Dairy Free Pizza Recipe That Actually Tastes Amazing
This dairy free pizza recipe combines our simple but incredible tomato sauce and dairy free pesto to make a pizza that both looks and tastes amazing! No more relying on disappointing vegan cheese, and no more missing out on pizza night!
It’s quick and easy to throw together, is great to make with the kids and an ideal dairy free family dinner idea.

Real pizza is one of the hardest things to give up when you go dairy free, isn’t it?
Vegan cheese just doesn’t cut it.
Real cheese makes pizza more-ish, so take that away and the happy family experience of pizza night goes from delightful cheese-fest to dairy free subpar sadness.
While the rest of my family tucked into incredible gooey cheese, I always felt like my store -bought or take out vegan pizzas were a letdown.
That’s why I developed this recipe, which uses simple ingredients to make an incredibly flavoursome tomato pizza sauce, plus a topping that brings back the ‘umami’ (that is, the satisfying ‘yum!’ flavour!) we all want and love from pizza: pesto.
Traditional pesto contains parmesan, so we use our easy 5 minute homemade pesto recipe.
Now, my kids love tucking into my homemade dairy free pizza even more than take out!
This is a great family dinner idea: get the kids to add their own favourite toppings and get the pizza assembled and baked in less than 30 minutes.
Why You’ll Love This Dairy Free Pizza Recipe
- Great flavour without using loads of vegan ‘fake’ cheese
- No more dairy free sadness on pizza night!
- Weeknight-friendly – quick and easy to throw together
- Family food – get the whole family involved in the fun of making the pizza
Key Ingredients
For the Homemade Tomato Pizza Sauce

- Passata: An Italian staple, passata is a type of tomato purée that is rich, smooth and great for sauces. It is becoming more widely available in the US and is sold in boxes or jars, never in cans.
- Garlic powder: Fresh minced garlic also works well.
- Dried oregano and basil: Any blend of italian herbs work well here, and you can go for fresh if you prefer.
- Salt: Add a couple of twists of black pepper too if you like.
- Sugar: Tomato can sometimes be a bit of a tart flavour, so a little sugar can bring a bit balance and sweetness to the sauce.
For the Pizza

- Pizza dough: Buy a ready made pizza base, or make your own. I use the dough setting on my bread maker which takes around 45 minutes plus 15-20 minutes proving time.
- Tomato pizza sauce: You’ll need around ¼ cup per 10 inch pizza.
- Dairy free cheese: I use Cathedral City plant-based grated cheese (shreds), but you can use your favourite cheese substitute product. We’re only using a little in this recipe, so getting this ‘right’ isn’t so important!
- Homemade pesto: or buy a ready-made a vegan or dairy free jar.
- Toppings of your choice: Pepperoni (check labels to ensure it’s dairy free), shredded chicken, bell peppers, rocket (arugula) or whatever your favourite is… just don’t skip the pesto and go easy on the ‘cheese’!
Variations and Substitutions
- Pizza sauce garlic and herbs: If you choose to use fresh garlic and herbs in the tomato sauce, you’ll get a much richer and more developed flavour if you make it ahead of time and let it sit for an hour or two (or even better, a day!).
- Toppings: Other than the tomato sauce and pesto, the toppings are totally customisable. Go with your favourites! I like:
- Keeping it simple with a basic pizza (base, tomato sauce, vegan cheese and pesto) plus fresh rocket (arugula)
- Red onion, mushrooms, and sweetcorn
- Pepperoni, sliced ham and mushroom
- Cheese: Use whichever cheese substitute you like best, either store bought or homemade (like our dairy free parmesan style cheese), or feel free to skip it completely.
How to Make Homemade Dairy Free Pizza with Pesto: Step by Step
Find the full ingredients list and instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of this page.
Prepare the pizza dough: If using a store-bought base, skip this step and move onto makgin the tomato sauce. If making your own pizza dough, do this first. I use a breadmaker, which takes 45 minutes on the pizza dough setting. Once the dough is made, place on a lightly floured surface and use your hands to spread it into two 25cm / 10″ sized circles. Move the bases to a greased baking sheet or pizza pan, and leave to prove at 40°C/105°F for 15-20 minutes while you make the tomato sauce.
Preheat your oven for baking: Remove the pizza dough from the oven and increase the heat to 220°C/425°F.
Make the tomato sauce: In a small bowl, combine the tomato sauce ingredients and set aside.

