Puff Pastry Pizza is my new favorite thing. I mean, puff pastry is delicious on it's own but top it with cheese and tomatoes, HECK yeah! I like to look at it as a fancy appetizer with buttery flakey layers of puff pastry. It's fancy pizza and we're all here for it.
My favorite kind of pizza is the beloved Margherita style pizza. There is something about the thin, bubbly crust, fresh basil and sweet tomatoes that make me drool more than any other pizza. Plus, the fresh mozzarella, come onnn.
Now take all of those same toppings and place them on top of a flaky, light, buttery puff pastry crust and you've got pizza heaven.
I love serving pizza in a unique way like my pizza cones or my Mini Football Pizzas both of which use crescent dough not pizza dough. Who says pizza NEEDS to be made with pizza dough??
How This Pizza Recipe Is Different
When making pizza using puff pastry dough, it is common to end up with soggy and mushy pizza.
To prevent this, you don't want to use a watery tomato sauce or any toppings that have a lot of liquid in them. Other recipes will cover the entire pastry sheet with toppings which don't allow the pastry to rise properly.
In this recipe, you will see that I strategically place the tomato and cheese around the dough. I also use a thin slice of tomato. Both allow the pastry to rise better.
When it comes to making a tasty pizza, the crust is a big deal. You've probably heard about regular pizza dough, but there's another fun option that's been gaining popularity – puff pastry pizza. If you're curious and have some questions, keep reading to learn all about it.
What's Puff Pastry Pizza?
Puff pastry pizza is like a cool twist on regular pizza crust. Instead of the usual dough, it uses puff pastry, which is flaky and buttery. This makes your pizza taste rich and amazing.
Why Pick Puff Pastry for Pizza?
Puff pastry gives your pizza a unique texture and flavor. It puffs up while it bakes, so you get a crispy and kind of airy crust. The buttery taste goes great with all your favorite pizza stuff.
How to Make Puff Pastry Pizza?
Making puff pastry pizza is easy. Here's a simple recipe:
Ingredients:
- Puff pastry sheets (buy them or make your own)
- Tomatoes OR Pizza sauce
- Cheese (mozzarella, cheddar, or your fave)
- Toppings (veggies, meat, herbs, etc.)
Instructions:
- Heat your oven to about 400°F or 200°C.
- Put your puff pastry sheets on a baking sheet or a pizza stone.
- Spread some pizza sauce on the pastry, but leave a little bit around the edges.
- Sprinkle lots of cheese all over the sauce.
- Add your favorite toppings. You can go classic or get fancy – it's up to you.
- Fold the edges of the pastry over to make a border, like a regular pizza crust.
- Bake in the oven until the pastry is golden and the cheese is bubbly (usually 15-20 minutes).
- Take it out, let it cool a bit, cut it, and enjoy!
Can I Get Creative with Puff Pastry Pizza?
Absolutely! Puff pastry pizza is super flexible. You can try all sorts of toppings, from the usual pepperoni and mushrooms to fancier stuff like fig and prosciutto. Have fun experimenting!
Then, follow these 3 easy steps: BRUSH, TOP and BAKE!!
- Brush with garlic n' herb oil.
- Top with ingredients of your choice.
- Bake at 400ºF until golden brown.
That's it! Treat the dough just like pizza dough! (Well...minus the kneading, rolling, tossing and flipping...)
The results of using puff pastry are a warm, flaky, buttery, airy bite. Puff pastry pizza is just SO so good...I cannot wait until you try this version!
Expert Tips:
- Make sure your dough is as cold as possible before baking! (this will allow your dough to really rise!) I like to prepare my dough then pop it back in the fridge for a bit to chill it.
- When making puff pastry pizza, you need to make sure you don't add too many toppings to your dough. Doing so will weigh the pastry down making it difficult to pick up and eat! This is why I slice my tomatoes thinly.
- Use FRESH mozzarella as opposed to pre-shredded bagged cheese! It. Melts. BETTER. Period.
You can make your own puff pastry if you want. It is just very tedious
Other Puff Pastry Pizza Toppings
Like regular pizza dough, making pizza using puff pastry ALSO allows for limitless topping possibilities!
