With so many delicious plant-based versions of favorite omnivore foods, vegans don’t have to sacrifice very much, except when it comes to pizza. Vegan pizza didn’t meet our expectations of “Pizza!!!” until a little company called Three Girls Vegan Creamery used some serious animal-free alchemy with incredibly realistic vegan cheeses and salty Italian “meats” to make their pies memorable, whether you're eating plant-based or not.

Their vegan mozzarella, vegan ricotta, and vegan Parmesan look, taste and melt like actual cheese, and their vegan meats (sausage, pepperoni, and prosciutto) mimic the flavors and textures of the real thing. Taken together, what you get is nothing short of next-level pizza, vegan or otherwise.

Three Girls’ Italian-American founder, Tracy Alexander, a.k.a. “America’s Vegan Nonni” is a pizza pioneer and category expert since childhood. “No matter what, Friday night was ‘Pizza Night,’” she recalls. Her Neapolitan grandparents had a classic wood-fired pizza oven in their backyard, and family members all created their own pies. “When I make a pizza now, I like to ‘design the bite,’” Tracy says. “Each mouthful should give your taste buds that nice... ‘a-bing-’n’-a-bang’!”

Almost four years ago, Three Girls Vegan Creamery debuted a “vegan mozzarella apizza” sold at a relative’s local Connecticut pizza joint. Their booming success is proof that nothing’s more powerful than an idea whose time has come. That inaugural vegan mozzarella grew quickly into a robust brand, complete with restaurant, store and e-commerce business.

Online patrons, including vegan celebrities, order up cases of vegan cheeses and meats, while die-hard East Coast fans drive hours across state lines to taste Three Girls’ wide range of vegan delights – but that’s another story, one we covered after discovering the inspiring mother/daughter trio. Tracy originally created vegan cheeses and “meats” to help her mother battle lung cancer with a beloved Italian, yet plant-based diet, which included vegan pizza.

The Beet stalked the very busy Tracy to nail down five easy vegan pizza recipes, including her pro tips for pizza-parlor-perfect-pizza dough, right in your own kitchen.

VEGAN PIZZA 101

The Dough

Local pizzerias will usually sell pizza dough for fairly cheap—somewhere between $2 and $8 a pound, which nets one large pizza. “It’s a great shortcut to the best homemade pizza ever!” Say Tracy.

But you can DIY it, too. Tracy recommends using 00 Flour because of how finely it’s milled and its high protein content, 12.5%, which makes for a classic chewy crust that won’t get soggy when it’s in the oven with toppings. If you can’t find that, bread flour works fine. And in a pinch, all-purpose will do.

PRO TIP: Whenever possible, use organic ingredients. It’s what we do at Three Girls Vegan” advises Tracy, “You will always be able to taste the difference!”

Three Girls Vegan Pizza Dough Recipe

Ingredients

4 cups (500 g) High-protein flour (we recommend Caputo 00 Flour), divided, plus more for dusting
2 tsp. (10g) salt
1 1/2 tsp. (7g) fresh yeast, available from pizza parlors
[OR 1/2 tsp. (3g) Traditional active dry yeast OR 1/3 tsp (2g) Instant dried yeast]
1 1/4 cups (300 ml) Warm water
Olive oil

Instructions

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast into the water, 5 minutes.
Once dissolved, mix in 2 ½ cups of flour along with the salt to make a thick creamy paste.
Using your hands, slowly incorporate remaining 1 ½ cups of flour. Knead it actively, folding inward toward the center, until dough is smooth with no lumps.
Rest the dough in the bowl, 20 minutes.
Dust the dough lightly with flour if it’s sticking to the bowl and fold the dough into a sphere, and place it in a bowl coated with olive oil. Rest dough until it about doubles in size, at least 1 hour.

PRO TIP: “For a beautiful, focaccia-like, airy crust, let the dough rise for around seven hours,” Tracy says.

PRO TIP: Make a larger batch of dough and freeze some or all of it for future use. Follow the dough recipe directions, above, then let the dough rest for 4-5 hours. Coat the dough balls in olive oil and wrap in two layers of plastic wrap, then freeze. When you’re ready to use it, thaw it in the fridge overnight, or at room temperature for 30 minutes or so.

