Easy Sheet Pan Pizza

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When you need a quick and easy weeknight dinner for the family, look no further than this easy sheet pan pizza! It’s a fun recipe you can make from scratch or shortcut hack. Even your pickiest eaters will ask when you’ll have the next pizza night.

It’s time for a reality check. My family does not get a gourmet three-course meal every night.

Just like you, I find myself looking for quick and easy weeknight dinner ideas often!

Actually, I was pretty surprised when some friends recently implied that my family gets some serious home-cooking nightly. When it came from two different friends who don’t know each other at all, I knew. Darlings, we need to talk…

Regardless of what you see on the internet, we are all living real lives. Even those of us who cook for a living don’t want to cook all the time. Breakfast for dinner, cereal for dinner, make your own wraps, and rice bowls are frequent meals in my house!

So, to pull back the curtain a bit more, and help you in planning easy dinner recipes, I’m sharing a recent favorite in this easy sheet pan pizza!

What makes easy sheet pan pizza a great dinner option?

So glad you asked! I like it because it’s a big batch meal that feeds our family of 4 with plenty of leftovers.

My husband likes it because, well, pizza.

And the kids love the ability to customize their “corner”.

For a bit, we actually did the individual pizza route, and that was fun, but a single sheet pan is easier. There’s no need to rotate trays in the oven!

Building your pizza…

Pizza is pretty straightforward. You have your crust, sauce, and toppings. But there are a few tips and tricks you can use to really customize each layer and make something special.

For the crust in this recipe, I use a double batch of my super easy pizza dough recipe. It’s a family favorite we’ve used for years! I change it up here and there with seasonings, but this is our go-to. Of course, you can find many more amazing pizza recipes on the web, or keep things crazy simple on the busiest days with store-bought dough.

I recommend a dough crust just because it’s classic and easier to scale than something like, say, my hash brown crust pizzas from this recipe.

For the sauce, you can make your own, but I always reach for a jar of open pasta sauce. Keep it classic with basic flavors, or get creative. If you want to make a white pizza, try alfredo sauce!

Is it authentic? No. But this recipe is about fun more than authenticity. Pesto is also a fabulous option!

The final layer is where you really get to show your creativity. It’s time for cheese and toppings!

The best cheeses to use for pizza are those that will melt well. Many grocery stores carry pizza blends in the shredded cheese section that have provolone, mozzarella, and sometimes Parmesan or Pecorino Romano.

Regular shredded mozzarella is perfect. Fresh mozzarella is a great choice if you’d like a Margherita pizza (tomato, basil, fresh mozzarella)! But really, the best cheese is the cheese you like.

My kids have opted for some pretty untraditional choices depending on their mood. Softer cheeses that will melt well give you that satisfying cheese pull.

Toppings allow for a lot of creativity. Some great pizza topping options include:

• sliced pepperoni or turkey pepperoni
• hard salami
• diced ham or turkey
• cooked ground beef
• cooked sausage
• chopped chicken
• diced bell peppers
• onions – fresh diced or caramelized
• mushrooms
• fresh basil
• garlic – because you can never have too much garlic!
• jalapenos
• olives
• eggs – make a well and crack the raw egg on top… it will cook as the pizza bakes!
• crumbled bacon
• blue cheese or gorgonzola
• … whatever makes you happy!

A few tips for making the best pizza at home:

This is a very easy recipe, and extremely forgiving for those of you building your kitchen confidence. That being said, I have a few tips that will give you really fabulous results.

First, use an oven thermometer to make sure your oven is hot enough. Most of us don’t have a pizza oven in our kitchens, so a thermometer is a great way to make sure our ovens are at the correct temperature.

Second, don’t rush your dough. If you find the dough is springing back too much as you try to roll it out, stop rolling. Cover it and walk away for 10-15 minutes, then come back and try again. The gluten needs time to relax.

Third, always add a little extra cheese. The Godfather is a “light cheese” person but his tip for homemade pizza? “You know you have the right amount of cheese on your pizza when you think you’ve added too much.” Add a little extra sprinkle after you think you’ve gotten to your desired amount, and it will melt into the correct amount.

The best pans to use for sheet pan pizza

If you happen to have a fancy stoneware sheet pan, use it! This will give you the crispiest pizza crust!

I don’t have one, so I just use my regular uncoated aluminum baking sheet. Be sure that whatever baking sheet you are using is safe to use at high temperatures. My nonstick coated pans are only safe up to 400 F, but my uncoated ones are fine at a higher temperature. If you’re unsure, check the manufacturer’s website for your brand of pans.

If you are using a stone, shape your pizza on parchment on the stone. Then remove the parchment and pizza from the stone pan and preheat the stone with the oven. You don’t want to place a cold stone into a hot oven.

When your oven has reached temperature, carefully remove the hot pan and slide your prepared pizza into place using the parchment paper. Bake according to the recipe directions.

If you don’t want to bake the pizza on parchment paper on the stone, don’t forget to coat it with a light dusting of cornmeal or flour so the dough doesn’t stick during transfer.

If you are using an aluminum pan as I do though, you don’t have to worry about the parchment paper step.

How do I store leftover pizza?

Since this recipe makes a good amount of pizza, there will be leftovers if you don’t have a lot of people to feed! Thankfully, storing pizza leftovers is easy.

If you plan to eat your pizza in the next few days, store the pizza in an airtight container in the refrigerator. If you need to stack slices to save space, place a piece of wax paper or parchment between each layer to prevent sticking.

Reheat refrigerated pizza in a 300 F oven for about 10 minutes to retain some crispiness in the crust. The microwave works, but you won’t retain a crisp crust.

Of course, if you’d like to store the leftovers for longer, freeze them! Pizza freezes very well. Reheat frozen slices the same way you would refrigerated slices. Add about 5 minutes to the cooking time.

And with that, my dears, I think you have all the tips you’ll need to wow your family with a little stress-free dinnertime creativity!