Stop what you’re doing. Dinner tonight is the very best kind there is: it has five ingredients including the ones to make the pizza dough. It’s seasonal, which means you can use it to decimate your CSA pile-up. And it doesn’t care what else you had in mind; recipes like this exist to disrupt the best-laid meal plans and that’s my favorite thing about them. It is, in fact, pretty much the only thing I want out of any dish, for it, at least for a time to be the thing you have to eat next because now nothing else will do.
I, too, had a plan, something involving these summer squash but with pesto and burrata and maybe some beans or farro? It hadn’t quite come together yet when I death-wished over to Sullivan Street Bakery last week to pick up a sourdough pullman for the blueberry bread and butter pudding and ended up walking out with six things not on my list, as will happen when you go to an amazing bakery: this crazy pastry and five squares of pizza, which made a fantastic and surprisingly light weeknight dinner miles better than anything that delivers (the irony not lost on the person doing the miles and the delivering). The mushroom was funky and delicious; the cauliflower was speckled with heat; the potato pizza was such a perfect match for this one, I was really proud of myself until I remembered that it’s the same recipe (it’s okay, I’m rolling my eyes too); the pomodoro was loved only by me either because I appreciate simple things that need no adornment (my theory) or because I’m a bore (others‘) but the zucchini pizza with heaps and valleys of deer bed-like shreds? Whoa. I had to get to the bottom of it.
I fully expected it to contain a grocery cart full of ingredients, as cheffy creations often do, a minimum of sharp cheese, garlic, maybe anchovies, perhaps oregano and definitely 10 other things, probably hard to get. And then I Googled it and learned that Jim Lahey makes the topping with exactly three things — shredded zucchini, shredded gruyere and a sprinkling of breadcrumbs — which along with the pizza dough (flour, yeast) brings us to five ingredients and now dinner is sorted. I used a mix of summer squash, you can only use zucchini, it doesn’t matter. You can use a storebought or homemade dough, you could bake this topping onto toasts, zucchini melt-style (I almost did), you can add other ingredients (a schmear of black olive paste underneath, an egg on top) but you don’t need to make a pizza you’re going to repeat until the zucchini overpopulation recedes.
previously
One year ago: Takeout-Style Sesame Noodles with Cucumber
Two years ago: Blueberry Crumb Cake
Three years ago: Charred Corn Crepes
Four years ago: Pink Lemonade Bars
Five years ago: Corn Buttermilk and Chive Popovers
Six years ago: Sweet and Smoky Oven Spareribs
Seven years ago: Cantaloupe Salsa and Plum Kuchen
Eight years ago: Huevos Rancheros and Blueberry Crumb Bars
Nine years ago: Nectarine and Blackberry Galette
And for the other side of the world:
Six Months Ago: Banana Puddings with Vanilla Bean Wafers and Taco Torte
1.5 Years Ago: Charred Cauliflower Quesadillas
2.5 Years Ago: Fennel and Blood Orange Salad
3.5 Years Ago: Egg Salad with Pickled Celery and Coarse Dijon
4.5 Years Ago: Cheddar Beer and Mustard Pull-Apart Bread
Summer Squash Pizza
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for fingertips
- 1 recipe pizza dough (below) or about a 2/3 volume of my lazy fitted-to-your-schedule favorite or your favorite, whichever it may be
- 2 1/2 pounds (about 5 small-medium or 3 large) zucchini or other summer squash, trimmed
- 1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
- 2 cups (8 ounces) coarsely grated gruyere cheese
- 2 to 3 tablespoons plain breadcrumbs
Use a food processor with a grater attachment or the large holes of a box grater to grate the zucchini. In a large bowl, toss together the zucchini and salt. Let stand for 20 to 30 minutes (more, if you have the time), until the zucchini has wilted and released its water. Drain the zucchini in a colander and then use your hands to squeeze out as much water as possible, a fistful at a time. Back in the large bowl (wiped out if still wet), toss the zucchini with the gruyere shreds, being sure to break up any clumps of zucchini. Taste the mixture; it should be seasoned enough from the salt, but you can add more, plus ground pepper or pepper flakes if desired.
Spread the zucchini mixture over the dough(s), going all the way to the edges of the pan and piling it a bit thicker at the edges, where it will brown first. Sprinkle messily with the bread crumbs.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the topping is golden. Remove from oven, cut into squares and dig in.
Jim Lahey’s Basic Pizza Dough
This is halved and modified a bit
2 cups minus 1 tablespoon (250 grams) all-purpose or bread flour
1 1/4 teaspoons (5 grams) instant or active dry yeast
A heaped 1/4 teaspoon fine sea or table salt
2/3 cups (150 grams) room temperature water
In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, yeast and salt. Add the water and, using a wooden spoon or your hand, mix until well blended, about 30 seconds. Cover the bowl and let sit at room temperature until the dough has more than doubled in volume, about 2 hours. Continue using instructions above.
I feel like it needs more…tomatoes, garlic, basil,… . But, with a large zucchini sitting on my desk that just appeared there after I went to the restroom, I’m going to trust you and try it tonight! Thanks so much for the recipe.
Wonderful image — someone sneaking around your office, surreptitiously leaving zucchini on unattended desks. That’s one way to get rid of it, I guess.
August, a couple of years ago, was at a workshop. When it was over we all went out to our cars……et voila: there were zucchinis on each car.
I very rarely comment on recipes, I made this for dinner tonight and like the other commenter said I was skeptical about the lack of garlic etc. so I added a bit of garlic powder and crushed red pepper flakes. I thought maybe it’d be lacking tomato so I served some sauce on the side. But let me tell you!!!!! It was perfect!! I didn’t need sauce, it needed nothing. It was heavenly. My kid who refuses to eat veggies ate an entire slice and said “it’s ok” now from him that’s saying it’s amazing.
I issued the skinny taste bagel dough (yogurt and flour) for the pizza, I even did gluten free! It was so amazing.
It’s great with some diced, fresh, homegrown garlic added into the zucchini/cheese mix.
My neighbor used to wait until I was out to put enormous zucchinis on my porch. We called it “malicious zucchini giving.”
I’m sure I speak for, oh, everyone when I say how grateful I am for another good zucchini recipe.
Not sarcastic, to be clear! Save me from the zucchini horde!
What would you suggest as far as cooking time if I want to use a premade crust – not a dough, but crust.
The baking time here is mostly about the topping so I’m not positive; you could check in at 10 minutes, then 15 to see how it’s going.
How did you know that I was going to improvise some kind of tart-zucchini-cheese thing later today to welcome my house guest. This version sounds amazing and exactly what I want. Thank you, Deb!
How do you think this would be if I used eggplant instead of zucchini?
I am not confident it would be great here. Shredded eggplant (if you can even shred it raw) is going to bake into mush; I suppose zucchini does too but less so. It cannot hurt to try it, though. Do let us know how it goes if you do.
I made this with an eggplant (1 eggplant and 2 zucchini) and it was great!
I was so not going to make this tonight but low and behold, zucchini in today’s box and with two crying babies, forgive me Jim Lahey, I’ll use ready…, I can’t even say it, I’ll make the proper one.
Just made this. Amazing. Fresh. Easy. Thank you!
Hmmm. I already have pizza dough rising, but I’m going to grill it. This looks like a zucchini version of pissaladière, a southern French speciality which is basically a foccacia-like crust covered with caramelized onions, plus some anchovies and olives.
Only you could convince me that I must have squash pizza immediately!
This looks delicious! I’m not sure if it’s on purpose, but your posts since the revamp are showing up in my RSS feed without any sort of “continue reading” link. Is there a way to change it back?
I agree, it is annoying and it’s on the list — there are a few bigger things broken ahead of it or it would have been sorted already.
Yum, yum, yum! I can’t wait to try this. Thanks!
This is genius and should appear everywhere more often.
Wondering about putting squash like this on the pizza crust recipe in your cookbook and baking on a pizza stone… particularly whether the squash will cook sufficiently in 12-13 min instead of 20-25. Did you try a pizza stone version of this recipe and decide that the squash needed more time in the oven? Thanks – super excited to try this!
You can absolutely bake this on a stone. At some point I stopped including pizza stone instructions because most people make pizza without them, but you always can if you wish. This needs 20-25 (and Lahey says 30, FWIW) instead of 12-13 because of the thickness of toppings so I wouldn’t expect that to change much.
Can the pizza dough be frozen?
Absolutely
Do you have any suggestions for food processors? I am in the market for a new one – I think mine is *at least* 30 years old, as my grandma gave me her old one – and I just don’t know where to start!
The ONLY food processor is a Cuisinart! imo… : )
It’s the only one I’ve ever had (very happy with it) so I have nothing to compare with. I have an 11-cup in white; it’s a good size for most things.
I grew up with a Cuisinart in my mom’s kitchen, but I have a Magimix by Robot Coupe. Love it!! It’s pricey but well worth it.
I am on my third cuisinart since 1980. The first one lasted more than 20 years. Second one more than 15 years. I have had to get them to replace the bowl on my last one, but that was quite painless. I have seen the quality drop but that seems to be the way it is with everything now.
I had a Cuisinart that lasted for about 20 years, and replaced it with the current model of same. Nothing else compares, IMHO.
I am bummed I don’t see the model I have anymore. I always like the smooth base with the flat buttons rather than the levers….
FWIW I deliberately bought a Cusinart slightly larger (14 cup) than I wanted so I could get the ones with the levers. My mom had the Cusinart with the lever buttons and they just seemed so sturdy. So far so good.
I’ve had a Cuisinart for at least 25 years and it’s still going strong.
Hi Deb, If I use a half sheet pan, should I still halve the dough? Thanks!
I’ve had a Hamilton Beach for at least 7 years and have really enjoyed it. That said… a) I got it for free – some sort of rewards from my dad’s credit card. b) I rarely use it bc I hate cleaning all the parts, especially the top. But when I do use it – it works great!
Magimix..unless you like breaking plastic pieces
I feel a little weird admitting this… I have eaten this pizza almost every single weekend since Jim’s book was published. This is not an exaggeration. I literally can’t get enough of the perfect crust or the salty zucchini/cheese topping. It is at the point where my boyfriend doesn’t even ask what we are going to eat on Saturday night. He just gets to making it.
We were deffinitely both on the same pizza page last night! Yours looks so yum.
I love Lahey’s pizza book, but I had somehow overlooked this one. I will have to get some gruyere and give it a try.
In my fantasy universe I eat all of my meals from a specialty food shop that is stocked exclusively with Smitten kitchen recipes. Deb, think you could make that happen?
Ha! I can barely keep my own kitchen stocked in the gaps between new recipe whims. What I mean is: I think I’d shop there too even though I realize how comically narcissistic that is.
This looks amazing and I can’t wait to try it! Just to be clear though, at the very beginning of the recipe, we only divide the dough in half if we’re baking in two quarter-sheet pans, right? The volume of dough is enough for a single half sheet pan?
Is that the only cheese you can use or can i substitute? looks Crazy!
Comte, swiss, emmantaler are all in the same family and will work about the same. I’d be hesitant to use mozzarella because there’s not a lot of flavor there. Did you have something else in mind?
I used half Swiss and half provolone (it was what was in my fridge), and it was good! I think anything salty that melts well would work.
grand cru, is an alpine style cheese- almost identical to gruyere, for less money.
see link. http://cheesenotes.com/post/22901215786/roth-kase-drops-gruyere
Recipe popped up today and I had TONS of zucchini so naturally…I had to go for it. With 2 toddlers, the day didn’t go as planned so I couldn’t get to the store and had to use what cheese I had on hand. Feta was what I had and I thought it was DELISH! Can’t wait to try with Gruyere next time (when I can plan better!)
I’m sorry but did anyone else come across this on fb and see the pic as some sort of cave art of animals?
