Oh boy, here we go, this is about to get a little controversial. So if you’re a die-hard authentic pizza topping-loving foodie then you might want to look away. Because as the title already gave it away, we are making a creamy broccoli pizza with pesto. Yes, our star ingredient is broccoli. But then again, authentic pizza topping foodies might be a little forgiving because we already have the broccoli (different from the one used in this recipe) and sausage pizza which is an Italian favorite so eh hem… 

If you’re still here I gather you are interested in seeing where this goes. So let’s get to it, shall we?

Pizza Dough

If you have already made your dough, that’s amazing. If not, here is an easy step-by-step recipe on how to make pizza dough. It’s as simple as mixing the instant yeast, flour (add affiliate link), water, and salt. Knead, let it go through the first proofing, portion, and let it proof again and it’s ready.

How to Make Broccoli Pizza Recipe

Preparing the Broccoli

First things first, separate the broccoli florets from the stem. Then separate the florets so they are not all bundled up together anymore.

Parboil them for about 7 minutes on high heat or until you can pierce the stems without too much resistance.

Then drain and sauté them in some olive oil over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes. Set them aside to cool while you sort out the other toppings.

Sprinkle some salt on the cream, and stir. Then, add in the pesto (you could add 1 and 1/2 teaspoons first to see how the flavor is for you, seeing as pesto can be rather intense and you don’t want it to be too overpowering) and mix well.

It will have a thick consistency. Finally, add in some of the grated grana padano and stir, taste to ensure it is well seasoned.

Topping the Pizza

After your pizza dough has been portioned and proofed. Lightly flour your working surface and roll or stretch out your pizza dough.

Lay the pizza base on parchment paper or a non-stick pizza tray.

Evenly spread the creamy pesto sauce onto the pizza base avoiding the edges. It’s just to keep all those bubbly juices within the pizza and not dripping off the sides and onto your oven which would be extra work to clean and I’m sure we don’t want that.

Try not to overdo it with the sauce, just enough to cover the whole base should do it.

Then go in with the grated mozzarella, followed by the broccoli, and finish the topping with grated mozzarella and the buffalo mozzarella.

Transfer the pizza onto the oven rack and bake (on the bottom rack) at 250°C / 482°F for 10 minutes ensuring you rotate the pizza baking tray halfway through.

Cheesy, super filling, and come on, let’s pat ourselves a wee bit on the back for added veg.

Serve your pizza on a pizza paddle with thick slivers of grated grana padano and black pepper for that slight kick.

This article contains affiliate links to which I would receive a commission should you make a qualifying purchase.

If you liked the broccoli pizza with basil pesto. Please give it a thumbs up below.

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Leftover Broccoli Stem and Sweetcorn Pizza

White pizza base topped with sweet corn, mozzarella, and boiled broccoli stems that have been sauteed in olive oil, garlic, and fresh chili. Finished with thick-ish slivers of grated grana padano.

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(+1 rating, 1 votes)

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dinner – Italian

By Angela – Serves: 2 large pizzas

Prep Time: 10 minutes – Cooking Time: 22 minutes – Total Time: 32 minutes, excluding the dough preparation

Pizza topped with a cream and basil pesto spread, sauteed broccoli and buffalo mozzarella.

Ingredients

• Simple Homemade Pizza Dough for Beginners
• 210g broccoli florets
• 64g (4 tablespoons) double cream
• 28g (1 tablespoon) pesto
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 90g grated mozzarella
• 110g buffalo mozzarella
• salt
• 
  
• Useful bakeware and tools (affiliate links):
• nonstick pizza baking pan
• pizza paddle
• stand mixer
• mixing bowl
• dough scraper
• pizza cutter

Instructions

1

Make your pizza dough

Prepare the Broccoli

2

Separate the broccoli florets from the stem. Then separate the florets so they are not all bundled up together anymore.

3

Parboil them for about 7 minutes on high heat or until you can pierce the stems without too much resistance.

4

Then drain and sauté them in some olive oil over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes. Set them aside to cool while you sort out the other toppings.

5

Sprinkle some salt on the cream, and stir. Then add in the pesto and mix well. It will have a thick consistency. Finally, add in a tablespoon of grated grana padano and stir, taste to ensure it is well seasoned.

6

Preheat the oven to 250°C / 482°F

Top the Pizza

7

After your pizza dough has been portioned and proofed. Lightly flour your working surface and roll or stretch out your pizza dough.

8

Lay the pizza base on parchment paper or a nonstick pizza baking pan if that’s what you will be using, then evenly spread the creamy pesto sauce onto the pizza base avoiding the edges. Try not to overdo it with the sauce.

9

Top with the grated mozzarella, followed by the broccoli, then some grated mozzarella and the buffalo mozzarella.

10

Transfer the pizza onto the oven rack and bake (on the bottom oven rack) for 10 minutes (or until its ready) ensuring you rotate the baking tray halfway through.

11

Serve on a pizza paddle or wooden block

Make your own homemade frozen pizza as part of your meal prep for busy weeknight dinners which will not only save you time but potentially pocket change. How? Because you already have a frozen pizza conveniently tucked in the freezer with your favorite toppings, so there’s no need to order out. And instead, enjoy some homemade pizza.

