Food and prop styling by Shiri Feldman
Food prep and styling by Chef Suzie Gornish
Photography by Felicia Perretti

Chaya Suri Leitner

Making homemade pizza might seem daunting at first, but it’s actually quite simple. If you’re a regular at baking sourdough bread, this pizza recipe is very approachable, as it utilizes your go-to sourdough bread recipe as the base.

Sara Gold

As much as I’d love to be a sourdough baker, sadly, I am not (yet). But lucky for us, there’s store-bought pizza dough to fall back on for those days when we’re too busy to make pizza dough from scratch. My kids love pizza — who doesn’t? — so this was a fun twist I was willing to try.

YIELDS 2 10-INCH PIES

• 1 basic sourdough bread dough (use your preferred recipe)

  I used frozen store-bought pizza dough.

• olive oil or flour (for handling the dough)

White Sauce Topping

• ½ cup ricotta cheese
• ¼ cup herbs, chopped (choose herbs like basil, parsley, or cilantro)

  I used fresh parsley.

• ½ tsp salt

Additional Toppings

• red onion, sliced
• tomatoes, sliced
• jalapeños, sliced
• shredded cheese (I get a block of cheddar or mozzarella and shred it myself with a grater)

Prepare the sourdough by following your basic sourdough bread recipe up to the shaping stage. Divide the dough in half, form into balls, and let rest for 2–3 hours.

Preheat the oven to 500°F (260°C).

After resting, stretch each dough ball into a pizza shape on a lightly floured surface. Create small holes in the dough using a fork. Par-bake each shaped dough in the oven for about 8 minutes. Remove from the oven and let it cool slightly.

To prepare the white sauce topping, mix ricotta cheese, chopped herbs, and salt in a bowl.

To assemble the pizza, spread the white sauce evenly over each par-baked pizza base. Add a layer of red onions, tomatoes, and jalapeños. Top with shredded cheese.

Place the assembled pizzas back in the oven. Bake at 500°F (260°C) for 8–10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and bubbly.

Sara Gold

Is it cheating to say that I used my Betty Crocker instead of the oven? I hope not, because it came out delicious, crispy, and perfectly baked! The ricotta added a certain creaminess that blended really well with the mozzarella cheese, and the toppings were a great addition too! We really enjoyed this pizza recipe.

(Originally featured in Family Table, Issue 880)