Heart Healthy Pizza: Review, Recipes, Interview, Giveaway!

PortraitSpanakopizza, named for Mark by the Prolific Vegan Cookbook Author, Robin Robertson

After I posted a photo of my Margherita Pizza with Foxy Moxy on Facebook, my friend Mark Sutton contacted me and asked if I would be interested in reviewing his book, Heart Healthy Pizza. He said Pizza… So of course I was in like Flynn. He also arranged a giveaway of an Autographed copy of his book for one of my awesome readers.

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I didn’t let him off the hitch there though, I asked if I could interview him and possibly share a recipe or two, I mean, people want to know what they’re getting into when they buy a new cookbook 😉 Turns out there wasn’t much arm wrestling. Mark was more than happy to share recipes from his book as well as have me interview him.

I have to admit, when I first dug into Mark’s Book, I was a little overwhelmed. There are nearly a dozen crust recipes (including some for my GF peeps!) Close to 20 sauce recipes (for the pizza base), then more than 50 No-Nonsense  Non-Cheese Sauces. I mean, the combinations are nearly endless. It all felt a bit daunting! Thankfully, Mark knows how to help a home cook out, he devotes a whole chapter to some amazing pizza combinations (nearly 40 combos) to help you get started. All of the recipes in his book are vegan, heart healthy and very low in fat. Several of the combinations immediately caught my eye. However, this Spanakopizza recipe that Mark is sharing with you today is going to be hard to beat.

Spanakopizza

Spanakopizza

For the Crust: 

Whole Wheat Dough

  • 1 C. warm water
  • 1 T. oil (optional)
  • 1 T. sugar (or sweetener of choice)
  • 1 t. salt (optional
  • 1 C. whole wheat flour
  • 1 1/2 C. bread flour
  • 2 1/4 t. yeast (1 packet)

Method: Mark’s book has all sorts of helpful instructions in the dough chapter that I can’t fit here, so this is what I did: Dump everything into my bread-maker. Push the dough cycle. Walk away. Come back an hour and a half later. Roll out into preferred sized pizzas (I did mini’s). You can knead this by hand for 10-12 minutes, then let rise til double (about an hour), punch down and let rise again (another 30-45 minutes) then roll out.

dough

Layering Ingredients:

(Layer in order)

  • chopped raw spinach
  • diced raw mushrooms
  • fresh or dry thyme
  • thinly sliced red onions
  • Tofu Feta Cheese (recipe below)
  • black or green olives (sliced)

Tofu Feta Cheese:

  • 1/2 lb. firm or extra-firm tofu (not Mori-Nu), drained and pressed for at least 30 minutes, then cut into 1/2 inch cubes
  • 1 C. water
  • 1/4 C. red wine vinegar
  • 1 t. salt (optional)
  • 1 t. garlic powder
  • 1/4 t. ground black pepper

Method: Combine all ingredients in a lidded glass container. Refrigerate overnight to develop flavor, stirring a couple of times before use.

toppingsBake at 425° – 450° for 15-20 minutes til lightly browned and delicious

Stay tuned for another recipe from Heart Healthy Pizza and my Interview with Mark Sutton on Friday the 5th of April.

Click on the link below to enter the Giveaway! Sorry, only open only to entrants in the USA. You must also follow this blog by email or RSS feed to qualify. You have 7 days to enter!  I will notify the winner by email.

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SliceBetcha can’t eat just one slice!

p.s. Don’t forget to enter my Sunwarrior Liquid Vitamin Mineral Rush Giveaway. This is an Organic Raw Vegan Multivitamin made completely without synthetics. I have 5 bottles to giveaway to my blog readers! There are three days left to enter!

106 comments

  2. Hi Somer !
    My favorite pizza combo is mushrooms, red bell pepper, caramelised onnions and zucchini on tomato sauce !

    Reply

    1. Thanks Nick! I honestly think cheese would ruin this one, though I do admit I momentarily wanted to top it with some of my foxy moxy. I think even you would like that faux cheese!

      Reply

  6. My favorite right now is thinly sliced cooked potatoes, caramelized red onions, sautéed kale with garlic and a sprinkle of rosemary.

    Reply

    1. I keep hearing about potatoes on pizza, and it looks fabulous, but the double carb thing is hard for me to get over for some reason. Silly Somer!

      Reply

  7. I he to tell you, I make my own pizza pretty regularly, in fact, that’s what I was thinking about for the VVP. I may have to reconsider. . . hmmmmmm. . . .

    Reply

  11. Before I went vegan, one of my favorite pizza combos was BBQ sauce (instead of classic tomato sauce), mozzarella cheese, caramelized onions, and pineapple. I haven’t ventured much into the vegan cheese world since making the switch, so this book would be an awesome resource for that!

    Reply

  16. I love using spinach and artichoke dip as my pizza sauce, and topping with olives and your smoked coconut gouda!

    Reply

      1. That sounds delicious. We just had a pizza with some pepperoni style seitan my husband made along with black olives, green peppers, red peppers and roasted garlic cloves.
        Thanks for the great interview you took/gave (?). Thanks too for another great giveaway. You’re a good girlie. 🙂

        Reply
  23. Pingback: Giveaway: Heart Healthy Pizza cookbook via Vedged Out | Vegan Perks

  26. I like to put mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, and peppers on my pizza. Pizza is so fun to eat! This would be a big help!

    Reply

  30. Setting aside for a moment the awesomeness of this cookbook – can I just say THANK YOU for the oil-free tofu feta recipe?? Cannot wait to make it and by the way, the pizza, too! Come to me, giveaway!

    Reply

    1. Wish I had a box of em’ to give away! SO many pizza ideas. Girl, we could be making the combos for a year! The oil free tofu feta is divine. I used your tofu press to make it btw 🙂

      Reply

  32. I must admit that I’m a total pizza scaredy-cat! I even have my own pizza stone but I have yet to take the plunge and make pizza! I would LOVE to have a cookbook to help give me the courage to go for it!!

    Reply

    1. Oh Laurie!!! It’s simple as PIE! hehe! You’ve gotta do it. Plus the pizza stone makes the pizza amazingly crispy! Do it! xx

      Reply

  35. This looks delicious – I am loving red onions at present and I love the colour they bring to my meals.

    Reply

  38. My favorite pizza is one loaded with veggies like onions, black olives, artichoke hearts, tomatoes, mushrooms and lots of vegan cheese and red sauce.

    Reply

  39. Like my brilliant sister, the tofu feta really caught my eye! Thanks for sharing. The book sounds fabulous.

    Reply

  42. I am a traditionalist and like mine plain! okay, maybe I’m a little boring and could use some suggestions… 🙂

    Reply

  46. My favorite pizza recently is carmalized onions as a sauce, artichokes, olives, red onion and whatever roasted veg I have leftover. All on a ww crust. I don’t eat it all the time but when I do I savor every bite. Pizza is my favorite indulgence and I’m always on the lookout for new flavor combos. My newest quest is for a raw pizza that can compare or at least stand up to a conventional (vegan) pizza.

    Reply
  47. Pingback: Heart Healthy Pizza: Review, Recipes, Interview, Giveaway Part 2! | Vedged Out

  48. This vegan pizza book sounds so good with so many different recipes to try! The one you showed us looks magnificent & awesomely tasty! Waw, even! Thanks for this great review! 🙂 MMMMM!

    Reply

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