I keep squinting and squinting and I can’t figure it out!
Yes!!!! Thx for making me not feel nuts
So, I actually stopped what I was doing to make it for dinner, and what a delicious dinner it was! So much more than the sum of its parts, we kept telling each other how good it was. A new love was born tonight.
Yay! Another recipe that uses shredded, drained zucchini! I have a large garden, and when zucchini overload hits, I shred it and pack up gallon freezer bags full, and freeze them. Over the non-zucchini season, I can defrost a bag and the liquid is already separated, I just squeeze it dry and use. I’m always looking for great recipes with squeezed zucchini. I wonder if this could be modified to be a wood-fired pizza topping, or if it needs the longer bake….? I suspect the longer bake adds to the charm, and it would be soggy on a Neapolitan pizza.
My mother in law piled zuke on us last week and I barely avoided three more from my sister, but now I’ll just shred and freeze – brilliant! Have you tried breads and muffins, or even a fritata with your squeezed zucchini?
Not yet, but I’m sure they’ll be great. I mostly do fritters and zucchini “hash browns”.
In case you haven’t found a zucchini bread recipe yet – check Food52 for the “My New Favorite Zucchini Bread”. I made so much of it last summer! Gave some away, froze lots, ate too much…
The mix of rosemary and orange zest is really lovely.
Oooh, intriguing. I’ll try it. = )
I do all kinds of things with my frozen shredded zucchini, but I never squeeze the water out because I figure the moisture was there in a fresh one and the recipes were written for fresh zucchinis. My favorite recipe is a yeast bread.
Yeasted zucchini bread sounds awesome! I’ve been tinkering with a savory one this summer — hopefully more soon!
I’m so glad to know this! I freeze zucchini, too, and I hate cranking my oven up to 500 in the summer. So we’ll have winter pizza with summer squash!
Favorite part is the deer bed photos. And one is an actual deer on a pink comfortered bed <3 this sounds delish!
Could you freeze this after baking and then put back in the oven to reheat?
I have been making a version of this pizza for a few years, starting when I could no longer eat tomatoes. I was looking for something to moisten the pizza and decided to try shredded zucchini. I don’t salt it and drain it though, I just shred it a few minutes before adding to a slightly precooked crust (Jim Lahey recipe, we place on pizza stone for about 2 minutes to firm it up before adding all the toppings). After shredding, I place it in a clean kitchen towel and squeeze the heck out of it (okay, my husband does this step). This seems to be enough to keep the zucchini from making things too wet. For flavor usually raid the olive bar: oil cured dried black olives, green gigante olives and peppadew for some bold flavors. Mozzarella, Parmesan, Romano and a sprinkle of fennel seeds–delish! Now I will have to try this version!
So with the ridiculousness of the heat, I am only making grilled pizza this summer. If the cooking time is mostly about the topping, is this going to work?
The biggest problem I have with grilled pizzas (which I otherwise love) is getting the top cooked. I also have a pretty crappy grill. I think this would work but I wouldn’t hold out for a lot of browning on top. And if you have a browning-on-top trick for the grill, please tell me because I’d rather grill pizza all summer too. ;)
We usually throw our grilled pizzas under the broiler for a couple of minutes after they come off the grill. Yum!
Would a kitchen (or blow) torch work for browning?
I haven’t done it but suspect it works if you move quickly — or it would just singe the edges.
Hello, one trick I learned, to get the top cooked (or at least the crust) is to oil the grill and place the crust dough on the very hot grill for 1-2 minute, then remove with a pizza peel and flip to a flat cookie sheet sprinkled with corn meal, cooked side up. The cooked side is now the top, spread your toppings on it. I try to get the grill as hot as possible, while I am assembling. I have three burners on my grill and turn off all but the back burner once I am ready to place uncooked side back on grill. Using the peel I slide the pizza back on the grill uncooked side down and close quickly, resisting temptation to peek. It is some trial and error to get the temperature and the thickness of the crust and toppings right ratios, but they are delicious grilled.
This was amazing!! Could you use this technique (dough pressed into lightly piled pan, toppings all the way to edge) with any topping/cheese combo?
I made this tonight with dinner. It is excellent! My dough didn’t quite rise, but it was nonetheless perfect.
FWIW, the dough doesn’t rise much here (or in his). It’s not a cracker, there’s air in there, but it’s not bready at all. Maybe yours came out just right?
I put the mixture on toast (used Dubliner cheese and zucchini), and then broiled. Totally hit the spot for something different! So simple and easy!
Oh, this sounds awesome if no time for the dough! Thanks!
This popped up just as I was wondering what to do with all my zucchini! It’s good as-is, but if you’re a person who likes garlic on everything, a couple cloves thinly sliced over the dough (under the zucchini mixture) would have made this even better.
holy moses is this delicious! our csa pickup today included two zucchini and two yellow squash. they came in at just under two pounds, and not being sure of the end volume i added about a quarter of a vidalia onion to the mix, just to try to fill it out, though i don’t think it was necessary in the end. i would definitely not use a more pungent onion, at least not without cooking it separately. i did use my absolute laziest pizza dough (it involves butter and milk rather than yeast and oil) and laid it in a baking pan, something i do often for a deep-dish pizza angle. i also used smoked gruyere, since i had it, but i think it would have been fantastic even without the smoke flavor. this is definitely a worknight-doable, satisfying, and flexible recipe.
At what point should one add an egg or two if that person couldn’t leave well enough alone?
I was thinking egg on top so I might leave a slight thinner area (but still with shreds on it) wherever you’ll want an egg and then maybe 10 minutes before it is done put one on. Or you could bake the pizza in full and then add the egg and maybe broil it for a minute or two, until the white is set and the yolks are not.
OMG, just what I need with all the squash abundance happening right now! Thanks!
FYI
Not sure what has happened but when I now get the email updates, when I click on “read more, it no longer links to the rest of the article. I have to go to the Website to read the blog.
Thx…
Thanks for letting me know; I’m trying to figure out why it won’t work.
You had my heart <3 at pizza!! And yes — go into an amazing place and I always come out with goodies I've never tried before. I may or may not come out with the actual product I went in there for. Now our pizza night was last night so I'll have to wait for this coming week to try this out. This will give me enough time to get to our farmers market and get some fantastic squash. I will definitely make this and tag you on Instagram. Have a great day!!
I made this last night! We loved it. I had some leftover CSA corn, so I added 3 ears worth to the mix and it turned out great.
Was also pleasantly surprised by the easy dough. It was a little more fragile than I am used to (I usually use the Cooks Illustrated overnight dough recipe), but this was so easy that it was worth it.
THANKS DEB!
I made this last night right after it was posted with my Farmer’s Market squash bounty and it was DELICIOUS! Thanks Deb and I can’t wait until your next book!!
Talk about perfect timing, Deb! I currently have 4 zucchini between 1.5 lbs and 3 lbs 11 oz (yes I weighed them, I know sad but hey) which I was recently gifted plus 4 bags in the freezer of mock zucchini pineapple & grated carrots for carrot muffins. Oh and I have a house full of teens boys coming over tomorrow for a last bash before senior year starts…. so thank you, thank you, thank you!!!! And yes I see pepperoni added to one tray because well, boys. Now to go stock the pantry before the locusts swarm.
This was SOOOO good! Next time, I am doubling the dough so I have another round on hand. I made one on a pizza stone and one in the pan. Due to the weight of the zucchini/squash mix (i use what the store calls calabaza squash – same shape as zucchini but light green with white stripes-DELICIOUS STUFF and can sub for zucchini or yellow squash as needed.) the transfer from the cutting board to the hot stone was nearly an oven full of mess. Still turned out great, but it was UGLY. The pan still gave a nice crispy crust, so I won’t go through the hassle of trying the stone thing again with this particular pizza…. BUT, this is now my go-to crust, so it will likely make it’s appearance on the stone again, just not with the delicious zucchini mix. This is such a perfect summer dinner and so easy! Also, I just squeezed out the squash with a cheesecloth. No problems with too much water, and it eliminated a bit of salt. Thanks for the recipe!
Try it again and prebake the empty rolled out dough for just 2 minutes. Then top and it’s much easier to slide onto the stone. The crust is just as crispy too!
Put the dough on parchment paper over a pizza peel…doing this has revolutionized our family’s pizza making. Easy to bake the crust for a few minutes to get the dough to snap up so no soggy pizzas, easy to get it in and out, easy to clean up too!
Hi,
Can I omit the cheese for a dairy free version or use something to substitute (any ideas?) ?
Thanks!
I’m not positive that you’ll get any taste unless you really season the zucchini up. In general, when a recipe like this has only two ingreidents and one is cheese, it’s harder to remove it and get great results. But, zucchini tossed with lemon zest, garlic, minced anchovies or olives, maybe some capers, possibly some oregano might taste good. Not sure it will adhere to the crust, though.
Really good and quite similar to having zucchini butter on a baguette without the fuss of obtaining said baguette.
Tried this without the gruyere last night. Placed a few slices of mozzarella (fresh, but sliced and drained on a paper towel for a few minutes) on top. Rather bland.
It always kind of boggles my mind when people omit one of the major ingredients and then complain about the recipe.
I think nutritional yeast flakes would work well here, to mimic the salty-savory taste of the cheese.
Is there any reason that the bread crumbs aren’t buttered, seasoned or oiled first?
Not needed. They’ll pick up oil and flavor a bit from the cheese; they’re just for crunch. No reason you cannot season them first, however. For reference, I used pale panko and they will get a few shades darker in the oven so don’t start with the crumbs too dark.
Thank you Deb!
I can’t wait to make this tonight! It looks amazing!
Side note, I FINALLY opened the Smitten Kitchen cookbook I received 2 Christmases ago(SHAME on me!) and made the lemon bars. Oh my word..they were incredible!
update! I made this last night and it was delicious. Next time I might add some herbs and garlic to the squash mixture, but I’d consider it a win
I’m wondering if the bread crumbs are fresh or dried (like the kind in a box from the grocery store) Would Panko crumbs work?
I used panko. I have seen a video of Lahey making it and his look darker; probably, because he has a bakery, they’re housemade and contain crusts. Anyway, panko works fine. If you had time to kill and lightly toasted them first, they’d pick up more color and crunch.
Has anyone tried making the crust (or do you have another suggestion for a good crust) using GF flour? Thanks!
I’d like to know this too?!
Anyone?!
I have no experience making pizza doughs with gluten-free flour. However, here is a comment from someone who used Cup4Cup and here is a gluten-free pizza crust recipe with pretty good reviews.
The book Gluten-Free Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day has an excellent pizza crust recipe! It has never failed us. We even make stromboli with it.
Way late to the party here, but the Cannelle et Vanille book has a great GF pizza dough recipe (and a ton of other brilliant GF recipes).
This is just delicious. As someone else said the dough didn’t rise much but had such great flavour and a lovely crunch.
Thank you for sharing.
Sounds fantastic. Our neighbors have been dropping off zucchini baseball bats, so now I know what we’re having for dinner!
I made this tonight, with a few modifications.
I took advantage of my prolific herb garden, and added chopped thyme, oregano, mint and parsley to the mixture. I also made fresh breadcrumbs, and tossed them with melted butter first. The herbs, (specifically the thyme and oregano) made this delicious. I also topped mine with a soft cooked egg. YUM!!!
Is the idea that the dough needs to rise while the zucchini is draining? Or can the dough-spreading step come after the zucchini-draining begins?
Absolutely.
I made this tonight on a pizza steel on the grill to avoid hot oven time. It was delicious, but Deb was correct (in the questions section) that it wasn’t able to brown as much on top. The crust was done in about five minutes, just not enough time to cook the top. I may try again with the grill at a slightly lower temperature next time we get zucchini/summer squash in the CSA box or from gardening friends.
I lurve zuchinni! This is such a fab, fast recipe – bet it tastes awesome.