Here’s How to Make Frozen Pizza at Home

Step 1: Make Pizza Dough

Don’t worry about how to make homemade frozen pizza dough because that is as easy as mixing the yeast, flour, salt, and water. A little kneading here and there and boom, let it rise once, portion, and it’s ready for use.

If you do not have one, here is a pizza dough recipe that yields 3 medium-sized pizzas.

Step 2: How to Make Homemade Frozen Pizza From Scratch

Once the frozen pizza dough has risen and been portioned, it’s time to prepare your frozen pizza ingredients which are the same as what you would use when making fresh pizza. But there are a few things to keep in mind:

Step 2.1: Homemade Frozen Pizza Crust

Once you have rolled out the pizza dough, lay it on parchment paper and prebake it for no more than 2 and a half minutes.

What to expect: After about 1.5 minutes it expands as shown in the images below.

Avoid leaving the pizza crust in the oven for longer than 2.5 minutes as you don’t want it to be dried out as it would need to bake further on the day you need to make the pizza.

This article contains affiliate links to which I would receive a commission should you make a qualifying purchase.

If it expands before the 2.5 minutes are done, you should take it out. Let it cool completely on a cooling rack. Prepare the frozen pizza ingredients in the meantime.

Step 2.2: Frozen Pizza Ingredients

With your pizza crust pre-baked and cooled completely it’s time to top your pizza crust.

Start with your sauce (try to leave the edges without sauce), then the shredded mozzarella, cold cuts, or veg, and finish with the shredded and fresh mozzarella.

Step 2.3: Wrapping Frozen Pizza

The last step is to wrap the topped pizza.

If you find it hard to maneuver wrapping the pizza with cling film. Gently transfer it onto a flat surface (that can fit into your freezer) lined with parchment paper. And let the pizza sit in the freezer for about an hour or until it is firm enough to easily wrap.

After wrapping the frozen pizza with cling film, cover it with foil, label and put it in the freezer.

How to Eat Frozen Pizza

Step 2.4: Thawing Frozen Pizza

So how do you cook homemade frozen pizza? I highly recommend that you thaw the frozen pizza before baking to reduce the time spent in the oven which can dry the pizza crust and that is NOT ideal.

You could leave it in the fridge overnight if you know you will want to eat it the next day. Otherwise, remove the foil and cling film, then let the frozen pizza come to room temperature before baking.

Alternatively, use a microwave with a defrosting function by popping it in for 10 minutes or so to come to room temperature.

Step 2.5: Baking Frozen Pizza

Bake the frozen pizza (on the bottom rack) at 200°C / 392°F for 7 and a half minutes. Make sure you rotate the pizza baking pan halfway through. Then move the baking rack a little higher for the last 1 minute.

Once your pizza is ready, set it on a pizza paddle to cool and soften for about 2 minutes. Serve

How to Make Frozen Pizza FAQ

Are Frozen Pizza Toppings Precooked?

Frozen pizza toppings will only be cooked if they are toppings such as spinach, croquette, or other ingredients that need to be cooked before being used as toppings. Otherwise, frozen pizza toppings are topped as you usually would when making fresh pizza.

Can Frozen Pizza Go Bad?

Like any other food, there is a preferred limited time to store any food in the freezer. I would recommend eating the frozen pizza 1 to 2 months after freezing.

Can Frozen Be Thawed and Refrozen?

No, thawing and refreezing frozen pizza is not recommended. Once thawed, the pizza should be baked and eaten, avoid storing leftovers for later.

When to Thaw Frozen Pizza

Frozen pizza can be thawed on the day it is to be consumed. Or, it can be thawed overnight in the fridge for consumption on the next day.

Is It Better to Freeze Pizza Cooked or Uncooked?

In my opinion, you should prebake the pizza crust, then when cooled; add your toppings and freeze it.

I hope you found the post on how to make frozen pizza helpful. If you did, please share it and consider following below.

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If you love pizza, then you owe it to yourself to try out as many ridiculous and unsuspecting pizza toppings as possible! Why? Well, why not? How else will you find that one topping that drives you mad enough to dream of it and wake up anxiously salivating for the next pizza night?

So, yes, why not saute thinly sliced mushrooms until they are slightly caramelized then evenly spread them out over your simple homemade pizza dough that’s lightly drizzled with cream, grated mozzarella, and diced ham? And before you pop it into the oven; up the ante with some milky buffalo mozzarella.

And when that creamy goodness is ready, love it some more with thick slivers of Parmigiano Reggiano and of course freshly ground black pepper.

But I would of course understand should you prefer to swap pizza for something else, to which I would suggest using those delicious leftover ham and mushroom pizza ingredients (save for the dough of course) for pasta with ham and mushroom sauce which is quick and easy to make.

Ham and Mushroom Pizza Recipe

How to Make Ham and Mushroom Pizza

First, make the pizza dough. You can do this the night before, or up to 6 hours before the time you need to make the pizza. The pizza dough ingredients you need are few and simple with the method being straightforward.

Should you have some leftover pizza dough, here is how you can freeze the pizza dough.

Wash and thinly slice the mushrooms. Thereafter, heat a pan and drizzle in the olive oil then toss in the mushrooms to sweat and later start brown and caramelize from the olive oil (it will take about 10 minutes or less). Take them out and set them aside to cool.