Lining the Pizza Pan with Dough

Any metal pan will work for pizza: a cookie sheet, jelly roll pan, or a round pizza pan. Line the pan with parchment paper, and spray or brush the paper generously with olive oil. Sprinkle a bit of coarse salt onto of the paper, then place the ball of dough in the center of the pan and work it toward all four sides using your fingers, aiming for a uniform dough thickness all around. Avoid adding extra flour. If using a pizza stone, follow the manufacturer’s directions.

PRO TIP: The higher protein doughs will stretch like taffy. They stretch easily, and stay where you put them. “Sometimes doughs made with other flours will sort of spring back toward the center” Tracy cautions.

PRO TIP: “You can first stretch the dough a bit with your hands, held in the air over the pan, but just don’t try throwing it over your head, like you see in the movies!”, warns Tracy.

PRO TIP: For a savory pizza, once the dough is stretched in the pan, brush or spray the dough all over with a minced garlic and olive oil combo, then sprinkle on 10-12 red pepper chili flakes, vegan parmesan cheese and a tiny bit of dried oregano. Says Tracy, “I promise you won't regret this move. For non-savory pizzas, like the peach and prosciutto pizza recipe, below, just brush, spray, or drizzle the dough with olive oil.

Cooking the Pizza

“The whole trick to good pizza is the hottest oven you can get” says Tracy. “At Three Girls’ we have a commercial pizza oven which goes to 675-700 degrees, but home ovens don’t go that high. Set your oven to 550 degrees and wait until it fully heats. Cook the pizza for 10-12 minutes. After that, slide the pizza out of the pan and right onto the bare oven rack, and cook it for another 3-5 minutes to crisp the crust.”

Cutting the Pizza

Use kitchen scissors to cut your pizza, rather than struggling with a knife or pizza wheel. “My paternal grandmother was Neapolitan, from Cerreto Sannita, but her husband was from Favarotta, Sicily, so she always made focaccia-style pizza for him. She’d take the pizza out of the oven and say to us kids, ‘OK, go get the scissors!' And we’d cut off our piece using her kitchen scissors. It’s very precise way to cut pizza – it just works!” says Tracy.

RECIPES

Garlic-Flavored Olive Oil

Ingredients

1 cup Olive oil
2 Garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 Red Chili Pepper Flakes

Instructions

Pour olive oil into a glass jar, sliced garlic cloves, and red pepper flakes.
Store in the refrigerator for brushing onto pizza dough.

Three Girls Vegan Broccoli Rabe and Sausage Apizza

Ingredients

1 pound pizza dough
Garlic-flavored olive oil
Olive oil
Coarse salt
Dried oregano
Red chili pepper flakes
Three Girl’s Vegan Parmesan
1 bunch broccoli rabe
Three Girl’s Vegan mozzarella, sliced and grated
Three Girl’s Vegan sausage, sliced or ground (use blender or food processor to make a crumble)

Instructions

Rinse broccoli rabe and cut off about 1” of the rough ends and blanche in boiling water for tk minutes, then immerse in cold water to stop the cooking.
Dry with paper towels, then rough chop into 3-4” long pieces.
Saute in olive oil with 3-4 slices of garlic, salt and a few red pepper chili flakes. Set aside. Line metal pizza pan with dough and brush or spray dough with the garlic-flavored olive oil. Sprinkle dough with a small bit of dried oregano, parmesan, and touch of salt.
Arrange a thin layer of mozzarella slices over the dough.
Layer on the cooked broccoli rabe. Sprinkle on ground sausage. Add a layer of grated mozzarella.
Spray whole pizza with olive oil or drizzle olive oil over pizza.
Sprinkle lightly with dried oregano. Cook in a 550 degree oven for 10-12 minutes or until done.
Remove from oven and carefully slide the pizza off of the metal pan and onto the plain oven rack, and cook for another 3-5 minutes to crisp up the crust.
Remove from oven and sprinkle with a small dash of oregano and let cool slightly. Cut with kitchen scissors.

