Flatbread pizza is my go-to recipe when I don’t want to spend hours proofing pizza dough. The golden-brown crust tastes just as bread-y and cheesy as a regular pizza, only flatbread recipes are ready in a fraction of the time. The dough comes together in only 30 minutes—including rise time. It’s easy to work with and stretch, too, making it a fantastic recipe for beginner bakers or anyone who wants to get the kids involved in the kitchen.
We make this flatbread pizza recipe with a rich tomato sauce that peeks out from underneath a blanket of cheese. This tomatoey, cheesy flatbread tastes amazing with a side salad for an easy meal. But the recipe is incredibly versatile, so feel free to get creative with the pizza toppings. Add pepperoni, or sliced tomatoes and basil for a fresh finish. Even more topping suggestions are listed below to get you started.
Flatbread Pizza Ingredients
- All-purpose flour: Save the fancy flour for another recipe, and use the all-purpose flour you already have in the pantry.
- Quick-rise yeast: We use quick-rise yeast, but you can use active dry yeast if that’s what you have on hand.
- Sugar and salt: Sugar provides the yeast with the nutrients it needs to rise, and salt strengthens the dough’s gluten structure. Feel free to substitute honey for the sugar, if desired.
- Olive oil: Oil helps the dough stretch without tearing. Boost the dough’s flavor by choosing a high-quality, aromatic olive oil.
- Pizza sauce: Use the homemade pizza sauce you have in the freezer, or pick up a store-bought brand.
- Mozzarella cheese: Low-moisture mozzarella is the best melting cheese for pizza.
Directions
Step 1: Dissolve the yeast
Preheat the oven to 450°F, and grease a 15×10-inch baking pan.
In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in warm water.
Editor’s Tip: If you substitute active dry yeast, let the mixture stand until bubbles form on the surface, five to seven minutes. Learn more about why some types of yeast need to be proofed, or activated, in water.
Step 2: Begin mixing the dough
Add the oil, sugar, salt and 1 cup flour to the yeast mixture.
Beat the mixture until it is smooth.
Step 3: Stir in the remaining flour
Stir in enough of the remaining flour to form a soft dough. The dough will be sticky.
Editor’s Tip:Â For added flavor, season the dough with dried herbs and spices. Dried basil, oregano and garlic powder are all-purpose seasonings that pair well with most flatbread toppings.
Step 4: Knead the dough
Turn the dough onto a floured surface. Knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic, six to eight minutes.
Step 5: Rest the dough
Place the dough in a greased bowl, turning the dough once to grease the top. Cover the dough, and let it rest for 10 minutes.
Step 6: Form the flatbread
Press the dough into a 12×10-inch rectangle on the greased 15×10-inch baking pan.
Editor’s Tip:Â You could shape the dough into a circle (like a regular pizza), but we love the freedom of a rectangular flatbread. It doesn’t have to look perfect, and you can accentuate its irregular shape by cutting it into funky triangles after baking.
Step 7: Add the flatbread pizza toppings, and bake
Top the dough with the pizza sauce and mozzarella cheese.
Bake until the crust is golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Let the flatbread stand for five minutes before cutting.
Flatbread Pizza Toppings
- Keep it plain: Simply brush the flatbread dough with melted butter or oil before baking. Or, add just a light dusting of Parmesan cheese and herbs to make rosemary flatbreads. Plain flatbread is a wonderful accompaniment to soup, salad or appetizer dips like hummus.
- Swap in pesto: Use store-bought pesto or homemade pesto instead of pizza sauce.
- Choose your cheese: Brush the dough with butter or oil instead of pizza sauce. Then, pick your cheese of choice. We use cheddar for garlic-cheese flatbread and Brie for Brie and caramelized onion flatbread.
- Add veggies: Make eggplant flatbread pizza, cheesy summer squash flatbread or grilled elote flatbread. A triple tomato flatbread is a fabulous way to showcase garden-fresh tomatoes in the summertime.
- Make ’em meaty: Include meat, poultry or seafood to create flatbreads like speedy shrimp flatbread, barbecue brisket flatbread pizza or chicken ranch flatbread.
How to Make Flatbread Pizza Ahead of Time
If you like to meal prep, prepare the dough up to two days ahead of time. This is a great option if you want to double or triple the recipe to make multiple flatbread pizzas throughout the week.
Prepare the dough as directed through Step 5, but place the covered bowl in the refrigerator. When you’re ready to make the flatbread pizza, remove the bowl from the fridge 30 minutes before forming the flatbread. Then shape, top and bake the flatbread as directed.
How to Store Flatbread Pizza
Store leftover flatbread pizza in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to four days. To reheat the flatbread, use your preferred cooking method for reheating pizza (we like to use the oven).
Flatbread Pizza Tips
How do you make flatbread pizza with a crispy crust?
When I ran a pizza restaurant, I found that toppings were the number one reason pizzas and flatbreads didn’t crisp up properly. Overloading the dough with too much sauce or cheese can weigh it down and add excess moisture, making the crust soggy. That’s why we keep the sauce and cheese to 1 cup each in this recipe. Keep any added toppings to about 1/2 cup to avoid a toppings overload.
Do you have to cook the flatbread before making a flatbread pizza?
We build our flatbread pizza recipe on uncooked flatbread dough. When it’s raw, the dough can take on the rich character of the tomato sauce as it cooks. Prebaked flatbread won’t absorb the flavors as well. However, prebaking flatbread is helpful for recipes like grilled flatbread veggie pizza. The dough will be much easier to work with on the grill if it’s cooked first.