Preheat your oven to 250°C / 482°F

Roll or stretch out your dough. Stir some salt into the double cream and evenly spread this across the pizza base.

Top that with grated mozzarella, diced ham (or torn ham slices should you prefer), and the cooked mushrooms. Finished with a final layer of grated and buffalo mozzarella.

Bake for 10 minutes, rotating the baking tray halfway through.

Serve with a sprinkle of slivered Parmigiano Reggiano and freshly ground black pepper.

If you happen to love your ham and mushroom pizza, I dare you to go even further and try a ham and croquette pizza. Because if you love croquette, I am almost sure you will make that pizza more than once.

Please give the ham and mushroom pizza a thumbs up below.

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Lunch & Dinner – Italian

By Angela – Serves: 2-4

Prep Time: 30 minutes (mushrooms and pizza dough) – Cooking Time: 25 minutes (mushrooms and pizza) – Total Time: 7 - 24 hours (from when the dough is made)

Thinly sliced mushrooms with diced ham over a spread of cream, topped with mozzarella.

Ingredients

• homemade pizza dough
• Olive oil
• 270g brown button mushrooms
• 116g (58g per pizza) / 10 tablespoons of double cream (5 tablespoons per pizza)
• 100g grated mozzarella
• 100g diced ham
• 100g buffalo mozzarella or other fresh mozzarella
• Salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

1

First, make the homemade pizza dough. You can do this the night before, or up to 6 hours before the time you need to make the pizza.

Cook the mushrooms

2

Wash and thinly slice the mushrooms. Thereafter, heat a pan and drizzle in the olive oil then toss in the mushrooms to sweat and later start brown and caramelize from the olive oil on high heat. It will take about 10 minutes or less. Take them out and set them aside to cool.

3

Preheat your oven to 250°C / 482°F

Top the pizza base

4

Roll or stretch out your dough. Stir some salt into the double cream and evenly spread this across the pizza base (avoid the edges).

5

Top that with grated mozzarella, diced ham (or torn ham slices should you prefer), and mushrooms. Finished with a final layer of grated mozzarella and buffalo mozzarella.

6

Bake for 10 minutes (on the middle rack), rotating the baking tray halfway through.

7

Serve with a sprinkle of slivered Parmigiano Reggiano and freshly ground black pepper.

If you like pizza and would love to have other meat-free alternatives, then this creamy spinach pizza with ricotta is absolutely worth a try! And there is a high chance that you might manage to sweet-talk your little ones to have more than a bite.

child-friendly

meat-free Monday

watch the video on youtube & subscribe

The sauce and spinach measurements in the recipe section are for 1 pizza. However, should you want to use it for 2, then just double the amounts.

How to Make Creamy Spinach Pizza in 4 Simple Steps

Step 1- Prepare the pizza dough: use this simple homemade pizza dough for beginners. it yields 3 medium-sized pizzas. This will take about 6 hours.

Step 2- Prepare the spinach: Wash the baby spinach and add it to a pan with about 1/4 cup of water. Cover and blanch for 2-3 minutes or until wilted. Squeeze out any excess water from the spinach and set aside.

Step 3- Mix up the ricotta pizza base sauce: Whisk the double cream, ricotta, salt, and freshly ground black pepper until smooth and there are no lumps (make sure you taste it for seasoning). Put it in the fridge until you are ready to use it.

Step 4- Bring it together: Roll out the pizza base, and evenly spread the ‘ricotta sauce’. Top it with half of the grated mozzarella, then the spinach, and finish with the leftover grated mozzarella and finally the fresh mozzarella. Bake in the middle oven rack for about 12 minutes at 250°C / 482°F (rotating halfway through).

Please give the creamy spinach pizza a thumbs up below.

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lunch/Dinner – Italian

By Angela – Serves: 1

Prep Time: 7 hours – Cooking Time: 10-12 minutes – Total Time: 7 hours 12 minutes

Pizza with a delicious ricotta, cream, and Parmigiano base. Topped with blanched spinach and mozzarella, and finished with thick slivers of Parmigiano Reggiano.

Ingredients

• 1 portion of pizza dough simple homemade pizza dough for beginners
• 70g blanched baby spinach
• 53g fresh ricotta
• 19ml double cream
• 20g grated parmigiano reggiano
• pinch of salt
• freshly grated black pepper
• 55g grated mozzarella
• 65g fresh mozzarella

Instructions

1

Prepare the pizza dough: use this simple homemade pizza dough for beginners. it yields 3 medium-sized pizzas, but the topping measurements above are for 1 pizza. This will take about 6 hours.

2

Prepare the spinach: Wash the baby spinach and add it to a pan with about 1/4 cup of water. Cover and blanch for 2-3 minutes or until wilted. Squeeze out any excess water from the spinach and set aside.

3

Mix up the ricotta pizza base sauce: Whisk the double cream, ricotta, salt, and freshly ground black pepper until smooth and there are no lumps (make sure you taste it for seasoning). Put it in the fridge until you are ready to use it.

4

Bring it together: Roll out the pizza base, and evenly spread the 'ricotta sauce'. Top it with half of the grated mozzarella, then the spinach, and finish with the leftover grated mozzarella and finally the fresh mozzarella. Bake in the middle oven rack for about 12 minutes at 250°C / 482°F (rotating halfway through).

