Sweet Earth makes some pretty tasty vegetarian burritos, so we’re always happy to find a new Sweet Earth product in the freezer aisle of our local grocery store. We’re especially excited about Sweet Earth’s venture into the world of frozen pizza, which they’re referring to as “Pizza Enlightenment.” So far, we’ve tried the Veggie Lover’s Pizza, the Truffle Lover’s Pizza, and the Herb Lover’s 5 Cheese Pizza. Every one of them was delicious.
Today, it’s time to try the Sweet Earth Protein Lover’s Pizza. Now, this pizza is different from its siblings in that, while the others start with vegetarian-friendly favorites, this one tries to be a vegetarian version of a meat-lover’s pizza. It’s not that difficult to make a mushroom pizza that makes mushroom enthusiasts happy; it’s a different challenge altogether to make a carnivore happy with a meatless pizza. Sweet Earth is definitely taking a bold step with their Protein Lover’s Pizza.
Now, right off the bat we should point out that this isn’t going to fool any carnivores. The faux pepperoni is brown instead of the more appealing red of the real stuff, and the faux sausage looks like granola. That said, this is still a pretty tasty pizza.
The “Planet Pepperoni,” as Sweet Earth likes to call it, is made from plant-based proteins. It has a decent flavor, though it’s not as rich as a real slice of pepperoni would be. It’s also quite a bit softer than the real deal. It does have a bite, though — it’s surprisingly spicy.
The sausage is actually crumbles of Tuscan Savory Grounds, which we’ve had in several of Sweet Earth’s frozen foods. It looks a bit dry at first glance, but it’s actually pretty moist. It tastes nothing like real sausage and the consistency is a little rubbery, but it’s not a bad substitute for those who can’t eat sausage.
The choice that makes all of this come together, however, is the addition of red peppers. Without them, this would be a halfway decent attempt at a vegetarian-friendly pizza. With them, this pizza is elevated to something a bit more flavorful than all that. They give this pizza the kick in the pants that it needs, and we really appreciate that.
We did find this crust to be surprisingly hard when it came out of the oven. In fact, we had some difficulty slicing this thing up. We don’t remember having this sort of trouble with Sweet Earth’s other pizzas, so perhaps ours was just an anomaly. Still, it’s worth noting that this is some truly stiff crust.
The nutrition info on the box wants you to split this pizza into thirds, but we think any normal folks out there are just going to split it down the middle. The box claims there are 300 calories (100 from fat) in one serving, which means a whole pie has 900 calories (300 from fat) and a half has 450 calories (150 from fat). That’s a bit on the high side of the calorie spectrum, so be careful.
The sodium is also pretty high. While the recommended serving size of a third contains 530 mg of sodium, a whole pizza contains 1,590 mg and a half contains 795 mg.
This isn’t our favorite of Sweet Earth’s pizzas. That honor would have to go to either the Truffle Lover’s or the Veggie Lover’s, depending on our mood. However, the Sweet Earth Protein Lover’s Pizza is much better than we expected. Vegetarian versions of foods like this always have the potential to be disasters. This one comes out quite delicious, and we think that even meat-eaters will find something to love here.
To learn more about the nutrition content or ingredients in this Sweet Earth frozen pizza, check out our package scans below.