The ONLY thing you will need to worry about is the weight of what your putting on your puff pastry dough. You don't want to prevent the dough from rising in the oven.
It is light and airy so it will not hold up as well as your standard pizza dough. Piling on too many ingredients will make it hard to eat.
Other than that, have fun and play around with what you put on it!
Other yummy toppings ideas:
- mushrooms
- caramelized onions
- pepperoni
- banana peppers
- bell peppers
- ricotta cheese
- shredded chicken
- minced sausage (watch the weight)
- spinach
- multiple cheeses
- ham
Here are some appetizers to serve with your pizza!
Make It With Marinara Sauce!
This is what it looks like made with marinara sauce. Both ways are amazing. I imagine the kiddos would like this better but I love both versions. Puff pastry is very forgiving just like pizza dough, do feel free to play around with what you like.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Yes of course. It will become dry, overly flaky, or burn when it's overbaked.
You do not need to roll it out if it's already rolled into sheets. If it looks uneven, a light roll will do the trick.
There are two reasons why this usually happens. The temperature of your oven was not hot enough or the temperature of your dough was not cool enough. To prevent flat pastry dough, keep your puff pastry dough COLD and wait until your oven is fully pre-heated.
This will happen if you add watery toppings like really juicy tomatoes. Try to make sure you remove any liquid from your tomatoes before baking. You could always just use the outside of the tomato and discard of the seeds/inside.
Other puff pastry recipes to try!
Puff Pastry Pizza (Margherita Style!)
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat over to 425°F.
- In a small bowl, mix together the garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, salt, pepper and olive oil.
- Slice your tomatoes as thin as possible and remove the seeds/pulp. This is so the pastry doesn't get watery. You want 18 slices total.
- For the cheese, you can either grate it or slice it thin like your tomatoes. If you slice it, you want 18 slices.
- Remove thawed puff pastry sheets from the fridge and place each on two baking sheet(s). Do this right away before the dough starts to stick together.Use a pastry brush to brush a light coating of the oil n' herb mixture onto each pastry sheet.
- Evenly distribute the tomato slices onto each pastry sheet. You want 9 on each. Repeat with the mozzarella slices. (See photos.)If using grated cheese, distribute the cheese onto both sheets.
- Place both pizzas in the oven for 15-18 minutes or until pastry is puffed and golden brown. Look for a nicely browned pastry! You may need to rotate the dough to even the color.
- Once the pizza is done, take out and sprinkle with freshly chopped basil leaves. Wait about 5 minutes before cutting. Enjoy!*Drizzle with a balsamic glaze if desired. (Highly recommended*)
Nutrition
Notes
- Don't add the basil until it comes OUT of the oven!
- Make sure to use FRESH mozzarella cheese as opposed to bagged.
- You can reheat your pizza the next day in the oven at 350 F for 4-5 minutes.
- Make sure your oven is HOT and preheated.
- Make sure you remove any seeds/pulp from tomatoes and dry them off as much as possible.
- Keep your pastry dough cold.
Wendy Hampton
Using the puff pastry made a big difference in this pizza which I previously made using canned dough. I won't make THAT mistake again! Delicious!
Aleka Shunk
I’m so glad you enjoyed the puff pastry crust!! Thanks for your comment!
eva
hi this looks great i have one question are the puff-pastry sheets thawed before being put into the oven or do they stay frozen?
Aleka Shunk
Hi Eva! With puff pastry, temperature does matter. The colder the dough is, the better it will rise. You don't want it frozen, but it should definitely be as cold as possible. So if you can manage to unfold it and layer it up with your ingredients while still cold, great! If not, its okay but it may not rise as well!
Grandm
Have made this twice. Still working on it as my attempts left the dough a bit soggy. My fault, used canned tomatoes the first time and too many. However, it was delicious! Burned the bottom the second time. Still delicious!
Bite Sized Kitchen
Thanks for your comment!! Try baking the dough FIRST then adding your toppings and throw in the oven again until the cheese melts!! Hope this helps!
Jenny
This looks simple and delicious. Perfect for a weeknight meal. I would have to do a meat lover, though:)
Bite Sized Kitchen
Aw thanks Jenny! Oh my gosh yess! Sausage on top would be esp. amazing!!