Omg- so good!!! Had some zucchini from a local farmers market; used lots of Gruyere- delicious. The next day(having a small piece leftover), I put a fried egg on top and had for breakfast. So good:)
I made this yesterday and it turned out beautifully. We had it as an appetiser for dinner as we had people visiting, and then we just had the leftovers reheated for lunch – it was delicious both times.
I used Deb’s Lazy Pizza Dough because I love it and know how that should taste/look. I could not use the salt meant to drain the squash as my grandmother is on a low sodium diet, so I just put the grated squash into a clean tea towel (dishcloth) and twisted/ squeezed the heck out of it in three batches. This worked perfectly. One note on the cooking – I found that one side cooked much faster than the other in my oven, so I rotated the tray after 12 mins. As another commenter suggested I added some crushed garlic into the squash/cheese mix and this was lovely. Today for lunch we reheated the pizza in the oven for 6 mins and added some anchovies to the top which were a really nice addition that we enjoyed, but they did become the main flavour and the squash flavour did become more background. I will definitely make this again, and next time I might try adding some fresh flat leaf parsley to the squash/cheese mix before cooking. Thanks for a great recipe Deb!
When I saw this post I was already planning pizza for dinner and had my standard dough recipe rising. Despite Deb’s warning in the comments that mozzarella wouldn’t be as good, I made it with mozzarella since that was what I had.
It was fine but a little bland, I think largely in part to the very mild flavor of the mozzarella. So be warned…ye who do not follow directions…mozzarella will not be the same!
Agreed! I did not see Deb’s comment and swapped in provolone. I have a hard time shelling out the dough (heh) for Gruyere, though it is delicious. Mine was also quite bland. But I also skipped the salting the zucchini step and just wrung it out, as I was worried about it being too salty, so I may have over corrected. Next time I would totally mix in some caramelized onions and spring for the Gruyere.
Deb the new website looks great, congratulations! I’m going to make this pizza too, I have tons of zucchini from my garden & im always looking for ways to use them up.
FYI on your recent email featuring a single recipe, the link at the bottom of the text saying “read the rest of >>” doesn’t work just thought you should know. I know this isn’t a question but I’ll post it as one. Thanks
Thanks — working on it. I can’t figure out how to fix it but will… soon.
This is my new favorite recipe – thank you! I made it last night and served it with a tomato soup. Perfect for dipping! It was such a nice combination, a simple summer meal totally worth the 500 degree oven. I used Jamie Oliver’s pizza dough and it worked out well. My toddler, who is very particular lately, really enjoyed it too. The only thing I would add in the future would be a strong, dry cheese – grated and mixed with the bread crumbs. Thanks again for such a great idea!!
I apologize if I missed this but, has anyone tried this with another kind of squash? I have a pile of spaghetti squash on my counter that I need to use. I’m completely stumped as to how to proceed with it, but pizza would reduce the pile! Thanks in advance for any input.
Wow, I hadn’t thought of that but it seems to me about the best swap I’ve heard suggested. In fact, I think I have to do this this winter, credit to you. Thanks for the tip. (And let me know how it goes!) P.S. I’d cook the squash first — microwave is easy — shred it, maybe salt it a little to see if liquid comes out, but not sure it will, then toss it with the cheese.
I made this last night, and it’s fantastic! I actually had just bought the ingredients for the summer squash gratin with salsa verde, but I couldn’t resist the pizza. The ingredients are so similar! I did go ahead and make the salsa verde and use it as a “sauce” before adding the squash and gruyere. So, so good – flavor packed but still fresh tasting.
Would grated aged parmesan work here? I think flavor-wise it would give a good kick, but perhaps not melty enough?
Definitely. You could toss it with the breadcrumbs (not my idea; came from another commenter above!) [Wait, did you mean instead of gruyere? I was thinking in addition or a partial swap…]
I used Trader Joe’s gruyere-swiss blend. It was perfect! We loved this pizza — before we were even finished, my husband was planning when we would have it again!
Made this tonight – absolutely delicious. Next time I’d like to try it with a little grated lemon zest added in; but otherwise super tasty as is.
Usually when Deb says stop what you’re doing and go make this I do it but my oven just got fixed today, so I made the dough 2 nights ago and let it rise in the fridge for 2 days. It came out wonderfully. Wow is this an exquisite recipe exactly as written. I may have overdone the red pepper flakes for some, but I loved the heat against the grassy squash.
I am super excited to try this. Quick question though, how much ahead of time do you think I can shred the squash? In other words, can I shred the squash in the morning, then Iet the squash sit all day while I’m at work, so that when I get home, that step is already taken care of and I am that much closer to pizza? Thanks!!!
The squash can be shredded whenever convenient (I’ve used squash shreds even 2 days later from the fridge) but you can also salt and drain/wring it earlier too.
I am a devoted reader but have been reluctant to post since there is another “Jocelyn” commenter. I doubled the recipe in order to make an extra pizza for my elderly parents. I had zucchini and patty pan squash in the fridge. I mixed the gruyere with a package of grated mozzarella that I had in the freezer. Since the mozzarella was cold from the freezer, it melted at the same rate as the gruyere. I went with round pizza pans which worked just fine. Thanks for this, and so many other recipes that we have loved.
I made this last night – much reduced for just me: 1 zucchini and a personal sized amount of crust. As others have said, so much more than the ingredients would suggest – major YUM! Each bite, I kept thinking that I couldn’t believe how much flavor there was. I realized this morning that I forgot the bread crumbs so oh, darn – will have to make it again tonight! I did take your suggestion for a few red pepper flakes.
It is not “summer squash” pizza, but I gave the same treatment to some broccoli (just the florets) that needed to be eaten. Also great!
I’ve been using a mix of gruyere and xtra sharp cheddar with squash (fav is heirloom zucchini and patty pan mix) and for the topping mixing breadcrumbs with parmesan.
Crust-wise, I use my own high moisture stored dough ala Artisan Bread in 5 technique but a whole grain recipe I usually keep on hand. It is a very moist dough. I use a cast iron sheet pan (Lodge Chef’s platter) which happens to be perfect for pizza for 1 and fits in my toaster oven (Breville Smart Oven). 450 in that oven on that pan and I get a nice crisp but chewy crust and browned topping in 20 minutes.
I made this last night for 5 (2 of whom are teenage boys and another who never lunches). I doubled the dough and probably doubled the topping, though it’s always hard to say what’s a medium courgette and I didn’t weigh anything (don’t do pounds and ounces). I made 3 pizzas – I think I would have found it hard to stretch the dough over 4. We’re also about to go away, so I am trying to empty the fridge and had a mixture of gruyere, mozzarella (the pizza kind) and parmesan as my cheeses, so I added a layer of mustard under one and anchovy paste under another, and threw in some basil on the third. I think the mustard gave the best kick, but all were great and polished off. Thanks Deb!
I made this last night and it was such a nice, light dinner for two. I only had just over a pound of zucchini/summer squash so I put half of my pizza dough in the fridge for a rainy day. Since I had my food processor out, I used the slicer blade to slice some farmers market tomatoes paper thin and put them on top. Yum! I’ve been doing grilled pizza a lot lately (because summer) but I have to make the crust pretty thick so it doesn’t fall apart on the grill. This super thin crust was a welcome change, almost like a flatbread.
As my husband is the bread baker in our household, I asked him to make the dough. He was worried about how dry it seemed (and that it wouldn’t rise) but dutifully followed the instructions. It was perfect!
Worried about over salting, I under salted but that was easily remedied after cooking – ditto with red pepper flakes. I wondered if it needed “a little something” but have concluded nope. It’s de-licious as is.
And has become my new obsession. As there are just two of us, we had many squares left over that I have been eating for breakfast or lunch for several days. Reheats in my toaster oven like a champ.
Thank you so much for a great recipe!
P.S. Thirty years ago at friends’ in Sommerville, MA, I hade an eggplant pizza (with slices, on tomato sauce, with cheese) that has never left my mind when I eat pizza. Do you think you could work out a recipe, Deb. I would be eternally grateful!
Was it the kind with the battered/fried eggplant slices?
No, the eggplant was “naked” and skin-on, but tender. Maybe grilled beforehand? Certainly salted and “sweated.”
I used to get eggplant and gruyere pizza at American Dream Pizza in Corvallis, OR. Their crust wasn’t awesome, but the eggplant/gruyere combo was brilliant. As I recall, the eggplant was just chunks. I wish I could go back and really study it so I can remake it. Perhaps I’ll try this weekend!
I didn’t have gruyere so I did 3 oz parmesan and 5 oz mozzarella. It was okay but a bit bland; I’m sure using gruyere as recommended would be more flavourful! The crust was very thin and almost cracker-like; I’ll probably do a slightly thicker crust next time so it’s more filling.
Made this the day you posted it and it’s fab!
Even reheated the next day, it was soooo good.
If anyone has a magic way of reheating pizza quickly, non microwave, I’d love to know about it.
Thanks Deb
Hi Miriam, for me this meets the “magic” test, but maybe not the “quickly” – I reheat my slices in a covered skillet on the stove over low-ish heat (I line the skillet with parchment paper or tin foil for easy clean-up). The crust crisps up beautifully and the toppings heat through well.
My way to reheat pizza is to put the pan in the oven while the oven is pre-heating…I usually go with 375 and usually my toaster oven. I have a wonderful (as in I LOVE IT!) Lodge cast iron platter (called the Chef’s platter set) but I’ve used a stone or cookie sheet also. Anyway, when oven and pan are hot, slip the leftover on the hot pan and let it warm 4-8 minutes. The hot pan helps the sometimes soggy crust crisp up and the lower temp warms well. It is not quite like “fresh out of the oven”, but it is close!
I’ve commented on the recipe – made it twice in 2 days and might make it again today!
But this comment is on technical issues – I think I saw a previous comment so you probably are aware … Reply is putting my comment following the original commenter, but it is not grayed or indented like a typical comment thread.
Then re the newsletter email – I never got the older one, but subscribed to the new one and just wanted to say how wonderful it is. For others using the older version – check out the new. The format is clear and readable, links work well, no ads and it is just beautiful. I always find something from the archives to try and it is a great wrap up of the week’s posts as well.
Thanks for the heads up — we will look into it. Re, new newsletter, I’m so glad you’re enjoying it as we enjoy putting it together. It won’t be ad-free forever (the bill is considerable each month to send it out) but there will be a max of two and they’ll be tasteful, which is more than I can say for the other email (whose ads I do not place or earn from; that one is a free service).
Absolutely understand the need for ads. I have some idea of how much work goes into everything plus costs of servers, etc. And actually, I’ve discovered some cool things via good ads!
Made this last night for dinner and it was delicious. The only problem was that the pizza stuck to my quarter-sheet pan! I used a nonstick pan and oiled it well, so I was a bit surprised and disappointed. But we managed to chisel away at it and still eat most of it. Next time I’ll line the pan with foil. (And I will be making it again soon!)
Made this today with a squash from our CSA and some extra zucchini from the grocery store. It tastes amazing! Thanks so much for another great recipe!
Made this tonight, what a creative way to use the zucchini. My husband was very skeptical, I got him to be OK with it by first of all saying I trust you, and second of all agreeing to put meat on it. We added some crumbled Broadbent Kentucky sausage on top before baking (cooked it in a skillet first – man that stuff is good on just about everything). Also I had an open package of feta so I used it instead of the Gruyere. For the pizza dough I used a similar Jim Lahey recipe that was published in Bon Appetit a few years ago, it’s my go-to, it uses 1000 g of flour so I used 1/4 of it, the rest went into the fridge and freezer for another day. It was REALLY good, even my husband agreed, we will make it again. Because we have soooo much zucchini….thank you!
