veganmofo - weird combo + artichoke dip pizza

Day 4 of #vgnmf15! We are asked to share a weird food combo.

To me, "weird" food combo is very relative and what might be weird for me, might not be for you. So, at the risk of not following the rules, I will first list a few combos that I think are a little odd, and then I'll get down to business.

Seaweed and Coconut Ice Cream
Nutritional yeast and Chocolate
Pickles with Vanilla Frosting
Almond Butter and Vegenaise Sandwich
Applesauce on Pizza
Caramel Sauce and Ketchup
...you get the idea.

Now for the story behind what turned out to be my actual post.

My daughters and I were brainstorming together for the prompts for VeganMoFo. When the prompt for Day 4 popped up, my youngest teen offered her opinion of what a "weird" food combo is:

Artichoke dip and Pizza

At that point her older sister googled "artichoke dip + pizza," switched the results to "images" and turned the computer to face her sister. No words were needed, as the entire screen lit up with images of pizza with artichoke dip on them. Not as "weird" as she had thought!

[I advocate using Goodsearch instead of Google, though, since you can donate to a good cause each time you search, such as for Farm Sanctuary.]

Although we had a good laugh, it did offer a good opportunity to share this Artichoke Dip Pizza with you, which appears in Everyday Vegan Eats (Amazon, B&N) and first appeared on my publisher's site, Vegan Heritage Press.

The absolute "weirdest" part of this story is that the pizza below is her FAVORITE pizza and we make at least once a month on Pizza Night, but, more often, twice a month! I'm thinking the name threw her; the book has it as Spinach-Artichoke Pizza, which is how she has come to know it.

For this special mofo, I went ahead and renamed it to keep with the theme ;)

Artichoke Dip Pizza
Makes 2 (9-Inch) pizzas
From Everyday Vegan Eats by Zsu Dever. ©2014 Zsu Dever. Used by permission from 
Vegan Heritage Press.

1/2 (10-ounce) bag frozen chopped spinach, thawed
1/4 cup vegan cream cheese
2 scallions, coarsely chopped
1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper
1 (6-ounce) jar artichoke hearts, rinsed and drained
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

4 garlic cloves, very thinly sliced
1 pound pizza dough
1/2 cup shredded vegan cheese (optional)


1. Preheat the oven 450°F. Place the oven rack in the middle of the oven.
2. Squeeze the excess moisture from the thawed spinach and transfer it to a food processor. Add the cream cheese, scallions, lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon of salt, and black pepper, to taste. Process into a paste, scrapping down the sides of the bowl, as needed. Taste and adjust seasoning and set aside.
3. Squeeze the excess moisture from the artichokes, chop them and transfer to a medium bowl. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil, garlic, and salt and pepper, to taste. Mix well and set aside.
4. Divide the dough into 2 equal pieces. On parchment paper or a lightly floured, clean dry surface roll out one of the dough pieces into a 9-inch circle. Spread 1 tablespoon of oil on a baking sheet. Transfer the pizza dough to the baking sheet.
5. Spread half of the spinach mixture over the dough using an off-set spatula or the back of a spoon. If using, sprinkle half of the cheese over the spinach. Add half of the artichoke mixture.
6. Bake the pizza for 12 to 15 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and crisp. Slice and serve hot. Repeat with the other pizza dough.