Three Girls Vegan BBQ Chicken Apizza

Ingredients

1 pound pizza dough
Garlic-flavored olive oil
Dried oregano
Red chili pepper flakes
Three Girls Vegan parmesan
Coarse salt (sea salt or kosher salt)
Three Girls Vegan mozzarella, sliced and grated
BBQ sauce (Sweet Baby Ray’s brand)
Three Girls Vegan “chicken cutlet”, cubed
Red onion, cut into thin and into half-moons
Olive oil

Ingredients

Line metal pizza pan with parchment paper. Spray parchment paper with olive oil and sprinkle a bit of coarse salt on the paper.
Place dough ball down and spread uniformly to all sides, lining pan with dough.
Brush or spray dough with the garlic-flavored olive oil.
Sprinkle dough with a small bit of dried oregano, parmesan, and touch of salt.
Place a thin layer of mozzarella slices. Add a layer of BBQ sauce, squirting from bottle and brushing with a basting brush. Cover pizza with cubes of vegan chicken cutlet.
Add another layer of BBQ sauce using the same technique. Sprinkle on grated mozzarella and top with desired amount of red onion slices. Spray, brush, or drizzle with olive oil.
Cook in a 550 degree oven for 10-12 minutes or until done. Remove from oven and carefully slide the pizza off of the metal pan and onto the plain oven rack, and cook for another 3-5 minutes to crisp up the crust.
Remove from oven and sprinkle with a small dash of oregano and let cool slightly. Cut with kitchen scissors.

PRO TIP: “For BBQ sauce you can use anything, but I think Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ Sauce is hands down the best one out there” advises Tracy.

Three Girls Vegan Peach and Prosciutto Apizza

Ingredients

1 pound pizza dough
1 ripe, washed peach, sliced
Three Girl’s Vegan plain ricotta
Three Girl’s Vegan prosciutto
Three Girl’s Vegan parmesan
Three Girl’s Vegan mozzarella
Red chili pepper flakes
Olive oil
Coarse salt
Fresh basil leaves, torn

Instructions

Line metal pizza pan with parchment paper. Spray parchment paper with olive oil and sprinkle a bit of coarse salt on the paper.
Place dough ball down and push to sides, lining pan with dough. Brush or spray dough with plain olive oil. Spread a layer of vegan ricotta, sprinkle a few red chili flakes on top.
Layer on the vegan prosciutto next, then cover with slices of vegan mozzarella.
Arrange a pinwheel pattern of fresh, unpeeled peach slices, and drizzle olive oil over the top, or use spray olive oil to limit the calories.
Cook in a 550 degree oven for 10-12 minutes or until done. Remove from oven and carefully slide the pizza off of the metal pan and onto the plain oven rack, and cook for another 3-5 minutes to crisp up the crust.
Remove from oven and drizzle with apple honey, top with vegan parmesan and fresh basil leaves. Let cool slightly and cut with kitchen scissors.

Three Girls Vegan Neopolitan Apizza

Ingredients

1 pound pizza dough
Garlic-flavored olive oil
Dried oregano
1 28-ounce can San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes
Three Girls Vegan parmesan
Coarse salt (sea salt or kosher salt)
Three Girls Vegan mozzarella, sliced and grated
Olive oil
Fresh basil leaves, torn

Instructions

Line metal pizza pan with parchment paper. Spray parchment paper with olive oil and sprinkle a bit of coarse salt on the paper.
Place dough ball down and spread uniformly to all sides, lining pan with dough. Brush or spray dough with the garlic-y olive oil.
Sprinkle dough with a small bit of dried oregano, parmesan, and touch of salt.
Place tomatoes in blender or food processor and pulse to make tomato sauce. Spread a thin layer of tomato sauce onto of dough. Place a thin layer of grated mozzarella.
Spray, brush, or drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with a small dash of oregano. Cook in a 550 degree oven for 10-12 minutes or until done.
Remove from oven and carefully slide the pizza off of the metal pan and onto the plain oven rack, and cook for another 3-5 minutes to crisp up the crust.
Remove from oven, top with vegan Parmesan and fresh basil leaves. Let cool slightly and cut with kitchen scissors.

PRO TIP: “Use a sauce that is closest to a simple tomato sauce, with no funny business” says Tracy, meaning additives. “Never a tomato paste please! Cover the dough so you can still see the dough in spots. If you over sauce you will get a soggy pizza, not fun!”

Three Girls Vegan Creamery vegan cheeses can be ordered here.

Three Girls Vegan Creamery vegan meats can be ordered here