I made this tonight from a forearm-sized zucchini that I failed to pick before leaving town for a few days. It actually produced enough topping for two pizzas. I made one exactly as instructed and added thinly sliced onion to the other. Both were huge hits. Thank you so much, Deb! Thank you especially for the comforting tips about how to manage the dough. It was indeed “imperfect” and scary to stretch, but the result was delicious. I will likely use the dough recipe weekly and the zucchini recipe nearly as often. In short: you are a treasure.
Oh my goodness, this recipe is a keeper. I made it exactly as directed, even though I was a little skeptical of the method for the dough, and wow was it good. The crust has a wonderful crunch, the topping is just the right combination of soft and crisped, and it’s so so flavorful. Definitely one of those more-than-the-sum-of-its-parts recipes. Thanks for bringing this into my life!
Amazing. Doubled it, wished I’d quadrupled it. Wouldn’t change a thing. Used the recipe for dough provided, as an alternative to your lazy dough recipe I usually follow because I was curious. Was great for a 2 hour turnaround but I’d use the long lazy recipe if planning allowed. A total hit with our all our brunch guests, especially the kids – don’t hesitate, make it!
Making this tonight! But a little confused – do you only use 1/2 the dough recipe (below) for this pizza? Thanks!
This was delicious – I toasted the breadcrumbs which I would definitely recommend. Thank you!
Made this tonight and it was delicious. We used smoked fontina for the cheese. I had my doubts about the dough — and due to a time crunch, had to roll it out after about a 90 min rise, and didn’t think it was even close to double in size — but with some pushing and prodding it covered the whoke pan and the texture was great.
Delicious! I made with half cheddar and half Parmesan since that’s what I had in my fridge. Added a healthy pinch of red pepper flakes and thought had great flavor. Super-easy summer dinner with a salad
This is a great recipe for using up my CSA shares. I only had one squash, so balanced the topping out with purple carrots and an onion. It was delicious.
I heart this pizza so much! It was great for my zucchini loving self, but my kids and husband prefer the usual pepperoni. Not a problem as I get all the leftovers.
Monday inspiration
Got me out of bed after reading the recipe
Post vacation, back to work tonight (labor and delivery night shift nurse) Monday blues
But have everything to start dough!
Yeah
My Anna turned 15 yo in July 💘
I know this is a sacreligious question for cheese lovers (which I am) but Deb, do you have another suggestion in place of the gruyere? My wee boys love all forms of pizza, inhale zucchini, but dislike gruyere specifically. (We used to live in Switzerland, home of the most amazing gruyere…for them it was purgatory. For me and the hubs, pretty awsome.)
I gotta make this immediately, but need to sub the gruyere. Alas.
Would they notice if you used other sliiightly similar cheese types, like comte? That would be my second choice here.
For convenience I used a pre-made crust, so this was incredibly fast and easy to make, insanely delicious for so few ingredients (had a hard time NOT picking up another piece when I was already full), and I can’t believe how excited I am to eat the leftovers. = )
Make this pizza all the time. Jim’s book is a great reference. I find that its too much zucchini for my taste in that the crust does not get crispy enough.. I take the zucchini down a bit.. The bread crumbs are a must.. Delicious..
Made this last weekend and it was delicious! However, my dough barely covered one quarter sheet pan. Was I supposed to double the dough recipe? Where did I go wrong??
It’s a verrry thin dough that must be carefully stretched and nudged into a flat sheet. Tears are common; just pinch them back together.
I’ve been making Food 52s zucchini butter every week after getting my CSA (and, this week, a few extras from someone else’s garden!). Think I could use it as the topping? Mixed with cheese or, as someone else asked, maybe dairy free version.
I made this last week with store-bought pizza dough (two plain doughs from Trader Joe’s), and it was a success. I didn’t have a food processor with me, so I grated the zucchini, which I think really defeats the simpleness of this recipe. I’m looking forward to making this again when I have a food processor handy to grate the zucchini much more quickly! I also used comte instead of gruyere since that’s what we had. All in all, it’s great fresh out of the oven (crispy) and also at room temperature (not as crispy). I’m really enjoying these SK summer vegetarian recipes.
Absolutely perfect for a Friday night dinner on the deck. I grilled it because it is summer and I grill everything. Also I added some corn which was left over from the night before and that I just cut off the cob and mixed in.
Hey all —
I made this and it was delicious! My one key note is that I made Deb’s overnight dough, and even though she says to use 2/3rds of it. I ended up needing to use the whole thing to even have any hope of getting coverage on my 13 x 18 half sheet pan. I just don’t see how I could have gotten it to spread out thin enough to cover with less dough than that, and since the final product doesn’t rise much in the oven, it was still plenty thin (dough wasn’t more than 1/4 of an inch when cooked)
Same here… I ended up using the whole batch too on my half sheet pan! Glad it wasn’t just me. It turned out delicious. My husband who is not the biggest zucchini fan (and that goes for summer squash too), inhaled 1/2 the pizza!!! The only thing I will do differently next time, is wrap the pan in foil and then oil. With all the maneuvering to spread the dough, it ended up sticking to the pan and was really difficult to remove. This one’s a keeper.
So good! Also the only way my boyfriend will truly enjoy summer squash ;) Added a ton of garlic powder to the zucchini mix and used the dough recipe at the bottom. YUM! Reminds me of the best pizza in the world that I had years ago at a place called Cheese Board Pizza in Berkeley. It’s run by a cheese collective, is sauce-less, and vegetarian with only one choice that varies each day. Awesome stuff! Love how much squash I can “sneak” in there – 2.5 pounds looks like a ton, but really wilts and cooks down. Love love love it and will become a staple – this is coming from someone who likes to try something new every night and rarely repeats recipes. Thanks, Deb!
Hi Deb,
Thank you! This was another hit – so simple, as you say, but really delicious.
A few things – I added caramelized onions on half and it was amazing.
Squeezing the water from the zucchini is the only task that made me hesitate prior to cooking this but it was still well worth it. I did some poking around on the internet after and a potato ricer seems to be a good tool to handle the squeezing. I ordered one posthaste so that I can make this a few more times before the season ends.
I do have a question: you have the dough rising time at 2 hours but Lahey indicates 18 hours in his pizza book. Did you get a successful enough rise in 2? Thanks!
Hi Deb, I’m making this right now. Should I peel the squash or is that not necessary?
The dough is rising — it’s been sitting about 2.5 hrs. Love the smell of the yeast!
Thank you!
Answered my own question by looking at your pics. Pretty green shreds by grating the whole squash with the skin. I’ll probably let my dough sit for 3 or 3.5 hours to get a good rise. It’s in a warm spot next to my stove.
Thanks Patty — I did not peel squash, not sure I ever have for a recipe.
Didn’t his 18 hours include overnighting in the fridge? (Yes, I am actually being so lazy as to not dig out his book right now for the correct answer.) You can do that here too but I always find it helpful to give the shortest window of time you’ll need and you can prolong the process as your schedule requires in the fridge, if desired.
Hi again, Deb.
QQ about the dough. Last week, I used store bought. This week, I used the dough recipe here. I’m a stickler for weights and measures and use a food scale to weigh my flours. The dough was EXTREMELY dry and shaggy with the 2/3 cup of water and I’m wondering if that is the way it should be. I wound up adding water because I was afraid it would be too dry. I’m wondering that was necessary or if this dough would have worked out with the indicated 2/3 cup.
Also, with both the store bought AND homemade dough, the dough stuck to the pan, despite heavy oiling. Is this common?
These details aside, this is my new favorite recipe.
Oh! I wanted to pass this along – I used a ricer to strain the extra liquid from the zucchini after I drained it with the salt and it worked out GREAT! I am reserving the liquid to use in a risotto or soup base.
I made this last night and it was a huge hit!!
Wow, this is brilliant. I can’t believe how modest the size of this ingredient list is.
Soooooo good!!! I made this tonight and it was just perfect for a light supper. It was also delicious dipped in a little marinara sauce. Amazing recipe, will be making again and again!
This was easy and delicious. I bought pizza dough and used shredded Swiss instead because I was short on time.
Made this last night and it was quite tasty! I over cooked it just a pinch, so the crust was just on the edible side of burnt, but even at that we all liked it. The simplicity is fabulous, but if I had a little bit of something to use up- a piece of onion or some herbs- I think it would be a fine addition to the topping.
Hiya. I’m thinking of making this for my kiddo’s second birthday party. Any tips for making it ahead? Do you think it will still be tasty room temp? I love your blog and book. It’s great to have a trusted source that I don’t even feel I need to test before parties (especially with a wildman almost 2 year old)
Thanks!
I think it should be just fine at room temp.
Forgot the crushed red pepper AND the breadcrumbs – you’d think with so few ingredients I could manage to use them all. But it was still fantastic! I don’t care for Gruyere but used it anyway and really loved it. We did it on the grill and browned under the broiler. Perfect!
I added carmelized onions. Because, well…they make everything better of course!
This pizza received my husband’s ultimate compliment, “This is going to be an awesome lunch tomorrow!” I used your pizza dough, mostly yellow squash with one wimpy zucchini, and added a good sprinkling of these smoked red pepper flakes that I’m obsessed with (home made and sent to me by a friend). The bread crumbs were the leftovers from the bread I tore up in anticipation of making tomato gratin. The farm share is getting its workout via Smitten Kitchen this week and we are loving it!
Delicious made as directed but with Comte in place of Gruyere.
My friends were shocked when they asked about the recipe and told of the short ingredient list. A new house favorite!
I made this amazing flatbread/pizza creation and we all loved it. Yes, even my very fussy 13 year old actually tried and ate a pizza. Shiver me timbers. Its just that good! I could not justify and gruyere purchase as my cheese drawer is loaded. I used a mix of Swiss, Colby and Cheddar. While I am sure Gruyere would be SO much better and I will try it, the others I mentioned were good.
I remain “smitten” with your blog and the many creations.
This was super tasty — I cheated and bought pizza dough from TJ’s (and used a mix of Gruyere and cheddar — because it’s what I had). I could have cooked it a bit longer than 25 minutes; Even at 500 degrees, the bottom crust was a tad soft in the center.I also put a few sliced leeks on part to see how it tasted (good! although it was just as good without it)…and I totally forgot the bread crumb part…and I was in heaven. I’ll try to remember the bread crumbs next time.
I made a half recipe, and we had it as an appetizer tonight…except it was hard to stop for the main course! I used about 1/3 whole wheat flour in the dough, got a good rise from it, then stretched it to flatbread thinness on a piece of parchment paper. I wrung my zucchini out in a clean dish towel to get it really dry, then tossed with the Gruyere and spread it over the crust. Pizza on parchment went straight onto the heated baking stone and was done in about 15 minutes.
I forgot the breadcrumbs but still found the results lovely–will just have to do it again to get it right…
Made this pizza tonight with zucchini from my garden. Came out like the picture!! and was delicious. Thanx!
After royally messing up the potato pizza last week, I used the suggested dough recipe and let the oven preheat to 500. The result was amazing. Maybe I’ll try the potato version again.
I have made this lovely pizza twice. The first time I followed the recipe to the letter and loved it. A week later, I received still more gorgeous local green and yellow zucchini and decided to make it again, with a few minor adjustments: no crumbs because the frankly did nothing for me and I added a sprinkle of chili flakes and some fresh rosemary to the squash mixture. I felt a bit guilty messing with the simplicity but it was even better to my taste. Thanks Deb for the star of the summer!!
I made this! I have never commented before, and I don’t know why! This was really good, but the best pieces are really coated with lots of zucchini. And I added a little bit of garlic, on the crust. Really good!
I made this last week, and a side dish to the steak my husband grilled. It was nice and light. The next day, I crisped some up in the toaster oven, and put a fried egg on top for breakfast. Perfect!