There’s something magical about grilled zucchini, no I don’t say that lightly. It has this sweet, charred, and somewhat chewy yet crunchy texture that just makes my mind race with all sorts of zucchini summer recipe ideas. And that’s where this zucchini with ricotta pizza comes in.

I mean, who would have thought that I would be reaching out for grilled zucchini or courgette if you prefer as a topping for pizza? But here’s the thing… you should make this pizza because…

Should you choose to make the pizza using the part wholegrain dough, you can look forward to the earthy dough flavor, mildly nuttiness from the ricotta and Parmigiano Reggiano, slight kick from the freshly ground black pepper, and the caramelized, charred grilled zucchini. Yes, it’s a delicious mouthful and I must say, it is filling without feeling ‘heavy’.

How to Make This Zucchini With Ricotta Pizza

Zucchini With Ricotta Pizza Ingredients

For the base: you need:

Soft ricotta

Grated Parmigiano Reggiano

Fresh and grated mozzarella

Olive oil, salt, and

Black pepper (optional).

Two medium-sized zucchini for the 3 pizzas should be enough.

Pizza dough: You could use the ‘wholegrain’ pizza dough, or a full white flour pizza dough.

How To Make Zucchini With Ricotta Pizza

Start with drizzling some olive oil onto the pizza dough- this makes it a wee bit easier to top it with the ricotta.

Then spread the ricotta mixture over it, finished with the grated then fresh mozzarella and another drizzle of olive oil.

Bake and when done, layer the pizza with the grilled zucchini and thick slivers of Parmigiano Reggiano and olive oil to finish.

Did you like the zucchini with ricotta pizza? If so, I would immensely appreciate it if you could rate it below. If you didn’t enjoy it, please tell me why  and what you believe we could change. To stay up to date on what’s fresh off the stove/oven, let’s stay connected on Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, or subscribe on Youtube or below to be notified of new posts by email.

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White pizza base topped with sweet corn, mozzarella, and boiled broccoli stems that have been sauteed in olive oil, garlic, and fresh chili. Finished with thick-ish slivers of grated grana padano.

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Lunch/Dinner – Italian

By Angela – Serves: 3

Prep Time: 15 minutes – Cooking Time: 36 minutes – Total Time: 51 minutes

Ingredients

• Pizza dough (see link above)
• 2 medium-sized zucchini
• 150g ricotta
• 170g Parmigiano Reggiano (substitute with Parmesan)
• Salt & black pepper to taste
• Extra virgin olive oil
• 180g grated mozzarella
• 250g fresh mozzarella

Instructions

1

After the dough has gone through the first rise, portion it into 3- roll each one into a tight ball and cover (with cling film and a kitchen towel) to go through a second rise. In the meantime, prepare the zucchini.

2

Use a mandolin or a knife to cut the zucchini lengthwise into very thin strips and grill in a lightly oiled pan over medium-high heat on both sides until cooked through.

3

Preheat the oven to 250°C / 482°F

4

Whisk the ricotta, Parmigiano Reggiano, some salt to taste, and 3 tablespoons of oil until well combined. Make sure you taste it for seasoning and add Parmigiano or salt and pepper to your taste.

5

Roll out the pizza dough, drizzle about 2 tablespoons worth of olive oil evenly across the pizza base, then spread the ricotta mixture over it.

6

Top that with some grated mozzarella and finish with crumbs of the fresh mozzarella and a drizzle of oil. Bake for 12 minutes (or until cooked through rotating the pan halfway through.

7

When the pizza is ready, take it out of the oven, lay the grilled zucchini over it, and top with thick slivers of Parmigiano Reggiano, olive oil and freshly ground black pepper.

Ham and croquette pizza? Come on! A ham and croquette combination may not be what comes to mind when you think of pizza. But I implore you to give this a try. Why? Well, for one- you would be giving your leftover croquette a new life. And most importantly, this ham and croquette pizza is probably like nothing you have had before but will crave to have again if you like potatoes.

So what about the base? Well, this is another interesting aspect of it. You will use cream and a sprinkle of salt, then top that with some shredded mozzarella, roughly chopped thin slices of cooked ham, and crumbled croquette. Finished with another layer of shredded mozzarella and thin slices of smoked mozzarella or your simple fresh mozzarella will do if you don’t have the latter.

So yes, the ham and croquette pizza is an intensely cheesy pizza that is very filling!

How to Make Croquette

Boil the potatoes in their skin, it’s best to use potatoes that are roughly the same size so that they get ready at the same time.

Peel the potatoes when they are still hot and pass them through a ricer or use a mashing tool.

Season the potatoes with salt, freshly ground pepper, and Parmigiano Reggiano or Parmesan, and make sure to taste it and add more salt if need be.

Add in 1 egg, but only half of it first. Why? because the moisture content in the potato will vary from person to person. If you add too much egg the potato will be too runny to shape. So whisk the egg then add half of it and combine it well with the potatoes before adding more if needed.

Consistency: the potato mixture should not be runny or overly mushy that it cannot hold a shape. Press onto it and it should leave a dent with your finger not being sticky after.

