Thanks to this easy pizza recipe, you can whip up your own scrumptious pie in a snap. Nothing can beat (especially take-out) the wonder of a tender homemade pizza crust loaded up with roasted vegetables and dollops of creamy ricotta cheese.

Ingredients

Homemade Pizza Crust

1 cup warm water
1 tbsp honey
1 pkg (2 ¼ tsp) active dry yeast
2 ½ cups flour
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tbsp olive oil

Roasted Vegetable Topping

8 small red potatoes, washed and cut into ½-inch cubes
1 large zucchini, cut into ½-inch cubes
1 yellow pepper, cut into ½-inch cubes
1 tbsp olive oil
½ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
¼ tsp dried thyme
¼ tsp dried rosemary
¼ tsp dried oregano

¼ cup pizza sauce
½ cup ricotta cheese
½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Olive oil
Kosher salt

Directions

1) For the dough, place warm water in a small bowl and dissolve honey in it. Sprinkle yeast over water, cover and let stand 10 minutes. In the bowl of an electric mixer, add flour, salt and olive oil. Using the dough hook attachment, add the yeast mixture on low speed. Turn speed to medium and continue to mix for 4 minutes. Remove dough from bowl and knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 5 minutes, until the dough is smooth and no longer sticky. Place in a large bowl that has been coated with non-stick cooking spray. Cover and let rise in a warm area for 1 hour.

2) Meanwhile, for the roasted vegetable topping, preheat oven to 450ºF. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and coat with non-stick cooking spray. In a large bowl, toss potatoes, zucchini, peppers, olive oil, salt, pepper, thyme, rosemary and oregano together. Place vegetables on baking sheet and cook 15-20 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Remove from oven and set aside. Increase oven temperature to 475ºF.

3) After the dough has doubled in size, knead it for 1 minute. Spread dough into a lightly oiled 14-inch pizza pan. Spread pizza sauce onto dough and evenly sprinkle roasted vegetables over sauce. Using a tablespoon, drop dollops of ricotta cheese on top of the vegetables. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Lightly brush around the edges of the dough with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Bake 12-14 minutes, until edges are golden. Let pizza rest 5 minutes before cutting and serving.

Yield: 8-10 slices

Looking for another pizza option? Try this incredible homemade Fontina & Arugula Pizza.

 

 

Authors of bestselling cookbooks Bite Me, Bite Me Too and Lick Your Plate, saucy sisters Julie Albert and Lisa Gnat love eating, feeding, entertaining and dishing up easy recipes at BiteMeMore.com