

2. Once the dough has risen for at least one hour, pre heat the oven to 200C.

3. Sprinkle some flour onto a board and roll the dough out with a rolling pin. You could always halve the recipe if you want the base thinner, but I found that the base was still great although it was thick!

4. Using your hands, round the dough into a rectangular shape on a baking tray / pizza tray.

5. Place in the oven for 10 minutes before adding any toppings, so that it's not wet and doughy when you add the sauce and vegetables.

6. Prep the vegetables and place in a frying pan with 1 tbsp olive oil for around 3 - 4 minutes to allow them to cook slightly before adding them to the pizza.

7. Once the pizza base has been in the oven for 10 minutes, spread the tomato puree on as the base. Grate the vegan cheese on top, adding as much or as little as you like. Once the veggies have cooked slightly, pour them out of the frying pan and straight onto the pizza, arranging them so that they sit equally on the base.

8. If you want a spicier kick, you could add a sprinkle of chilli flakes, but of course this is optional.

9. Place in the oven for 20 minutes, checking often.

10. Once the pizza has cooked, remove from the oven and drizzle around 1 tbsp of Banhoek Chilli Oil on top before serving!

I'm loving using this chilli oil in my recipes lately as I loveeee spicy food, so it adds the perfect amount of extra flavour, whilst giving you that slight kick! 

You can purchase this oil online, either directly on the Banhoek Chilli Oil website, Amazon or The Food Market.

What's your favourite pizza topping?

Love Always,

Shannon x