Vegetarian Fourth City Recipe

Preheat and prepare

Position an oven rack in the lowest third of the oven and preheat to 500°F (260°C). If using a pizza stone, place it in the oven while preheating. Lightly dust a pizza peel or work surface with the allotted all-purpose flour.

If using store-bought dough, remove from fridge 30–60 minutes before rolling so it relaxes. Stretch or roll the dough to a 12-inch (30 cm) round, leaving a slightly thicker edge for the crust. Transfer the stretched dough to a floured peel or parchment-lined sheet for easy transfer.

Brush the dough edge lightly with 1 tbs olive oil to promote browning during bake. Set prepared dough aside while you make the sauce and assemble toppings.

Make quick garlic tomato sauce

Heat 1 tbs extra-virgin olive oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and sauté 30–45 seconds until fragrant and beginning to color — do not burn. Add the crushed tomatoes, dried oregano, red pepper flakes (if using), salt, and 1/2 tsp black pepper. Stir and bring to a gentle simmer. Reduce heat to low and simmer 8–10 minutes to thicken slightly. Taste and adjust salt and pepper. Remove from heat and let cool 5 minutes before using so sauce doesn’t make dough soggy.

Prepare toppings

If vegan sausage requires warm-up, sauté slices or crumbles in a nonstick pan over medium heat 2–3 minutes until lightly browned and heated through. Keep vegan pepperoni ready on a plate. Shred or thinly slice smoked mozzarella and measure grated Parmesan. All toppings should be at room temperature so they heat evenly on the pizza.

Assemble: spoon and spread 3/4 to 1 cup of the tomato sauce evenly over the stretched dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border for the crust. Scatter the smoked mozzarella evenly over the sauce. Distribute the warmed vegan sausage and vegan pepperoni evenly on top so each slice will have a mix of toppings. Sprinkle the grated Parmesan evenly over the pizza.

Bake the pizza

Slide the assembled pizza onto the preheated pizza stone or place the baking sheet in the oven. Bake at 500°F (260°C) for 8–12 minutes depending on oven and thickness: bake until the crust is golden and blistered and the smoked mozzarella has melted and started to brown in spots. Rotate halfway through baking for even color.

If you prefer a crisper crust, bake an extra 1–2 minutes, watching closely to avoid burning toppings.

Finish and serve

Remove the pizza from the oven and transfer to a cutting board. Immediately scatter the fresh arugula over the hot pizza so it wilts slightly. Drizzle 1 tsp extra-virgin olive oil over the arugula, then dust the pizza with the remaining 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper. Let rest 2 minutes, slice into 6–8 pieces, and serve hot.