Spread the sauce: Spoon some of the tomato sauce onto the base and spread, leaving a ½ inch gap around the edge, which will become the crust.

Add toppings: Add your chosen pizza toppings, followed by a small amount of dairy free cheese. Drizzle 2-3 tablespoons dairy free pesto (more if desired) evenly across the top of the pizza. If you’d like fresh toppings, such as arugula (rocket), do not add these until the end.
Bake the pizza: Place in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, until the toppings are baked and the crust is lightly browned and crisp.

Tips for Success
Make the sauce and pesto ahead of time
The homemade sauce and pesto will both develop flavour the longer it has been made, making the best pizza. So try making it a day or two ahead and keep in the fridge in an airtight container until you need it. You can also make a batch–use a whole box or jar of passata to make tomato sauce and freeze any excess in ice cube trays until your next pizza night.
Do not skip the pesto!
I know, I know–pesto might not be the first thing you think of for pizza. But trust me on this one.
Without dairy, the pizza is missing an ‘extra something’, and that’s where the pesto comes in. It brings a richness, freshness and flavour punch that means you won’t miss the cheese. The garlicky, herby goodness melts into the tomato sauce and toppings, making every bite delicious.
Go easy on the vegan cheese
Manufactured vegan cheese is often made using vegetable or coconut oils. Even with improvements to their recipes and the claims on the packaging, they still don’t act, taste or feel like real cheese. Instead of getting lovely, melted, gooey cheese on your pizza, you get (maybe) a bit of melt and usually a lot of oil, which separates as the pizza bakes.
Not great.
I go for a light sprinkling of grated ‘cheese’ to make the pizza feel and look authentic, but recommend either going lightly or skipping it altogether.
More easy dairy free weeknight dinner ideas: easy instant pot beef curry | dairy free copycat Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana | skillet chicken drumsticks and gravy | sheet pan sausage dinner

How to Store Homemade Pizza
Store Cool to room temperature, place in an airtight container, and keep in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
Reheat in the oven at 180°C/350°F for 5-10 minutes until warmed through.
Frequently Asked Questions
The top recommended dairy free cheeses, as voted by The Sunshine Pantry’s Dairy Free Facebook Group are:
UK: Cathedral City Mature grated cheese.
US: Follow Your Heart Mozzerella Shreads, Chao or Miyokos liquid mozzerella.
Homemade vegan pesto is great, because it tastes so fresh and it’s full of natural ingredients. For store bought, go for a brand that is dairy free, such as Italiamo Pesto by Lidl or a vegan brand like Sacla.
As traditional pesto is made using Parmesan cheese, be sure to always check the label.
If you make this Dairy Free Pizza recipe please give it a star rating ★ below.
Homemade Dairy Free Pizza Recipe

Equipment
- Bread maker (optional)
- pizza stone or oven tray
Ingredients
Pizza
- 2 ready made pizza bases or enough pizza dough to make 2 10-inch pizzas (see notes below on how I make my pizza dough)
- ½ cup homemade tomato pizza sauce
- 3 tablespoons dairy free pesto
- small handful dairy free cheese
- choice of toppings
Tomato Pizza Sauce
- 1 cup passata (250g)
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Prepare the pizza dough: If making your own pizza dough, do this first. I use a breadmaker, which takes 45 minutes on the pizza dough setting. Once the dough is made, place it on a lightly floured surface and use your hands to spread it into two 25cm / 10" sized circles. Then place on a greased baking sheet (or lined with parchment paper), and leave it to prove at 40°C/105°F for 15-20 minutes while you make the tomato sauce. If using a store-bought base, skip this step.
- Preheat your oven for baking: Remove the pizza dough from the oven and increase the heat to 220°C/425°F.
- Make the tomato sauce: In a small bowl, combine the tomato sauce ingredients and set aside.
- Spread the sauce: Spoon some of the tomato sauce onto the base and spread, leaving a ½ inch gap around the edge, which will become the crust.
- Add toppings: Add your chosen toppings, followed by a small amount of dairy free cheese. Drizzle 2-3 tablespoons dairy free pesto (more if desired) evenly across the top of the pizza. If you’d like fresh toppings, such as arugula (rocket), do not add these until the end.
- Bake the pizza: Place in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, until the toppings are baked and the crust is lightly browned and crisp.
Notes
- ½ teaspoon instant yeast
- 300g (2 ½ cups) strong white bread flour
- 1 tablespoon good quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil (I like Filippo Berio*)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 170 ml (⅔ cup) water