Vegan Summer Squash Pizza
Layers of caramelized onion, garden-fresh zucchini, yellow squash, broccoli and creamy vegan mozzarella topped with a lemon arugula salad – this Vegan Summer Squash Pizza is full of summer flavors!
When it comes to cooking in the summer months, I like to keep things simple but flavorful. I always crave meals that are light, fresh, and colorful. I am so grateful for farmers markets because a lot of my inspiration in the summer comes from my mornings spent there browsing the local produce that’s in season. Which is how this all-time favorite pizza came to be. This Vegan Summer Squash Pizza is an easy way to enjoy seasonal produce with minimal effort. Did I mention I like to make easy meals in the summer too? Well, this pizza can certainly be classified as easy. It’s the only pizza recipe you need this summer!
Hearty and full of flavor, this pizza incorporates your favorite summer produce: summer squash! If you’re like me, you’re overwhelmed with the amount of squash in the summer and looking for fun new recipes to enjoy it. Well, that is how this pizza came to be. This pizza is the perfect solution for summer nights when you have an abundance of summer squash and are looking for a new way to enjoy it. Plus, who doesn’t love pizza? It’s easily one of my favorite things to make. Not only is it delicious, but it’s so fun to make with friends and family. It’s also a great way to unleash some of your creativity on a slab of dough.
This is the pizza of the summer. Your favorite pizza dough topped with creamy vegan mozzarella cheese, sweet-but-savory caramelized onions, garden fresh zucchini, sweet summer squash and roasted broccoli florets. Once it’s out of the oven and a perfect golden-brown, top with a lemon arugula salad to add a tangy freshness and you have the most scrumptious summer pizza.
PRO-TIP: the key to getting the most exquisite flavor and ideal texture out of this pizza is to slightly cook your veggies before putting them on the pizza. By doing this, it releases their rich flavors and help to soften them. I always cook my vegetables before I put them on any pizza. Since pizzas are cooked at such a high heat, it simply is not enough time to thoroughly cook the veggies/release their flavors.
Vegan Summer Squash Pizza – Ingredients
• Pizza Dough – use your favorite homemade or store-bought pizza dough. I typically use Trader Joe’s pizza dough, but you can use any pizza dough of your choice. Whole Foods or any other supermarket typically have fresh pizza dough available for cheap. If you’re looking to make this pizza gluten-free, use a cauliflower crust.
• Yellow Onion – to make the sweet-but-savory caramelized onions.
• Zucchini – for best flavor use a garden-fresh zucchini or go support your locals and grab some from a farmers market or produce stand.
• Yellow Squash – again, for best flavor use a garden-fresh yellow squash or go support your locals and grab some from a farmers market or produce stand.
• Broccoli – this recipe uses two crowns of broccoli. Local, garden-fresh broccoli is ideal. See the trend here?
• Vegan Mozzarella Cheese – I’m always experimenting with different non-dairy cheeses and have a few favorites. My favorite brands for the perfect melty vegan cheeses are Violife and Follow Your Heart. I always use these brands on my pizzas because they melt very similar to real cheese, and taste to creamy. Both brands are available at Whole Foods and many other supermarkets.
• Arugula – the arugula pairs perfect with this creamy pizza and adds a layer of freshness.
• Lemon – for the arugula salad on top of the pizza which adds a nice component of acidity.
Leave it to me to take advantage of all the fresh vegetables that are in season and pile them on top of a cheesy pizza. But honestly, this garden summer pizza is an easy and delicious way to use up all those in-season veggies. With the addition of the caramelized onions which adds some sweetness and the lemon arugula salad which adds some freshness and acidity, you have a perfectly balanced pizza that’s worth turning your oven on for – or if you have an outdoor pizza oven, even better!
If you try this delicious summer pizza recipe, please leave a comment below. I love reading your comments and reviews!
More Vegan Summer Recipes:
• Roasted Buffalo Cauliflower Bowl
Vegan Summer Squash Pizza
Ingredients
- 1 lb pizza dough
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, sliced
- 1 zucchini, chopped in quarters
- 1 yellow squash, chopped in quarters
- 2 crowns broccoli, chopped into florets
- vegan mozzarella cheese
- handful arugula
- 1 lemon
- salt, black pepper & red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Place a small sauté pan over medium heat. Add olive oil, sliced yellow onions and a pinch of salt. Cook until the onions are just turning brown, about 10-15 minutes (the onions should not be too brown since they will cook more in the oven).
- Place a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add 2 tbsp olive oil, chopped zucchini, chopped yellow squash, broccoli florets and a generous pinch of salt & pepper. Cook until the vegetables are just turning brown, about 10-15 minutes (the onions should not be too brown since they will cook more in the oven).
- Preheat the oven to 475F. Prepare a pizza stone (or baking sheet) with parchment paper.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out until it is pretty thin (about a 16 inch circle if making one pizza - if making two pizzas, cut the dough in half and roll out into two 10 inch pizzas). Pinch the ends slightly to make a crust. Transfer the dough to the prepared baking stone/sheet.
- Add about 2 tbsp of olive oil to the dough and use a brush to coat evenly. Lightly top with some vegan mozzarella cheese (the key is to put half of the cheese on the base, then the remainder on top).
- Top the dough evenly with some caramelized onions and the sautéed veggies (zucchini, yellow squash and broccoli). Top with the remaining vegan mozzarella cheese. Season with salt and pepper.
- Transfer to the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until the crust is golden and the cheese has melted. Remove the pizza from the stone/sheet and transfer it (carefully) directly onto the oven rack to make the crust crispy, about 3-5 minutes.
- Prepare the arugula salad by mixing arugula with lemon juice and a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Top the pizza with the arugula salad and red pepper flakes. Enjoy!
Made this the other night, really delicious. All the flavors came together beautifully. Definitely in the rotation. Thanks
So glad you liked it! One of our favorite summer pizzas. Thanks for sharing 🙂