Adding mozzarella to the core of the croquette is optional, you can also do it without- (if making them for pizza)

Assemble: Dice the mozzarella into small bite-sized portions. Then use a tablespoon to scoop the potato, make an indentation in the middle, and put in the mozzarella. Seal it with the potato and shape it into an oval. Do the rest for the rest of the potato and mozzarella

Breading: Prepare a plate with plain flour, a bowl with a whisked egg, and another plate with natural breadcrumbs. Roll the croquette lightly onto the plain flour, then dip it into the egg and finally the breadcrumbs.

Fry: Heat the oil to 190° and fry the croquette for 2-3 minutes until golden then place them on a kitchen paper towel to drain the excess oil. Let them cool before adding them to the pizza base.

If you do not have a recipe for pizza dough, try this one.

How to Make the Ham and Croquette Pizza

For a medium, 24-cm pizza, use about 3 tablespoons of double cream, evenly spread it on the pizza base, and sprinkle some salt.

Top that with some shredded mozzarella, then the roughly chopped thin slices of cooked ham, and crumbled croquette.

Finish the topping with another layer of shredded mozzarella and thin slices or crumbled smoked mozzarella. If you do not have smoked mozzarella you can use your simple fresh mozzarella.

Bake your ham and croquette pizza at 250°C / 482°F for about 9 minutes, flip it halfway through for even baking.

Finish with a sprinkle of thickly grated Parmigiano Reggiano and freshly ground black pepper.

I hope you enjoyed the ham and croquette pizza. If so, please give it a thumbs up below. If you didn’t like it I would also like to know why :(. To stay up to date on what’s fresh off the stove/oven, let’s stay connected on Instagram, Pinterest, Youtube, or subscribe below to be notified of new posts by email.

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Lunch/Dinner – Italian

By Angela – Serves: 3 medium pizzas

Prep Time: 20 minutes – Cooking Time: 1 hour – Total Time: 7-24 hours

Ham and croquette pizza? Yes, a dash of cream, sprinkle of salt. Some mozzarella, ham, and croquette. Bake & serve with thickly grated Parmigiano

Ingredients

• FOR THE CROQUETTE
• 250g Potatoes
• 50g grated Parmigiano Reggiano
• Salt & pepper to taste
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup Plain flour
• 1 cup Natural breadcrumbs
• Frying oil
• FOR THE PIZZA
• Pizza base (see link to the recipe above)
• 117g Double cream
• 150g Grated dry mozzarella
• 150g Cooked ham
• 250g Smoked mozzarella / Fresh mozzarella
• Croquette (just enough )
• Black Pepper (optional)
• Thickly grated Parmigiano Reggiano (optional)

Instructions

MAKE THE CROQUETTE

1

Boil the potatoes in their skin, it's best to use potatoes that are roughly the same size so that they get ready at the same time.

2

Peel the potatoes when they are still hot and pass them through a ricer or use a mashing tool.

3

Season the potatoes with salt, freshly ground pepper, and Parmigiano Reggiano or Parmesan, and make sure to taste it and add more salt if need be.

4

Whisk 1 egg then add half of it and combine it well with the potatoes before adding more if needed. The potato mixture should not be runny or overly mushy that it cannot hold a shape. Press onto it and it should leave a dent with your finger not being sticky after.

5

Dice the mozzarella into small bite-sized portions

6

Use a tablespoon to scoop the potato, make an indentation in the middle, and put in the mozzarella. Seal it with the potato and shape it into an oval. Do the rest for the rest of the potato and mozzarella

7

Prepare a plate with plain flour, a bowl with a whisked egg, and another plate with natural breadcrumbs. Roll the croquette lightly onto the plain flour, then dip it into the egg and finally the breadcrumbs.

8

Heat the oil to 190°

9

Fry the croquette for 2-3 minutes until golden then place them on a kitchen paper towel to drain the excess oil. Let them cool before adding them to the pizza base.

ASSEMBLE THE PIZZA

10

For a medium, 24-cm pizza, use about 3 tablespoons of double cream, evenly spread it on the pizza base, and sprinkle some salt.

11

Top that with some shredded mozzarella, then the roughly chopped thin slices of cooked ham, and crumbled croquette.

12

Finish the topping with another layer of shredded mozzarella and thin slices or crumbled smoked mozzarella.

13

Bake the pizza at 250°C / 482°F for about 9 minutes, flip it halfway through for even baking.

14

Finish with a sprinkle of thickly grated Parmigiano Reggiano and freshly ground black pepper.

Every foundation needs a strong base, hahaha that is so corny! But really, there is no point in putting in all the hard work (if you used some muscle, wink wink) to prepare homemade pizza dough only to mess it up with the sauce. Knowing how to make pizza sauce or which tomato sauce to use is crucial because not all toppings are equal or require tomato for a base.

This post will show you how to make tomato pizza sauce, the alternative sauces you can use for your pizza base. And answer the question: “do you need to cook pizza sauce”?

I know, many recipes suggest that you cook the pizza sauce, and I too was a believer. But not anymore. So what do I suggest?: do not cook the pizza sauce (by this I mean tomato sauce). So what should you do? First, here is a little background on my history with pizza sauce.