I’m an unrepentant tinkerer when it comes to recipes, but I made this tonight and decided to just trust. I’m so glad that I did! While I can see the virtue of an egg or maybe a little prosciutto, this was perfect as it was, and so much greater than the sum of its parts. Another summer staple for the recipe pile!
I made this last night, but added some seasoning to the zucchini before baking it (garlic powder, crushed red pepper, Italian Seasoning) and holy deliciousness. This was one of the TASTIEST things I’ve ever eaten. Can’t wait to make it again, even though I had to hand grate all the zucchini because our food processor doesn’t have this attachment!
While I make Deb’s recipes all the time and don’t usually have problems…. I did with this one. The dough (I used Jim Lahey’s recipe included within Deb’s) fit only about 2/3s of my half-sheet pan. I piled that with the zucchini and hoped for the best. Perhaps I didn’t oil the pan enough; the pizza stuck badly. What I scraped up was delicious, however. I shall try and make this again. Using up my zucchini is an objective since my zucchini plants seem to keep producing despite this NY heat wave. I think my difficulties may be “user error” or inexperience (never having made pizza dough before). I will try this again!
Alice, I had the same problem (sticking) with both store bought and the pizza dough recipe listed here, despite generously oiling the pan.
Additionally, I could not stretch the homemade dough to fit my 1/2 sheet pan, try as I might.
All of that said, I agree that it was still delicious. I might try parchment paper next time. I’ll report back to let you know how it goes.
I know what you mean about the crust not filling the pan initially. If you leave it to rest after doing the best possible spreading job, only 10 minutes or so, I think you’ll find it’s ready to stretch again. After all that stretching, it’s impossible to have the pan very well oiled, however!
I only got it to fill about 2/3 of the pan initially, but once I dumped the zucchini-grueyre mixture on it, I was able to spread the dough to the edge–the extra weight from the toppings kept it from springing back
What dough did you use? I find for the most part that a dough springing back too much hasn’t risen enough. Oiled fingertips especially help here in pressing it out so it stays.
This was delicious! I needed a new recipe for squash, something the kids will like. We all enjoyed how it got so crisp and bubbly on top. Thanks for sharing. My zucchini plants are only beginning….
Just made this and even my meat-loving husband loves it. Delicious with crushed red pepper on top. Thanks for the inspiration!!
Winner! So tasty and so easy. Also met my latest culinary criteria of being toddler friendly. Seriously though, my bread fiend of a child ate the topping off first. It was that good. Bring on the zucchinis, August.
Successfully swapped the Gruyere for goat gouda and a little bit of cheddar, and used more like a 1/2 cup of panko. This was magnificent! Definitely going on repeat.
Major winner! I mixed up Lahey’s dough before work and left it on the counter to rise, then after 2 hours I had my work-from-home husband stick it in the fridge. I oiled the pan well and got great coverage w the dough, no sticking. My only suggestion is to wait 5-10 minutes to serve after taking it out of the oven–it tastes much better when it’s not blazing hot. It vaguely reminds me of a zucchini Bisquick “quiche” my mom made when I was a kid. Best part is that it makes a lot, so there are plenty of leftovers!
Wow. Just wow!! I served this to company this evening and we all loved every bite. Even my 4 kids were going back for seconds.
I had a couple grilled chicken strips that I diced super small and also added some thinly sliced tomato. Other than these additions I followed the recipe exactly. We used the hot red pepper flakes and loved that.
Sigh. Such a satisfying dinner. I totally get one of the first commenters who said they’re eating this every weekend. Will definitely be searching the garden for any leftover squash!!
Made this a few days ago and since we have mountains of tiny grape tomatoes, I just subbed them for the zucchini — left all other ingredients the same, tossed them together and pressed the tomatoes gently into the dough. The cooking time was exactly right to soften and burst them, and it was almost indescribably delicious. Add your favorite salad and it’s the most perfect summer lunch you could imagine.
A friend came back from Virginia and brought me 5 humongous crooked neck squash. Do you think I can use that to make this? It is summer squash, but not the typical yellow-zucchini variety. Do you think I should peel it and remove some of the seeds first? Thanks for the amazing recipes, Deb! I am looking forward to enjoying this pizza
Sorry, I thought I’d responded! Absolutely. Any summer squash will do.
This was SO GOOD! I wasn’t sure it would have enough taste but it was fabulous. It will definitely go in our rotation. Thanks! I would never have thought of trying this if it wasn’t for my faith in your palate.
I’m not sure if it’s our oven, but either the 500° or 20-25 minute cooking time was too much. The filling came out just delicious, but the bottom of the crust was burned. I cooked it for 20 minutes and the top wasn’t browned yet, so I put it in for a couple more minutes and took it out. Unfortunately the bottom was much too dark. But my optimistic husband says “it was just more like toast than pizza,” hehe! We ate most of it anyway, but next time we make it (which we will because the filling was so good), we’ll probably take it out sooner or lower the cooking temperature. Just a word of warning in case it helps anyone else!
Hey Deb, This pizza is excellent! I’ve made it three times in the past 2 weeks and my husband and I have eaten nearly the entire pan in one sitting. We look longingly at the last few slices, but bravely put them away for lunch the next day. So, so happy to have another use for the season’s ubiquitous zucchini.
Fantastically good and open to variations. I had no gruyere, so used half Feta and and half Cheddar (old). Used half an onion I had in the fridge, and the hot pepper flakes.
The best thing was using a couple of teaspoons of some lemon infused olive oil someone gave me , which I rubbed over the dough before I put the cheesy zucchini mix on. Wonderful addition to the overall flavour!
2 pans worth, one topped with onion slices and the other with 2 slices of bacon cut into bits with scissors and sprinkled.
My oven burned the bottom as another writer mentioned, but it was still amazing. I will take that into account next time I cook it.
It would be delicious whatever you have on hand, thanks Deb!
Made this tonight for dinner and it was awesome! Love the crust recipe (I know I’ve seen it before – why did I wait so long to make it?). I didn’t have any Gruyere, so I used a bag of pre-shredded “Mexican Blend” cheese in an attempt to avoid the bland flavor you warned could result from using just mozzarella. The result came out great and looks just like your photos. I will definitely be making this again – what a great way to use up summer squash!
Super yummy, thanks for the inspiration. We were in a bit of a rush, so stuck it in the oven closer to 450-degrees and it only took 14 minutes or so before it was golden brown. Longer would have burnt it, so just a note to keep an eye on it around the half-way mark to see what your particular oven is doing with it. I have leftovers in my lunch today and we’ll definitely be making this again!
I’ve made this at least 4 times since you posted the recipe, so I wanted to thank you! I made a double batch to rave reviews at a birthday dinner party this weekend, so thanks are also in order for making me look like a great cook! My recipe tweaks are that I’ve used asiago and parmesan in place of gruyere with great results, and I’ve been adding a minced clove of garlic. This is easily one of my favorite new recipes!
This turned out really well. The crust dough seemed a bit dry, but I resisted adding more water. It actually did a very nice rise on my counter in 2 hours. As for the zucchini, I used a food processor and let it sit for 10 minutes with 1 teaspoon of salt before wringing it out with cheesecloth (a method Deb recommended on her zucchini fritters). The olive oil I used on the pan really made the crust have a good flavor and made it easier to stretch the dough around the pan. I didn’t use any extra salt or spices. My oven thermometer read 500 degrees F, and 15 minutes was even a bit much. Any longer and it would have burned. It’s really more cracker type crust now, but I like that. I will be making this again. Deb, I can freeze the extra zucchini cheese mixture? I did the quarter size pan-cooking for one here. Thanks!
I don’t know where this username comes from, apparently i set up a wordpress site in 2010 and now I can’t change it, but I am previously Jenna from Kansas,
Sorry for the trouble. One of the issues that has come up since this site was migrated to WordPress VIP (a much better platform for it, but indeed a WordPress hosted site now vs. the self-hosted WordPress I was using previously) is that if you (or any reader) uses an email address to comment that matches an address associated with a WordPress.com account, you’ll now be prompted to log in. We cannot remove this because it’s a core security measure of the WordPress platform. (Believe me, I tried and tried to have this changed.) If you have an ancient WordPress.com account that you either forgot about, don’t want to share or don’t want to use anymore, you have a few choices:
Hope this helps and sorry for the trouble.
No trouble, and thank you for setting me straight. Good luck with wordpress, it is beautiful!
Tried this tonight and it was yummy. My husband, who doesn’t care for zucchini, didn’t realize there was any in it, so that’s a compliment I guess. He really enjoyed it. I put an egg on top and found it a bit overwhelming. So would recommend it without. The dough was great for its simplicity but I had to add more water and found it only needed about 15 minutes in the oven instead of the 20-25 suggested.
This is a very forgiving recipe in my experience. Don’t have precisely the right cheese/have to use store bought dough/forgot the bread crumbs – not a big deal, still good and easy way to sneak in some veggies for kids. I don’t own half-sheet pans, so I have a pretty good hack for a half recipe – I used a pyrex pie pan with a very liberal amount of olive oil. It’s more bread than pizza, but becomes a great focaccia like texture.
Wow, tried this tonight and I have to say (and my husband agrees) this pizza is TO much more than the sum of its parts. Zucchini and cheese, a sprinkle of salt and bread crumbs. How can it taste so terrific? Just delicious! thanks for a great recipe to finish out the summer.
I’ve made this twice now and it’s delicious! The first time I used used some store bought crust and the pizza was good, but Lahey’s crust adds that wonderful extra crisp! I can’t wait to make this for summers to come.
Also, I made this dough the night before and let it rise. After I refrigerated it to use the next day and was still great.
I just made this for a dinner party and wow! You can’t believe just a few ingredients can taste so good. I had some cheese straws leftover in my freezer from a party another I had and used those crushed on top instead of breadcrumbs and it was so good. Tomato avocado salad on the side. A great dinner! Thanks! Your recipes are so consistent.
Finally made this and it was delicious and easy. :-) I made it without any time for dough to rise, so I used the “thin and crispy cracker” crust on the faux martha’s site instead. It worked out, so I’d recommend that to anyone who wants to make this RIGHT NOW and doesn’t have time for dough to rise. I parbaked the crust per the faux-martha instructions and then after putting on the squash and cheese, I baked it for a little less time than this recipe suggests to even it out. I had some leftover grilled Italian sausage that I meant to add before putting it in the oven, but of course, I forgot. Instead I have been adding the sausage to the pizza slices when I reheat them. I think the pairing is fabulous and would recommend to the carnivores out there.
Thanks for the lovely recipe. Glad I made it before squash season ended!
How do you think this would be room temp? I want to bring it to a get-together where I probably can’t re-heat.
I tried making this into a galette instead of a pizza. It turned out amazingly well.
What a great idea! Will have to revisit this next summer, credit to you!
I have a dairy allergy, so I thought this recipe was a write-off, but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to use up two or three zucchini from the garden (there are so many!). I subbed about 3/4cup of mayo and a little bit of garlic powder for the cheese and was pleasantly surprised. For anyone who’s dairy free but not vegan, mayo is probably a decent substitute.
Do you have any pictures of what the dough looks like when it’s “well blended”? I just combined and am in the two-hour waiting period for the dough to rise, but my dough was very lumpy and did not come together after 30 seconds of mixing. In many other pizza dough recipes/videos I’ve seen, the dough comes together into a cohesive, smooth ball before you set it aside to rise for x hours, but my dough did not look like this at all…am I still on the right track?
Hi Deb! I made this pizza so many times this summer and wish I could recreate a fall version. What do you think about leaving everything as is just replacing the summer squash for butternut and preparing the same way?? Would the squash cook properly bring that it was grated? Would love to try it this weekend. Thanks!!
I love, love, love this pizza and make it all the time. I love how easy the dough is and that it is the perfect volume for the biggest pan that will fit in my oven. Can I swap this dough in for the other pizza recipes on this site or is there something notably specific about the texture, volume, etc.?
