Homemade Margherita Pizza Recipe
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The Margherita pizza you’ve been craving – homemade sauce with just a hint of heat, fresh mozzarella, and a burst of sweet basil. It’s the ideal summer pizza!
Celebrate the flavors of summer with our garden-inspired twist on the classic Margherita pizza! Homemade tomato sauce with a slight kick of spice meets creamy, fresh mozzarella and fragrant, garden-fresh basil for a taste that will transport you to an Italian countryside. Even the most hesitant tomato lovers won’t be able to resist a slice.
It’s simple, fun to make, and absolutely delicious.
Homemade Pizza Dough Makes All The Difference
Let’s talk pizza crust. While store-bought dough makes things super quick and easy, the flavor is no match for homemade. My mom and I make this pizza dough literally every single week and there’s SO many reasons why we make it so often:
- It’s the perfect recipe for beginners.
- You only need 5 ingredients.
- Most of the time is hands-off!
- Crisp crust with thick, pillowy, fluffy interiors.
- So incredibly flavorful.
- It’s naturally vegan!
It’s simply the best pizza dough. We use instant yeast to provide a quick and easy rise. The flavor comes from the salt and olive oil, which compliments ANY flavor of pizza. From classic BBQ Pizza to some of our more interesting pizza recipes like Ratatouille Pizza and Tomato Arugula Feta Pizza!
Should I Use Tomato Sauce or Tomato Pesto?
For the most authentic flavor, tomato sauce is the best sauce to use for this pizza! We use our homemade tomato sauce which combines classic italian flavors (ripe tomatoes, basil, oregano, olive oil, onions, garlic, red pepper flakes…). We love to make it in big batches and freeze it in individual portions for quick and easy access when we have that sudden craving!
What Do I Need To Make Margherita Pizza?
Luckily, the best part about Margherita Pizza is how simple and minimal it is. This is everything you need:
- Pizza Dough – While you can use a store bought dough, we recommend our Easy Homemade Pizza Dough for the absolute best flavor.
- Tomato Sauce – The classic base for pizza. There are plenty of store bought sauces on the market, but our Homemade Tomato Sauce gives this pizza an amazing flavor!
- Fresh Mozzarella Cheese – For a true Margherita-style pizza, fresh mozzarella is a must. It is rich and creamy with a flavor that can’t be matched by the block or pre-grated stuff out there. You can usually find it in the specialty (not imported) cheese section.
- Fresh Basil Leaves – What makes a Margherita pizza a Margherita instead of plain old cheese. Fresh, sweet basil is the only way to go, and make sure you put it on top after it comes out of the oven.
Build Your Pizza
Using a marble rolling pin (or, if you feel confident enough, try tossing your dough!😉), roll out the pizza dough to about a ¼ inch thick. Spread a thick layer of tomato sauce and top with crumbled up fresh mozzarella.
⊹ Tip For Success! ⊹
If your pizza dough keeps shrinking as you try to roll it out, immediately stop what you’re doing! Instead of trying to force the dough to do what you want, cover it with a clean kitchen towel and let it rest for about 5–10 minutes. This time will allow the gluten to relax. Once the dough is relaxed, you will be able to work without shrinkage.
Neapolitan-Style Baking
We prefer a more Neapolitan-style pizza in terms of baking. This is thinner crust baked at a high temperature. This results in a shorter bake time, but a more authentically Italian pizza. We found that for 12 ounces of pizza dough, baking on a preheated pizza stone at 450℉ for about 5-8 minutes creates a crust that is fluffy, golden brown, and delicious. When you take it out of the oven, sprinkle the pizza with fresh basil leaves and serve!
More Dinner Ideas To Try:
When you make this Homemade Margherita Pizza, leave a comment down below! We love hearing from you and answering any questions you might have! Also, be sure to tag us on social media and hashtag it #BakersTable.
Happy baking!
x, Caylie
Margherita Pizza
Ingredients
- 12 ounces pizza dough
- ½ cup tomato sauce
- 5 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced
- ½ cup fresh basil leaves
Instructions
- Place pizza stone on bottom oven rack and heat to 450℉.
- Roll out pizza dough on a lightly floured piece of parchment paper.
- Spread tomato sauce across pizza dough, leaving about ½ inch border all the way around.
- Place mozzarella on top of sauce.
- Bake for 5-8 minutes, until crust is browned and top is bubbly.
- Remove from oven and top with fresh basil leaves.
- Slice and serve.
Notes + Tips!
- You can use store-bought pizza dough instead of homemade, but we can’t guarantee cooking times.
- Your favorite store-bought tomato sauce can also be used in place of homemade.
- Fresh mozzarella tastes better, but you can easily use shredded mozzarella.
- If you don’t have a baking stone, you can bake this on a sheet pan or a pizza pan!
- You can slice the basil rather than having full leaves on the pizza.
Tools You May Need (affiliate links)
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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