Yes, DO NOT Cook Pizza Sauce

The first time I saw my sister Anna making pizza in her cozy little kitchen with a retro radio playing music in the background I remember wanting so badly to learn how to make pizza. I was always intimidated but hungry to learn and so I did. However, one thing I kept doing was cooking my sauce. So why did I stop?

Well, cut the long embarrassing story short: on one of his visits Nonno Enzo asked me why I cook my pizza sauce. I didn’t know what to say, it was just one of those perfunctory recipe steps I followed with little to no thought. He went on to (in his ‘why do you have to complicate things for yourself Angela way) tell me that I didn’t need to. And so I stopped.

Depending on the pizza you are making (this seems like all pizzas in Italy) your best bet is not to cook the sauce so you can savor the flavor of the tomato. Of course, if you will be topping the pizza with all sorts of heavy flavors then it’s possible to assume that the essence of the tomato sauce will get lost somewhere in between, so you don’t have to worry about it (which is untrue).

But what if, the simplicity of the raw tomato is the ‘support’ that the other ‘heavy’ toppings really need to shine through? Shouldn’t you then give your tomato pizza sauce a little more TLC?

A little side note: I do cook tomato sauce for recipes like parmigiana di melanzane, pizza fritta, or of course pasta. However, the duration varies depending on how thick I need the sauce. I will also use homemade passata/tomato pureé from time to time.

What To Use For TOMATO Pizza Sauce.

Passata: Passata is simply put, pureed tomatoes that have been sieved. And each brand may have either a slightly lighter or thicker consistency. This is something to consider should you choose to use passata to cook the pizza sauce. Because if the passata is on the thicker side, you do not need to cook/reduce it for too long. If using homemade passata it may be lighter so will need a few more minutes to reduce.

Canned tomatoes: When opting for canned tomatoes, your options are: whole, peeled, diced, puréed, or crushed tomatoes. Thereafter, you need to decide if you will either purée and sieve out the seeds; perhaps opt for the whole tomatoes and crush them by hand, or buy the crushed tomatoes and just add some salt and olive oil.

Fresh tomatoes: You can skip the processed stuff and just purée or crash your own tomatoes. But it might be a little on the light side.

Now that you know which type of canned/bottled tomatoes you will be using. You need to think about your toppings. The below ingredients are for a simple tomato sauce that you can use as it is. Or you can use this sauce as the base for adding other spices/herbs. It all depends on what toppings you intend to add.

Simple Tomato Pizza Sauce Ingredients:

1. Choose a good purée/tomatoes: what’s considered good? Well, some tomatoes are ‘sweeter’ than others making them better for selected pasta recipes. While other tomatoes that are not as sweet are better for pizza. Less acidic tomatoes are always a good option.

2. Oil matters: If you like intense olive oil flavors then use that. But if you’re making pizza for others, it is better to use less intense olive oil. This also lets the other ingredients blend in well.

3. Garlic: This is purely optional. If you have been around my blog (in the pasta section :)) mostly, you will notice that I like to infuse the oil with garlic for a few recipes. But I make sure not to burn the garlic, so that means I will leave it in the olive oil over medium-high heat for a few seconds to a minute then yank it out.

4. Reduce: I used to cook the sauce to intensify the flavor as well as to thicken the sauce. As read above, the time you need to reduce the sauce will depend on the tomatoes you used. Puréed and sieved tomatoes will be lighter than passata so may need a longer time. While the passata is slightly thicker so will need a shorter time.

Other Pizza Sauces Without Tomatoes That You Could Consider.

Cream: this is a base that would go well with pizza recipes topped with ham and croquette, just plain ham, or ham and sweet corn. Oh, and you can also make another pizza with the cream, ricotta, and mozzarella! Your options are endless

Use pasta sauces: I have a few suggestions. However, this also depends on what topping you will use. For example: if you want to use the puttanesca sauce I would not recommend topping it with ham. But please prove me wrong with some creative recipes, take pictures and share them with me on Pinterest or Instagram.

Or no sauce at all: If you do not want to bother at all with the sauce, just don’t use it. Though I should probably add that simple as this type of pizza maybe, I have found it to be one of the easiest to mess up. If you want to try a sauceless pizza I have a great place to start. Let me present my pizza without sauce, enter leftover broccoli stem, and sweetcorn pizza.

In the event that I have sadly been unable to convince you not to cook the tomato sauce and you choose to proceed anyway, then do it this way.

Please give the Pizza tomato sauce recipe a thumbs up below.

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Related Articles You May Want to Read

Homemade Passata in 3 Simple Steps

While your pantry probably has a few bottles of silky smooth pureéd passata that come in handy. You really must have a batch of your own homemade passata because some recipes just taste better with this than your store-bought version.

Print Recipe

Pizza base tomato sauce

(+15 rating, 3 votes)

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Sauces – International

By Angela – Serves: 3 pizzas

Prep Time: 0 minutes – Cooking Time: 10 – Total Time: 10 minutes

A simple tomato pizza sauce

Ingredients

• 8ml olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 200ml passata
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt (or add a little and taste first)

Instructions

1

Heat a non-stick pan over medium-high heat, add the oil and garlic cloves.

2

Tilt the pan so the oil forms a puddle around the garlic, let it infuse the oil for a few seconds. Take them out and toss

3

Pour in the passata and salt then leave to reduce (thicken) for about 5 minutes covered, stir occasionally. If using home puréed and sieved tomatoes, it may take another 4-5 minutes in addition.