Most of my pizza recipes use more dough, a 1.5 cup flour level, but you can scale this up if desired or just make them all this thin.
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Made this with a combination of gruyere and romano! Totally delicious and loved the thin crackery crust. Served with a simple arugla salad. I used a microplane to zest (all I had around) the zucchini and still worked great, thought next time (yes, there will definitely be a next time!) I’ll be sure to procure a boxed great for larger zucchini strips. Thanks Deb for another delicious recipe!
Made this on Trader Joes cauliflower pizza crust. Added some dry oregano and freshly chopped garlic to the mix. So good!!!
My daughter is one of the world’s most enthusiastic lovers of zucchini so as soon as I saw this recipe I knew it was jumping to the front of the long line of things I want to make. She loves it! Thank you so much. The topping is perfect and I now understand your directions to squeeze the zucchini shreds one fistful at a time because pressure + colander + several changes of paper towels still left lots of water. I did follow my trusty KAF sourdough pizza dough recipe which has one cook the untopped dough for 5 minutes, remove from oven and then top so we never have soggy crust. Oh…she’s going back for seconds even though ‘it doesn’t smell like pizza mom…’
So amazing! My tweaks: first layer was brushed olive oil and caramelized sweet onion, top layer was two slices farmers-market multigrain bread, toasted, and crumbs chopped with fresh parsley, salt, pepper flakes, a little parm. Shredded yellow squash and guyere were the perfect middle. My husband is always reluctant about summer squash and he absolutely loved this! We both ate more than strictly necessary but such is life ;) With a mixed greens and fresh vegetable farmers market salad, topped with an excellent balsamic, this was an absolutely delicious summer dinner. Thanks for the incredible recipe which we will make again very soon!
I made this right after you posted the recipe and then not again until tonight. It is so good, I was just sneaking leftovers out of the fridge. I did add 2 finely chopped garlic scapes to the zucchini because I never know what to do with them.
I made the 2 hour dough given here but I ended up halving the recipe because I only had two of the large size zucchini. (I also wasn’t looking at the recipe and thought I’d let it rise in a warm place only to find out that the back burner of an oven preheating for another recipe is really too warm for leaving dough and bits of it got cooked! And were then discarded. But that actually still worked out.)
For cheese I used 1 oz. domestic (Wisc.) gruyere and 3 oz. store brand swiss for budgetary reasons. (4 oz for a half recipe). Everything was grated on a grater. For fear of warping because my pan wasn’t great I put it in at 450°F and out of laziness didn’t adjust the current strange rack situation so it was close to the bottom. I think I took it out after 15 minutes (not certain what I did put the timer on for originally), with the edges getting really brown and the surface basically resembling the photos here.
The only thing I added was a little black pepper. I had never had anything similar to this and frankly I’m not really stunned at the taste (poor cheese choices, maybe? I honestly don’t think it’s my procedural departures.) but it’s quietly pleasant enough and easy enough that I’d make it again.
I made this pizza exactly as written and it was fabulous. The crust was crisp and crunchy, and the topping was delicious. I used a cave aged gruyere so the cheese flavor was even more intensified. This pizza is a good way for kids to eat some veggies. Also, one of my children helped me make the pizza and she had a blast.
Do you think I could use a Vitamix for the zucchini?
I haven’t used mine for shredding — does it? Or you just want to chop it well? It might work, but might be harder to “wring” and tangle with gruyere gratings if chunky.
This was delicious! I made it with a different dough recipe (a honey whole wheat dough) and used a local tomme cheese from the farmer’s market. I’m trying to restrain myself to ensure there are leftovers to enjoy tomorrow. :)
I made this using the lazy crust recipe but substituted Cup 4 Cup gluten free flour. I let it rest for only 2 hours because I was short on time. Before spreading out the dough, I brushed the 13 x 18 inch pan with olive oil. I substituted shredded Romano cheese for gruyere. Before topping crust with zucchini mixture, I brushed crust lightly with olive oil. Baked pizza at 450 degrees for recommended time. The pizza was fantastic. Thank you!
This is a fantastic pizza!!!
I have made it twice now. I use a pre made dough (from fresh direct/foodkick) and a mix of zucchini and a yellow summer squash (whatever fresh direct/foodkick had that looked similar to zucchini). I also used emmental instead of gruyere bc that’s what the bodega had.
The first time I made it, I forgot the breadcrumbs. Much better with than without! They had a good crunch. I used panko.
Also, mine needed a good bit of salt. I think I just didn’t use enough bc I don’t have fine sea salt, just flaky. So I used kosher salt.
I will admit I also dotted my pizzas with mozzarella. Bc honestly, I’m into pizza for the cheese :) I think it added a good light flavor and some good melty-ness.
Thanks for this great recipe, Deb!
I made it with the gruyere and it was very yummy… but a little heavy. What do you think about using fontina?
Funny, I always think of fontina as heavier but absolutely should work here, or you can use a mix. Or less cheese?
It’s excellent with Fontina — I had it in the fridge already for Deb’s grilled cheese zucchini sandwiches but immediately switched to this recipe when I saw the word PIZZA (because of course). I’ve made it with fontina ever since. Bonus: it’s about half the price of gruyere.
I also tried it with fontina, which was good, but the gruyere was def better. Made it 3 times!
How much pre-made dough (I’m thinking Trader Joe’s) would I need?
I’d swap it by weight. This one is just under a pound. A pound would be fine.
Just confirming that the Trader Joe’s plain pizza dough (1 lb.) worked perfectly for us on a regular-sized cookie sheet in this recipe. Enjoy!
I love this recipe so very much – the flavor, the texture, the fact that it uses up a lot of zucchini. Stretching the dough takes a little bit of patience, but I find if I get it 3/4 of the way there, I add the topping and use the weight of that to push the dough the additional 1/4 to get to the edges of the pan.
Before I heard about this website from my sister-in-law, I thought my 8-year-old would only eat spaghetti and mac-n-cheese. Now she is a regular foodie!!! So grateful Deb!! My daughter is at this very moment munching a slice of summer squash pizza after two of your eggplant salad toasts. Amazing!! :)
I really like this. I followed some suggestions of other commenters, and added three garlic cloves, minced to the zucchini mixture. I also added 1/4 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes and a 1/2 teaspoon of cracked black pepper. I did have some issues with the dough tearing (I made one half sheet pizza), but it all ended up fine. I did notice that 2.5 pounds of zucchini was way too much for me; I used about 1 3/4 pounds of the squash plus the cheese. Fabulous — I couldn’t stop eating it! Thanks Deb!
All the pizzas I’ve made from you have been fantastic and this one is no exception. I love how easy this was to throw together, although it did require a fair amount of grating since I don’t have a food processor. I skipped the breadcrumbs since I didn’t have any on hand, and I added some crumbled sweet italian sausage on top and it was absolutely delicious. . Such a simple combination of ingredients, and so good! Thank you.
This was delicious. I was surprised that such a simple recipe could turn out so good. I didn’t have gruyere so used feta and a little parmasan. We just had the left overs for breakfast – wonderful.
I made this. We loved it! Despite the fact that I only had two hours and completely forgot about the breadcrumbs it was still fantastic!
I’ve never been a fan of thin, cracker-like crusts on pizza but this is a game-changer. I’ve made this a half dozen times and each time I’m blown away by how so few ingredients can make something this satisfyingly delicious. I’ve made it qith gruyere as directed, but have also substituted compté, emmental and a mix of aged cheddar and parmesean. I’m making it again tonight with a super cold, funky Ontarian chardonnay.
this was a total fail for me and I tried twice. I think i put too much zucchini topping on, but the directions were unclear. pizza crust would not get completely cooked because topping was too wet. What a waste!
I’m sorry you had trouble with the recipe. It bakes for such a long time — is it possible that the zucchini wasn’t wrung out well enough? Regardless, baking it longer should eventually get the texture correct.
I shredded one giant zucchini (more than enough for one person), and mixed it with chopped garlic and gruyere. Used whole wheat dough and topped it with sliced cherry tomatoes. It would have been very bland without the garlic!
Hoping to make this for a group I’m catering.
Suggestions for non-cow-dairy cheese for this pizza? So, goat or sheep is fine.
Thanks
i made this last night and it was delicious–a new summer staple! i’m vegan so i used miyoko’s vegan mozzarella instead of the gruyere, and next time i might add cherry tomatoes. yum!!!
Deb I make a version of this one all the time. It is The Best and works with a number of cheeses (although I’m super partial tot he Gruyere also).
I’m in the habit of adding toasted walnuts to the bread crumbs / in lieu of. So. Good.
TL;DR.
1. Preheat oven to 260 Celcius.
2. Grate 5 zucchinis, squeeze as much liquid out as possible.
3. Add 2 cups of cheese and mix.
4. Put mixture on pizza bases and sprinkle with breadcrumbs.
5. Cook for 20 minutes or until golden.
Our grocery store (Mariano’s) sells pizza dough balls so this is the easiest thing to throw together! I forgot the breadcrumbs but didn’t miss them. Sprinkled it with shichimi togarashi before baking and that was a YES. Am now obsessed, will be making this on the regular all summer.
I know this is an “old” recipe, but I think it’s worth adding that we just got home from vacation today with two farm stand zucchini I ended up not cooking and this turned out amazing even using refrigerated pizza dough from a tube and shrink-wrapped I don’t even know what kind of gruyere from the neighborhood grocery store. I more or less 3/4th the cheese and toppings since I only had one crust and just shy of 2 pounds of zucchini. The kids didn’t complain about getting a cube of the cheese I didn’t need as a pre-dinner snack! This was a nice way to ease back into my own kitchen (though I will miss the grill I had access to while we were away).
I have made this several times, with different cheeses, squashes, etc. Yet each time I am amazed by how such simple ingredients can turn in to something so delicious. Thank you for sharing!
Has anyone made this with store bought crust? I know I’m the worst, since this recipe already looks super easy. It’s just that this week is 5 days of days in the 90’s and we have a super busy schedule. Looking to make this, but not the dough. I perused the comments for quite some time and didn’t see anyone who wrote about this. Thanks so much!
Yes, with great results. I used a thin crust brand that I think is made in Austria, usually sold in the refrigerated section near the eggs (I bought at Big Y). Since the dough was already rolled out round on parchment paper, I used a 12 inch cast iron skillet and I cut the dough slightly to fit and cooked with the parchment paper it came with. I put entire pan and dough in freezer for 20 minutes or so to get it firmer so it would not cook as fast as the squash mixture. I added some Parmesan and a small amount of caramelized onions to the squash mixture. Results were excellent with a very thin crust!
I should have added:
And, I used a half recipe of toppings due to smaller sized pan.
Wonderful! Added some onion and garlic powder to the dough for a little extra flavor, and tossed the bread crumbs in olive oil first. It only took about 10 mins to bake. So easy and so delicious!
We absolutely loved this!! I did homemade bread crumbs with flavored olive oil and it was amazing…thank you for the wonderful inspiration you provide me!!!
This was SO good- far better than the sum of its parts. As other commenters suggested, I added microplaned garlic and lemon zest, black pepper, and red pepper flakes to the squash mixture, and topped it with parsley and basil once out of the oven. The breadcrumbs added a nice texture to the top. It’s a beautiful dish too.
Oh my gosh this was sooooo good! And so very easy! I used the box grater to coarsly grate fresh mozzarella, which is not packaged in water (from Costco) to mix with the zucchini and we added sliced cherry tomatoes on top. Cooked it on a pizza stone on the grill since it’s been so hot here in Portland, Oregon (90+). Next time (and it will be soon since the zucchini is growing like weeds right now), I’ll mix in some fresh basil with the zucchini. Thank you!
