BBQ Seitan Pizza with Leeks and Cilantro

So, this was pizza attempt number two. The crust is the same, as the recipe made two crusts worth. However, this time there was no problem with sticking thanks to some tin foil and a generous dusting with corn meal (another Chicago pizza trick). I made the barbecue sauce by tweaking an Emeril recipe. It consisted of a can of tomato puree, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, garlic, onion, cayenne and dry mustard. The seitan was just quickly sauteed in a skillet, then tossed with sauce. The sauce was also spread over the crust, then topped with a few slices of soy cheeze, the seitan, and a whole sliced, washed raw leek. Once it came out of the oven, I topped it with chopped fresh cilantro.

The verdict? The sauce was delicious when it was fresh, but upon baking it on the pizza, it became decidedly too vinegar-y. And it was not saucy enough for my taste, so maybe it could have been mixed some with a tomato sauce or some kind of vinaigrette? Also, there were way too many slices of leek on the pizza, and they were too thickly sliced. It was a bit overwhelming. However, this time the cheese melted beautifully and imparted some of that creamy texture that was missing in my first pizza.

Next time, I would definitely alter the sauce choice...I wonder if there is some kind of vegan white sauce. I mean, I guess it would be as simple as using Earth Balance butter and regular flour with unflavored soy milk and some seasoning. Hmm. I'll have to do some more research. Also, I think a very quick saute of the leeks would have made all the difference...one or two minutes at the most. And again, the crust was super-dense, but decidedly more crunchy this time which was delicious.

I think this was a good idea, it just suffered from some execution issues. I'll definitely be trying this a few more times in various forms.