4

Take the sauce off the fire and wait to cool completely before using it.

5

Alternatives: At this point, you can add some basil to infuse the sauce. Take it out before spreading the sauce on the pizza base then add some fresh basil for garnish.

Making dough for bread or pizza can seem daunting for some of us. Kneading dough comes with worries of either under or over kneading. There are some ways within which you can find out if your dough is on the right track. One of those is the ‘window test’/ windowpane test/pulling a window.

So What IS the Windowpane Test?

The windowpane test is done at the end of kneading. The aim is to check if the dough has developed enough gluten, which would mean it has been sufficiently kneaded and can, therefore, be left to rise.

How to Do the Windowpane Test

To perform the windowpane test, pinch off a piece of the dough. Using your thumb, forefinger, and middle finger from each hand, proceed to stretch the dough as much as you can. See below

What you want is the middle section of the dough to stretch out so thin it forms a thin membrane you can almost see through it. This plus a smooth dough is the ‘tell’ that it has developed enough gluten.

So how do you know if the test has failed? The dough would break as soon as you start to stretch it, which means the dough needs to be kneaded some more.

How to Perform the Windowpane Test on Wet Dough

While you might dread performing the windowpane test on dough that is overly wet, trust me when I say it should not intimidate you. Here’s the simple secret: wet your hands first. I lightly wet my hands (especially fingertips) with the oil respective of what I used to make the dough. So if I was making brioche-like bread I use a little butter, if it’s your usual wholegrain with water or buttermilk I will wet my hands with some water. Or oil when making pizza.

This will keep the dough from sticking to your fingers, BUT only for so long. So you need to just portion off what you need using a dough scraper and proceed to do the test.

I hope the information was useful and that your pizza journey yields the most delicious pizzas with of course happy memories for you and your family.

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How To Freeze Pizza Dough

When convenience calls it calls! And, if like my family you too have a high request for pizza on the menu even though you try to keep it to once a week. Then freezing pizza dough is not only time-saving but cost-effective – because you do not need to buy store-bought pizza which in most cases is a sad sad affair! So, let’s find out how to freeze pizza dough so we can save time, and money all whilst making everyone happy!

How to Freeze Pizza Dough (Made in 6 Hours or Less)

1. Make the dough as you normally would- you can follow the recipe below for white pizza dough or this one for dough with 3 different flours including whole grain.

2. After you have kneaded the dough for 10 minutes, leave it to rise until doubled in size or in the fridge for 24-72hours.

3. Portion the dough. Roll each one into a tight ball covered in cling film and store them in a zip-lock bag to be stored in the freezer.

4. To use the frozen dough: Take the dough ball out of the freezer and leave to thaw. Once ready, tuck it into a tight ball and let it proof (covered in cling film and a kitchen towel) once more on a lightly floured surface.

It is ready to use once doubled in size.

Proceed to roll and make Pizza.

Some Pizza Recipes For Your Frozen Dough

I couldn’t let you walk away without some recipes to use your pizza dough on. They are versatile and can be made child-friendly, with the bonus of giving you ideas for your leftover broccoli stems or canned tuna that’s collecting dust in your pantry.

Leftover broccoli stem and sweetcorn pizza

This is a sauce-free pizza, topped with leftover broccoli stem that has been sautéed with fresh chili and garlic. Sweetcorn, buffalo mozzarella, and finished with thick slivers of grated Grana Padano. You will love the slightly charred broccoli stem flavor with the sweetness of the sweet corn. And of course, most importantly, you now have a reason not to throw away that broccoli stem you thought was good for nothing

Tuna Pizza

This is another one of my favorites because I never knew canned tuna could drive me so crazy! But it did, in this pizza topped with a simple tomato sauce base, tuna fillets, black olives, very thinly sliced red onion, and mozzarella. Finished with dried chili flakes, oregano, and freshly ground a sprinkle of black pepper.

Oh and a little bonus? When you’re not having this tuna pizza, you can use the same ingredients (omit the sauce) to make a tuna cheese melt.

The first thing I ever baked was a batch of cookies, which came out botched!!! I was a newlywed and wanted to impress- yes I’m a little old-fashioned, no I’m very old-fashioned. But that’s okay, isn’t it? So the next task I took on was to learn how to make pizza. And with that came a lot of questions. Fast forward a few years down the road and I believe I make a pretty decent pizza. And I want you to have that same confidence or more, so let’s start by knowing what our pizza dough ingredients are.

Equipment

What Equipment Do I Need?

Nothing too complex. Just a bowl and surface to knead your dough.

Do I Need a Stand Mixer to Make Pizza at Home?

Absolutely not! If anything, you just might have more fun making pizza with your hands. A little push here, a tag and roll there, and the dough will be smooth and round in no time- promise!

Pizza Dough Ingredients

What Pizza Dough Ingredients Do I Need?

Making pizza is as simple as making bread. If you can make one you can make the other. Yes, there are different varieties of bread but the simple loaf that all bread was built on is composed of 3 ingredients: water, flour, and yeast. Well, 4 if you include salt. I add sugar too, but more on that a little further below.