I’ve made this many times, but tonight I used the Trader Joe’s unexpected cheddar, plus a little Comte, instead of gruyere because the smell of baking gruyere hangs around in the kitchen for days, not in a good way. Oh. My. God. It was absolutely unreal. I also used the 24-hr dough, and farmers market zucchini–basically this pizza’s best self. Wow.
Made this last night – it was EXCELLENT! A few of our tweaks: Gouda instead of Gruyere, naan (from the package, from the grocery store) instead of dough, some Mezzetta marinara on the naan (under the squash and cheese), sliced kalamata olives on top, baked at 450 (middle rack) for 15 minutes. We pumped our fists and yelled “deb!!!!!” into the night.
I’m trying your squash pizza—can’t wait. I want to freeze half with more traditional toppings. Should I partially bake the crust first, then put toppings on, then freeze? Or some other strategy?
Thanks!
When I made this (for the dozenth time) tonight, I stuck a few cloves of garlic in the food processor with the bread crumbs and added a splash of olive oil, and it was fantastic
Hey Deb! Do you have any recommendation for an alternative cheese to gruyere that would be similar but a bit less pricey? We LOOOVE this recipe, and with how often we’d like to make it (hello breakfast all week) kills my grocery budget. That, and how much my toddler will eat of it. It’s amazing. Seriously.
I never know what prices are like elsewhere, but a “mountain” cheese (this is how Jim Lahey described it to me) works well here; you could use a baby swiss (emmentaler), comte, something with depth is ideal.
I made it this week with half cheddar/half mozzarella because it was all we had. Everyone here loved it; the addition (on the second pizza) of Zatarain’s Creole Seasoning was an even bigger hit.
Made 1/2 topping, using some random wedge of un-special cheese from the fridge, and seasoning to taste. Full dough recipe, freezing 1/2 for another day. Used a 9×12 oiled sheetpan. Served with a nice big leafy green salad. Dinner and done for two 60+ adults. Thank you!
Every time I make this I wonder why I don’t do it more often. So good.
What could I be doing wrong if the pizza dough from the recipe above tastes great but never doubles or rises a ton in between the 2 hour covered resting time? Have made it a few times and always the same outcome.
I used the Lahey dough recipe, Followed the directions (tried twice!), but the dough wouldn’t rise &, as others have said, it was dry. When it came time to try to fit it into 2, half-sheet, pans, I couldn’t get the dough to reach the edges of the pans. All that said, despite the failure of the dough recipe, the pizza, in the end, still tasted quite good. I would love to know, though, what went wrong with the dough. I note the Lahey recipe calls for 1 1/4 t. of yeast, while Deborah’s “Lazy Pizza Dough” calls for much less, in all three versions. Also, I wonder about the water temperature. I used tepid water. Should it have been on the colder side, straight from the cold water tap? Does anyone know what room temperature water means in Farenheit degrees? Would like to give this another try, but wonder if Deborah’s dough recipe would be more successful than Lahey’s. Thanks, in advance, for any advice on this.
worked great, even though the dough seemed to be doing nuthin!
Great recipe. We enhanced it by shmearing homemade pesto on first and then adding the cheese and zucchini.
I know it’s been awhile, but just made this and WOW! Does it freeze well? Would love to make a batch for pregnant friend.
I’d expect it to freeze pretty well.
Would you bake, let it cool, and then freeze OR prepare, freeze, and then bake? I’ve made this several times, delicious! Would like to bring for a weekend away, wondering if I can prep in advance. Saw your comment about prepping zucchini and keeping it in the fridge (as long as a couple of days ahead). What about the dough? If I made the night before, and just left it wrapped, out on the counter and travel to destination and complete the preparation process and bake, would that work? Thanks for your phenomenal blog, recipes, replies to the comments and your wonderful writing style! Love it all!
Bake then cool and freeze, or it will be a mess of cheese shards. If you’re going to freeze something, I always say it’s fine if you didn’t get the full brown color on it that you wanted because you’ll have a chance later, so baked-but-not-toasty is fine. If you’re using my overnight recipe, yes, dough on counter is fine. If you’re using the Lahey-ish one here, no, it’s not. Good luck!
I made this pizza twice last week since the dough recipe makes enough for two pizzas and I had loads of summer squash. I made the dough following the “morning before dinner” directions; it rose beautifully by evening and was very easy to work. I coaxed the dough into a rectangle in a well-oiled 9X13 pan. Topped it with the squash mixture, using Roth Kase’s Grand Cru as a close stand-in for gruyere, and baked it in a well pre-heated 550 degree oven, placing the pan on a pizza stone. Great pizza with a wonderfully crispy crust! When I made it again three days later with the refrigerated dough, I did exactly the same thing, except I added two large, green onions that I’d chopped into little rounds. The crust was equally good, and I think the onion made the second pizza even better than the first. Thanks so much, Deb! I will make this pizza again and again, and try lots of different topping combinations.
Thanks for the idea! My stepdaughter, who is vegetarian, was visiting, and I needed an additional meatless dinner idea that would also satisfy my husband (who has already suggested to me that adding some browned, ground turkey as well when I make it just for us) would be great.
These days I bake my pizza in a half-sheet pan. I used grated zucchini on the sourdough pizza crust I’ve developed. I used 4 oz. grated asiago cheese, and I sprinkled it on, after including some sliced tomatoes (blotted on a paper towel) and some sliced mushrooms. I used the Penzey’s frozen pizza seasoning (came in a gift package(, sprinkled liberally on top.
Perfect. Delicious.
How much cheese? Unless I’m wrong, 8 ounces are equivalent to 1 cup.
Thank you.
8 liquid ounces is 1 cup. This is a weight measurement; the cups of cheese are (about) 4 ounces each.
After loving the zucc + rice + gruyere recipe here, I felt pretty confident this would be a winner. Oh la la! Even using supermarket swiss and supplementing with a nice parmesan (to make up for quantity disparities), this was fantastic. Thanks sooooo much!
Amazing recipe!
I live alone so I have enough pizza to eat for days. Can I freeze the leftovers? Or would you prep the two smaller sheet pans and freeze pre-baking?
I was a bit skeptical about the lack of toppings/seasonings besides cheese and squash, but I just made this for dinner and loved it! The simplicity made sense once I tasted how sweet the squash got in the oven– I’m glad that I didn’t add any extras like garlic or red pepper flakes, but I do like simple flavors. I used grated manchego instead of gruyère because that’s what I had lying around, but it worked great. Also, it used up not one, but two weeks’ worth of squash from my CSA, which is a great boon to me, as I am overloaded with veggies right now.
Holy moly, I just made this and it is a revelation! Easy as pie, too. Don’t skimp on the black pepper. Thank you!
Made this with an added a handful of chopped mint–delicious!
I started making this a couple of years ago and it became an instant hit. Now my daughter has a wheat allergy, so I came up with using this topping on tortilla chips – a new version of nachos. My apologies if someone else has already suggested this. Too many comments to read through.
I cut this in half to make 1 – 9X13 for two of us. Other than agreeing that both the crust and topping could have used a tad more salt, we loved it – and it helped us use up some of the abundance of zucchini from our garden, which assures it of a place in our plans as long as the zucchini is producing. We did include red pepper flakes. We both wonder what this would be like with a bit of prosciutto added to the zucchini and gruyere.
I’ve added prosciutto or sliced hard salami and tomatoes to the top, over the zucchini, and it was quite wonderful.
Made this last night and it was so delicious. Thank goodness there are leftovers for lunch today! Made the crust in the recipe, baked it in one big baking pan for 25 minutes and it came out perfectly! Bottom and top were golden brown and crispy. Only change was adding some garlic scapes with the squash mixture.
With so few ingredients, the squash topping might seem too simple, but it’s delicious. I’ve made it both with and without added chopped garlic — both great. While I like only a slice or two at a time (something about the gruyere for me), my husband can eat a whole pizza. Leftovers are fabulous, either reheated or cold. Also, I used sourdough crust pizza on a pizza steel in a 550 oven and it cooked in about 8 minutes. Topping was perfect.
Hey Deb! Made this last night and loved it. However, had a little mishap with the dough using the recipe outlined here. I got active dry yeast and mixed everything together but my dough didn’t double. I then learned that, unlike instant yeast, dry active yeast must be mixed with water first. I ran out to Whole Foods and grabbed some pizza dough so all was ok but thought that tip about mixing with water might be good info to add here! :)
What do you think about using puff pastry or frozen pie dough for this recipe?
It might work with puff pastry as a kind of flat tart. I’m not sure I’d use pie dough.
I used to work for Sullivan street bakery and I still dream about their pizza! The head baker used to make this insane soup for family meal: zucchini tortilla🤤 I cant wait to bring back some fond memories when I make this pizza!
Delicious! It was worth putting the oven on for this and a fabulous way to use up zucchini (three medium zucs came to 2.5lbs) from our CSA. What a wonderful way to re-discover Smitten Kitchen and Deb’s recipes after a decade away! Back when GoogleReader still existed and food blogs were a THE thing (think 2008) I loyally followed SK but lost track of the blog for a long time.
So good. I’ll be making this one again. It can stand as a meal, as an hors d’oeuvre, or probably as a side for something else. Thank you so much!
I didn’t have grueyère (thought I did, but…) so subbed extra sharp cheddar and some good parmesan. I did add some cayenne. I’ll be trying it soon with the cheese as written!
Also, no matter how many times I squeeze water out of zucchini I am alway shocked at how much there is, and that I can always seem to squeeze out just a few more drops.
Don’t skip the bread crumbs – so good on this! I only had Panko on hand and they worked great. It helps to use an over thermometer at these high temps – mine is true to setting at lower temps, but has to be cranked to 550 to get to 500. I think that’s key to get the crust crispy on the bottom. Used a combo of fresh mozzarella and a hard parmesan-type grating cheese b/c that’s what I had on hand which was excellent, but can’t wait to try it with the gruyere. The dough is super easy peasy. Hint: the dough will spread easier if you spread it about half way, let it relax for 5-10 minutes, and then come back and finish spreading.
I’m already wondering how good this would be with carmelized onions!
OK… So I just saw this recipe a couple weeks ago… And since I have so much summer squash… Just made it. Yummy! I used a sharp cheddar (it’s what was in the fridge!)…added chopped green onion, some pepper and a few dried herbs.
Now I’m thinking of a ratatouille version… Shredded eggplant+zucchini+chopped peppers+caramelized onions+sun-dried tomatoes+taoenade+parmesan…something like that…
Thanks for the great recipe!
Made this tonight, unfortunately 20 minutes was a bit too long for mine! Should’ve checked at 15 I guess. It was delicious though, I grated some garlic into mine as well and it was excellent!
This was delicious. Made it on Friday, and can’t wait to make it again when I get some more squash on my hands.
We made this more in a Detroit style (thicker crust) in a cast iron and on the grill and it was so, so good. Added some black pepper and red chili flakes to the squash mixture as suggested and it was an amazing, light(ish) vegetarian dinner!
Delicious! What a great summer recipe! The gruyere goes so well! Perfect dinner with a nice green salad – thank you! (I skipped the breadcrumbs)
Just made this for lunch. So good! I’ve had a TON of zucchini and other squash to use up from my CSA and was running out of ways to prepare them. This is possibly my new favorite way. I used a different crust recipe and divided the zucchini topping between two smaller pizzas. Also *grate* for an arm workout ;).
Really enjoyed eating (and making!) this recipe. We also drizzled (or attempted to anyway) it with olive oil and it was really really great.
I have made this pizza at least once a month during zucchini season every summer for the past few years. It’s a total hit. I have made my own dough but generally just defrost a Trader Joe’s pizza dough which makes it very quick and easy. I also generally add a layer of pizza underneath the squash and sometimes I’ll thinly slice tomatoes for the top. I’ve also put mushrooms and/or jalepenos on top. I’ve left off the bread crumbs by accident. It all works. It’s all delicious. Very easily adaptable and a great way to use excess zucchini and summer squash!
