Ultimate Spinach Pizza

May 12, 2020

Get your greens and pizza fix all at once with this spinach pizza! Ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese make for a creamy pie everyone will love.

Want to get your greens and eat your pizza too? Try this Spinach Pizza! It’s got the power to change the minds of spinach haters everywhere. Yes, this pizza is all about garlicky, savory flavor! Any bitterness in the spinach melts away into the three cheeses. Ricotta makes for a creamy base, and mozzarella and Parmesan add stretchy texture and savory flavor. Top it off with herby spinach and a few colorful vegetables, and it’s a crowd-pleaser that everyone will love (especially with Italian salad). Even spinach haters!

The secret to this spinach pizza? Frozen spinach.

This spinach pizza has a little secret. It uses frozen spinach! Now, why is that important? It’s not just for the convenience factor (though that’s a thing).

Frozen spinach has a satisfying texture: think spinach artichoke dip! Fresh spinach and frozen spinach are almost like two separate ingredients. Frozen spinach is blanched before it’s packaged, meaning it’s cooked quickly before freezing. This gives it a super satisfying texture when topped on a pizza: lightly crunchy and almost fluffy, whereas cooked spinach can get a little slimy. It reminds us of spinach artichoke dip!
It’s easy to use frozen spinach: no cooking necessary. Yes, the convenience factor is a thing too! Frozen spinach just needs a rinse under warm water to thaw it. No cooking required!

How to make spinach pizza (basic steps)

This spinach pizza is a white pizza, meaning it has a white sauce (or olive oil) that covers the dough. The most technique-driven part of making a pizza is the pizza crust, which we’ll walk through down below. Here are the basic steps (or go right to the recipe):

Make the pizza dough. See below for more on how to do it. Or, you can also do a “cheater” pizza by using this as a topping for Naan Pizza or Flatbread Pizza!
Thaw and season the spinach. All it needs is a quick rinse under warm water. Here’s the important part: squeeze out as much water as possible over a strainer! This brings the spinach to a dry, almost crumbly texture. This is what you want!
Season the ricotta. Mix it with some salt, pepper and minced garlic.
Top with mozzarella and Parmesan, then the spinach and veggies. That’s it!

A few more white pizza recipes? Try our Ricotta Pizza or White Pizza (Pizza Bianca).

Homemade pizza dough & alternative options!

Homemade pizza dough is absolutely worth the effort: and once you practice a few times, it will become second nature! There are also several alternative options that are easier and quicker. Here’s a breakdown:

Pizza dough: master recipe! This Best Pizza Dough is our tried and true crust: it comes out with the absolute perfect texture. Stretching the dough takes a bit of practice, but it’s not hard. Head to How to Stretch Pizza Dough.
Thin crust. Try this Thin Crust Pizza Dough: it’s easy to roll out into a thinner, crispier crust.
Naan or flatbread pizza. To make a quick and easy pizza, try our Naan Pizza or Flatbread Pizza.
Pan pizza. You can even make this into a pan pizza in a cast iron skillet! It takes a little longer, but it’s easier because you don’t have to stretch the dough.

Equipment you need (for the master recipe)

If you make our master pizza dough recipe or the thin crust pizza, you’ll need a few tools for your spinach pizza. Here’s what we recommend:

Pizza stone: You can bake pizza on a baking sheet, but it’s infinitely better on a pizza stone! A pizza stone is what makes Italian pizza crust crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. Here’s the best pizza stone we’ve found, plus care tips.
Pizza peel: When you use a pizza stone, it’s easiest to use a pizza peel to transfer the pizza onto the hot pizza stone in the oven. We recommend this Standard pizza peel or this Conveyor pizza peel.

Variation: make it into Spinach Artichoke Pizza!

Do you love spinach artichoke dip? (We do!) You can easily make this spinach pizza into a Spinach Artichoke Pizza! Here’s what to do:

Remove the red onion and red pepper.
Top it with a handful of chopped artichokes from a can or jar of artichoke hearts.
Or make this Spinach Artichoke Pizza, a slightly different variation!

Other topping ideas

There are lots of other fun topping ideas for this spinach pizza! Here are a few ingredients we’d try:

Tomatoes, thinly sliced
Feta cheese crumbles
Bell peppers, multi-colored
Caramelized onions
Prosciutto

This spinach pizza is…

Vegetarian.