Pizza is the same – all you need is the right flour, warm water, yeast, some salt, and a little olive oil plus in my case some sugar too. You are now probably wondering what I mean by: ‘the right flour’? That brings us to the next point.

Flour

Ever been to a restaurant with an open kitchen and watched the pizzaiolo showcasing his/her stretching mastery behind the glass wall? Well, s/he wouldn’t be able to do that if the dough couldn’t stretch. And for the dough to stretch it needs to have been made using flour that has a high percentage of protein which is required to form gluten.

The flour I would recommend you use to make pizza is bread flour or 00 flour with 12.5% protein. To find out the protein percentage before buying, check the side of the pack of flour. There should be a nutrition facts section indicating the amount of protein.

Yeast

Below are the different types of yeast you can use to make pizza.

1. Instant yeast: Also known as rapid-rise yeast, quick-rise, or fast-rise among other names. This yeast comes in granule form and has a stable shelf life. To use: add it to the flour directly, no need to dissolve it in water. But you do need to use warm water at temperatures between (105-110 F / 41-43°C) though manufacturers may suggest different temperatures.

2. Active dry yeast: This also comes in dehydrated granule form but they seem larger than instant yeast. You need to dissolve this in warm water (105-110 F / 41-43°C) to activate it.

3.Fresh yeast: This comes as a block and needs to be stored in the fridge as it is perishable. To use: crumble it into warm water and stir through then mix with your flour.

Attribution: The above temperature suggestions are from Donna Currie’s article in serious eats.

Levain/starter: This can be made at home by cultivating yeast through mixing water and flour. Leaving it to rest for a couple of hours then ‘feeding’/ refreshing it daily with water and flour after removing a measured amount.

Water

Warm water, as per the above temperature suggestion, is recommended to activate the yeast. If you use cold water, the yeast will not be activated and, your dough will not rise. Water that is hotter than 130°F / (54°C). can kill your yeast.

Oil

Oil adds flavor and crunch to the crust. The type of oil you use will impact the flavor of your dough. That said, I would suggest you stick to olive oil. Unless you are up to some adventurous experiments which I would love to hear about. Oil can be added with the water or during kneading.

Sugar

If and when used, granulated sugar can be dissolved into the water, along with the yeast. It has 2 purposes. The first is to give yeast that extra push to perform even faster. Making it a good addition, when making a quick dough, that needs to be used within 5-6 hours. The other reason is that it aids in browning the dough.

Related Questions About Pizza Dough Ingredients

Does Fresh, Instant and Active Dry Yeast Expire?

Yes, they all do. Fresh yeast is perishable and lasts between 1- 2 weeks in the fridge. Instant and active dry yeast can last for months but will also go bad at some point. Always refer to the pack and if it’s past the expiration date you need to make sure it is still active before adding it to your other ingredients.

How Do I Know if the Yeast Is Still Good for Use?

To test if the yeast is still active, dissolve one sachet/ tbsp of yeast and 1 tbsp of granulated sugar into 3/4 cup of water. Leave to stand for 5-10 minutes. If it is still good it should turn bubbly and frothy as in the image above.

What Happens if You Use Too Much Yeast in Pizza Dough?

Before understanding the baker’s percentage I put in more yeast than I should have. And there were days when I let it proof too long. The result was a dough that rose fast and overexpanded. It also had a pungent yeasty beer smell with an off taste. And that was not the only problem; my pizza came out flat with the edges missing the ‘large bubbles’ we are all after.

What Is the Best Yeast to Use for Pizza Dough?

I wouldn’t say there is a type of yeast that is better. You can, however, choose the yeast depending on how much time you have and the type of pizza you want to make. For example: to make a quick dough, most would opt for instant yeast with an addition of sugar.

And to make a Neapolitan pizza you must only use fresh yeast. Yes, you can make a Neapolitan-style pizza using instant or active dry yeast as well, you just won’t be able to call it a Neapolitan pizza because there are specific ingredients and guidelines you must follow to refer to your pizza as Neapolitan.

What Is 00 Flour?

In Italy, flour is categorized according to how fine the flour is milled. The flour ranges from 2, 1, 0, and 00, which is the finest ground flour. 00 flour ranges in protein content, and there isn’t just one type, so check the pack before buying.

Most Italian pizza bakers prefer 00 flour with 12.5% protein. However, a few are known to use more than one type of 00 flour in a recipe when making a long fermentation dough.

Please note: Recipes using 00 flour will also require less water than other high-protein flour in other parts of the world because 00 flour is ground much finer. That said, should you use all-purpose flour or bread flour in place of 00 flour in a recipe- you may need a little more water.

And now that you know what pizza dough ingredients you need, how about we make some white pizza dough? Or add some wholegrain and rye in your dough to make this next-level pizza dough.

Related Articles You Should Read Next:

How to Freeze Pizza Dough

Find out how you can freeze dough with a 6 hour or 24-36 hour rise. And how to use it without compromising your pizza.

How To Make Pizza Dough in 6 Hours or Less

Yes, your pizzaiolo probably makes that pizza you can’t get enough of with dough that has been proofing and maturing in flavor for 24 hours or more. But that doesn’t mean you must go there when you get the pizza itch. You too can make a bragworthy pizza at home in under 6 hours.

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