Wow! That was wonderful. I happened to have some sourdough pizza dough in the fridge and lots of yellow squash and zucchini in the garden. I used cheddar and Parmesan with chopped walnuts on top as that is what I had. It was so much easier than rolling out pizza dough and all the other stuff you do to make pizza. I can see it with a light salad on top or some mushrooms. It’s definitely a keeper.
It’s the dead of winter in Chicago and I’m dreaming of summer so that I can go to the farmers market, buy some squash, walk home, and make this pizza again. It is so so good. No changes recommended.
I made this with 1/2 zucchini and half Brussels sprouts, some random bits of cheese and half breadcrumbs and half blanched almonds. It was super delicious
How should I store the 2nd half of the crust? Freeze immediately? And to use that frozen half later, just thaw and use as above? (only 2 of us, so 2 pizzas is a bit much)
This pizza was delicious, my family and neighbors liked it. I added garlic and Italian herbs to the breadcrumbs, then when it came out basil and garlic powder. I used Adam Ragusea’s dough.
This was truly delicious, and the lazy pizza dough is now my go-to. Mixed it up at noon, used it all for pizza at 6:30.
So….it is now prime zucchini season. What if I mixed the gruyere and the grated squash and froze it flat in a gallon ziplock freezer bag? Quick to thaw, and then we could eat this fabulous pizza in January! More importantly, I’d have a way to use up all these long green things. I’m going to try it. I’m *also* going to try and freeze the cooked butter, garlic zucchini mixture for the ‘Zucchini Butter Spaghetti’ recipe, another glorious squash user-upper.
WHY did I wait so long to make this pizza???? Even the meat-and-potatoes husband pronounced it delicious and didn’t suggest that I put meat on it next time (at my house, this is a major compliment). Easy-peasy and quite delicious.
Now I know what to do with all the zucchini that mysteriously appears on my doorstep in the summertime!
I wasn’t sure that this would be that flavorful, since zucchini can be rather bland, but was I wrong — absolutely delicious! 4 of us polished of the whole thing and wanted more. I will definitely make this recipe again. A winner! Thank you for another great recipe.
For the pizza dough, can it be halved again? What about frozen till needed? Its just me and my hubby here.
It turned out wonderful even if I did leave the pizza dough too long. Put olive salsa under one and sliced cherry tomatoes on the other
This was awesome! Added garlic, mozzarella on top, and some tomato paste on the crust and it turned out perfect. great way to use summer squash!!!!
So, so good! This is all I want to eat all summer. I used the 6-hour version of the Lazy Pizza Dough so mine was a little fluffier (more foccacia-like) than the photos but it was perfect. I used Emmentaler instead of Gruyere. For any other strange birds like me, it was great hot that first night and then the cold leftovers the next day were👌👌.
Delicious! I added caramelized shallots, which I had in the freezer from a failed attempt at making crispy shallots. Will definitely make this again. The only problem I had was that the top was browned but the bottom was still quite white, so I placed it for a few more minutes on a lower shelf.
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The first time I made this recipe, I used the dough recipe included and two smaller pans as suggested. It was perfect! I have a non-squash eater that devoured it. I just made it for the second time. I used a pre-made dough (short on time!) and a standard sheet pan (b/c the half pan was tied up with something else.) Harder to stretch to the edges (which you want to do!) so I ended up oiling the pan, inserting dough, stretching to where I could and then flipped it. Then I put in 2/3 of the filling (to make heavier) and stretched it out with the weight of the filling and the finished the last 1/3 to get to the edges. Still good! but not as good as going with SK’s dough recipe and two pans, but a close second! My non-squash eater still loved it!
My dough was a bit stodgy, but I probably could have rolled it out more (used the JL Basic recipe adding a wee bit of ww flour), but the flavor and idea, fantastic! Think it would be great on ww focaccia as well!
Would it be good with some ricotta spread on the dough before adding the zucchini mixture? Almost like a tart? I made a tomato tart once with ricotta on the bottom between the crust and the tomatoes and it was super good.
My garden’s surplus was put to work for this recipe, and I’m so happy. I strained the shredded squash in a colander for over an hour with good results. Don’t be shy to go the full 25 minute cook time on this, plenty of moisture from the veggies prevents burning/drying out.
Made this for the third time in 2 weeks. Easy peasy. Threw some fresh corn kernels into the mix tonight. Love the crust and dough. Doubled the dough tonight, cut into fourths and put three of them in individual bags in the freezer. Last time I took out the bag in the morning and threw it into the refrigerator to thaw. It was ready to use that evening. Definitely a keeper.
Smeared TJs Zoug on the crust before adding the squash and cheese mixture and cracked four eggs on top. Perfect breakfast pizza with a little zing. I can’t wait to try a smear of tapenade or pesto and, maybe, toss cherry tomatoes on top. A good base recipe with endless variations!
This is wonderful. This is my third summer making this, and I currently have my ~6th one of the summer in the oven. May be my favorite recipe ever. Thanks, Deb!!
Thank you for an outstanding recipe! Even the zucchini haters in the house were converted. I added sliced green pepper, sliced garlic, sliced leeks and Parmesan with the Gruyère – there were no leftovers sadly!
thank you for sharing wonderful recipes. the thing i love about smitten kitchen is the community and the encouragement to riff on recipes, make them your own. we love this pizza and have been making it for years, i think i mostly followed the recipe the very first time we made it, but then my partner and i agreed we’d like it better with soft goat cheese crumbled on top instead of gruyere and we never looked back. we just use 4oz of cheese, bake it as one pizza on a perforated half sheet pan (i know i’m lucky to have an oven big enough) and then serve with lemon wedges and black pepper. it’s the easiest pizza!
Love love this pizza. Made it many times. But learn from my mistakes – don’t make it with out of season zucchini and squash because you’re wishing it was august. Needs that full flavor from in season produce. Can’t wait to try again later this summer!
Why does this pizza dough recipe omit the sugar (which is present in the potato pizza recipe) – does it matter?
You can use it if you wish. I don’t usually these days. It’s just personal or mood preference. :)
Any recommendations for similarly yummy but more kid-friendly cheeses than Gruyère? More flavorful than your standard mozzarella…
Can’t wait to try this!
This popped up on IG today and I have to thank you for releasing me of the agony of worrying for the next 48 hours what I’m going to make for my in-laws on Sunday! I had my zucchini all ready to make your butter zucchini pasta for dinner tonight but looks like we’re shifting to pizza! Thanks!!
Wanna know a secret? The salad spinner takes excess water off the zucchini without getting your hands yucky. And it makes you feel like a genius while you are sipping wine and snacking on summer squash pizza.
This was really good!! I love the crispy cheesy crusty edges. It was so delicious dipped in a creamy/spicy dressing. It would make a great appetizer or would be a lovely accompaniment to soup. Thank you!
The dough didn’t rise much at all (which I was panicking about), but was delicious. I used all local squash and good gruyere and still found it was lacking flavor… added red pepper flakes and Parm at the end and still wished there was more oomph. I think the garlic suggestions are probably good. I love fresh and subtle – but this just needs something.
Thoughts on mixing carrots with the zucchini if I don’t have enough squash?
It might work but I do find that carrots burn faster.
This was as good as everyone said! So simple and tasty. I used about 3/4 of the Trader Joe’s pizza dough, and it was much lighter and crispier than using the full amount.
Wondering if I could reduce the oven time in this terrible heat by making your “zucchini butter” on the stovetop first, then using that to top the pizza? I’m sure it would work out deliciously, but would it be a whole different thing? Is there some magic to this baked as a whole? (like the spinach pizza – that would be a whole different thing if the spinach was sautéed first, know what I’m sayin’? still good, but different)
I’ve been making this every summer for years now, thanks to you. Everyone in my family adores it. I lived in New York City for many years before moving for work, and I love Sullivan Street bakery, so making this makes me extra happy. Thank you, Deb, for bringing this into my summer rotation. It’s genius and gives us a lot of joy.
I found this recipe last week and have made it twice since then, with great success. Worth the cost of the Gruyère. My oven bakes very hot on the bottom so I do 10 minutes on the lowest rack and then another 10-12 on the top rack to cook and brown the top of the pizza. Used the dough from the recipe the first time but the second I used my go-to King Arthur Neapolitan overnight dough. Amazing. Drizzled some aged balsamic on top for some acidic brightness and it was perfect.
Absolutely delicious! I added chanterelle mushrooms because I had them on hand. Cannot wait to make it again.
Thank you so much for revealing this awesome recipe from my overlooked My Pizza book sitting right on the bookcase.
I appreciate your tips and watched the video on Food 52.
We loved it and will be keeping this in my repertoire!
It even looked as good as yours.
A winner as always. Made it last night and it was fantastic! I will add it to the dinner rotation.
I made this last week and cannot get it out of my head!! I’m making it again tonight. Love it!
OH. MY. GOD. This pizza is incredibly delicious, and SO EASY! I made this with zucchini and a pre-made, refrigerated pizza dough and followed the same instructions. I could not believe how tasty this is, and how crispy the crust came out! This recipe is a 10/10, and will definitely stay in my regular recipe rotation!
Was simple and delicious. Used pizza dough from WF and added the red pepper flakes. Definitely making again.
I’ve made this twice and both would be considered an epic fail because both packets of yeast (different brands, both within years of their expiration dates) didn’t rise, but I just rolled with the punches and made an extra crispy flatbread. Seriously, though, where do people buy yeast that actually works!? This happened to me 12 years ago and I swore off baking with anything but wild yeast (helloooooo sourdough) until I tried this last week, and again today, with the same disastrous yeast results. Any yeast procuring advice greatly appreciated!
I make bread every couple of weeks, so I buy a pound of Red Star dry yeast and keep it in the fridge in a serious sealed container. Towards the end, I remind myself to just add a bit more yeast to whatever I am making. It’s worked great, so far – for many years.
Maybe you could find someone to share it with. The freezer also works.
I couldn’t stop thinking about this after you posted in your IG stories. It’s outstanding. I made the fastest crust to make it last night, but changed plans and put the dough in the fridge overnight which was just fine. The zucchini was still very squishy and was worried it would be watery but it wasn’t at all. I used Gouda and a tiny bit of parmesan and feta that needed to be used up. I might toss some chopped kalamata olives on next time.
This was really good!! I love the crispy cheesy crusty edges. It was so delicious dipped in a creamy/spicy dressing. It would make a great appetizer or would be a lovely accompaniment to soup. Thank you!
Made this tonight with store bought pizza dough, pre-shredded mozzarella/Parmesan/Asiago, so basically all I did was shred some squash and sprinkle some bread crumbs. And it was delicious! An easy Friday night hit, Deb never misses.
Sadly this turned out very bland and monotonous. It improved a bit with the addition of calabrian chilis on top but I wouldn’t make it again. The squash was kind of mushy on top and it was just missing something.
This was so delicous! I love my crispy crust pizzas and my husband wasn’t sure about the “Pizza” as he watched me put it together, but he absolutely loved it. I pretty much stuck to the recipe but I added a little more water to the dough and when I put it in the bowl to rise, I coated the bowl and the dough in olive oil. I did heavily oil my cookie sheet. I stretched out the dough on the cookie sheet and then let it rest for about 15 minutes and was able to get the dough to the edge of the cooke sheet. I had some grated parmesan and added that to my breadcrumbs. This was a huge hit and I will definitely make this again. Another winner from Smitten Kitchen ad thanks for helping me use up a very large yellow squash!
I made the pizza last night, a Friday. Perfect and delicious! Easy to throw together – I added chopped garlic and a little onion and hot pepper flakes. I used Aldi’s pizza dough and a bag of shredded gruyere and swiss from their dairy case. Thanks!