Prior to National Pizza Week, pizza chefs nationwide competed in an annual competition titled, Pizza Chef of the Year, in which an elite panel of judges have now crowned the very best recipes. The champions are kindly sharing those award-winning recipes, so those that adore pizza can make the tastiest treats at home during the seven-day celebration that is National Pizza Week.
Top pizza chefs from across the country gathered to compete at the annual competition organised by the Pizza, Pasta & Italian Food Association (PAPA), showcasing their innovative culinary skills. The experts went head-to-head to create the best-tasting, best-looking and most innovative pizza, all under the watchful eyes of the expert judging panel, including celebrity chef Theo Randall, Marco Fuso, MFP Consultancy, Michael Eyre, product director at Jestic, Michele Pascarella, Napoli on the Road and co-founder of renowned Pizza Pilgrims restaurants, Thom Elliot.
One pizza particularly impressed the judges, ‘The Return of the M.A.C’ created by Brigi Stamber, pizza chef at Pizzaface in Brighton. This came out as officially ‘Britain’s best’ in 2023, outshining the other contestants.
Judges noted the creation was a ‘Lovely combo with great taste and a great idea for making vegan cheese work – a definite winner.’
So, if you’re ready to get creative with your culinary skills, here are the top five recipes from the highly regarded competition, produced by chefs Brigi, Scott Holden and Nicola Jackson Jones.
Britain’s Top Five Pizza Recipes of the Year:
1. The Return of the M.A.C. By Brigi Stamber
Ingredients:
- 260g Whitworth Bros. Premium Pizza Flour
- 60g Vegan Cheese Sauce
- 50g Vegan Cheese
- 30g Vegan Parmesan
- 30g Oven Roasted Panko Breadcrumbs
- 20g Mixed Herbs (rosemary, chives, parsley and oregano)
Instructions:
- To make the dough
– Add 620g of cool water to the dough mixer, and 2 large spoons of sour dough starter.
– Start the mixer to mix the starter in and add 1kg of the Whitworth flour.
– Pour over 25g of extra virgin olive oil, and then 25g of salt and add 10g of sugar.
– Mix for around 15 minutes, then cover and leave to rest in the mixer for 15 minutes.
– Move to a surface, cover, and again rest for 30 minutes.
– Cut the dough in 260g pieces and round into a ball.
– Place in a dough tray and leave to rise for a few hours, dependent on the weather, then put in the fridge.
– Leave for at least 24 hours, removing from the fridge at least an hour before use. - Make the vegan cheese sauce by roasting carrots, cauliflower and a whole bulb of garlic in the oven until golden, seasoning with sea salt and black pepper. Once roasted, add the carrots, cauliflower and garlic into a blender with oat milk and cashew milk and blend until smooth.
- Roll out the dough into a 12inch circle shape.
- Spread the homemade vegan cheese sauce evenly onto the base.
- Add the vegan cheese.
- Cook the pizza in a high heat oven until the crust is golden.
- Once the pizza has been cooked, top with oven roasted panko breadcrumbs, mixed herbs and vegan parmesan.
- Sicilian Prawn by Scott Holden
Ingredients:
- 30g Danish Crown Chorizo
- 110g Pizza Sauce – Scott has used homemade but feel free to use shop bought
- 7 Prawns
- 40g Yellow Tomatoes
- 2g Sicilian Pepper Flakes
- 1 Lemon Wedge
- 5g Parsley
Instructions:
- Cook chorizo in a pan until it’s nicely roasted and flavourful.
- Put the roasted chorizo and pizza sauce in a blender and blend until smooth.
- Roll out the pizza dough with a rolling pin into a 12-inch circle shape. You can find pre-made pizza dough at the supermarket to make this recipe quick and easy.
- Spread the blended sauce evenly over the pizza dough as your pizza base.
- Scatter raw prawns and yellow tomatoes over the base.
- Pop the pizza into a pre-heated hot oven for about 90 seconds or until the base is golden.
- Take the pizza out of the oven and sprinkle with Sicilian pepper flakes, fresh parsley and serve with lemon wedges for extra zing.
3. Pepperoni & Hot Honey Detroit by Scott Holden
Ingredients:
- 110g Silbury Authentic Pizza Sauce
- 150g Mozzarella Grated
- 20g Grated Cheddar
- 5g Grated Grana Padana
- 5g Basil
- 10ml Hot Star Honey
- 320g Detroit Pizza Dough
- 100g Mangalica Slices
Instructions:
- Pre-cook Detroit dough in a square dish.
- Add mozzarella and cheddar to the pan.
- Add Mangalica and pizza sauce.
- Bake in a high heat oven for 90 seconds.
- Top with basil, hot star honey and basil.
4. YAM-YASSS! By Nicola Jackson Jones
Ingredients:
- Small Handful Futura Foods YAMAS! Halloumi
- 250g Doughball
- 120ml Tomato Sauce – Nicola has used homemade but free to use shop bought
- Handful lamb kofta – Nicola has used homemade but free to use shop bought
- 9 Sweet Red Peppers
- 8 Charred Onion Petals
- Small Spoonful Chopped Pickled Chilli
- Spoonful Parmesan
Instructions:
- Roll out ready-made dough into a 12″ circle shape.
- Fry lamb kofta until brown.
- Roast onions in the oven until brown around the edges.
- Chop peppers and chillis.
- Poach 1-2cm thick strips of halloumi in boiling water for a couple minutes.
- Spread tomato sauce evenly over pizza base.
- Add halloumi, lamb, peppers and onions.
- Bake the pizza in a high heat oven for 90 seconds or until the crust is golden.
- Garnish the baked pizza with pickled chilli and parmesan.
5. The Clucky Bird by Brigi Stamber
Ingredients:
- 60g Dawn Farms Plant Deli Roast Chik’n Strips
- 250g Dough Ball – Brigi has used homemade dough but you can use shop bought to make this recipe quick and easy
- 1 Large Aubergine
- Few Sprigs of Rosemary
- 1 Fresh Lemon
- Drizzle Garlic Oil
- 10g Red Onions
- 20g Edamame
- 10g Spring Onions
- 10g Chive
- 5g Chinese Dragon Chilli Flakes
- 40g Vegan Cheese
Instructions:
- To make the lemon and aubergine sauce for the base, roast an aubergine in the oven for 40 minutes seasoning with rosemary, sea salt, black pepper and garlic oil. After it’s been roasted, use a spoon to push out the puree from the skin. Add freshly squeezed lemon, more salt and black pepper and blend until smooth.
- Roll out dough into 12″ circle shape.
- Add the lemon and aubergine sauce to the base, spreading evenly.
- Add Dawn Farms Chik’n Strips, red onion and vegan cheese.
- Bake the pizza in the oven at 400 degrees for 90 seconds or until the base is golden.
- Once the pizza has been cooked, add salted edamame, chopped chives, sliced spring onions and a sprinkle of the Chinese dragon chilli flakes.