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Artichoke Pesto and Burrata Pizza with Lemony Arugula…for those nights when you’re looking for a really good pizza, but you also need a salad. Homemade pizza dough topped with basil pesto, olives, spinach, and artichokes, baked until the crust is golden and perfect. As soon as the pizza comes out of the oven, top it with fresh burrata cheese and a simple herby, lemony arugula. Every last bite of this pizza is delicious and super fresh. Making it the perfect January pizza. It’s cheesy, but veggie filled too. Balance.
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I don’t know if pizza fits into your “Healthy January” eats, but it surely fits into mine.
Don’t you see all those greens? And those veggies underneath the greens, and those fresh herbs, and that lemon? This is a true salad pizza, and honestly, it’s the type of pizza of my dreams. I’ve been craving pizza the last few weeks, and I could not love this one more. It’s everything I could ever want from a pizza.
Oddly, this pizza was inspired by my soon to be sister in-law, who is currently doing a 3-day juice cleanse. Yesss, 3 days of nothing but juice! There’s nothing that sounds worse to me than consuming only fluids for 3 whole days. I truly don’t think I could do it. Thankfully for you guys, I have no plans of juice cleanses here, and only see more pizzas in my future.
Truthfully, I don’t really believe in these juice cleanses or new year’s diets. I know that everyone is different, and has different health needs, but I’m much more about enjoying real food, and everything in moderation. I feel that if we restrict the foods we really want, we’ll one, be unhappy, and two, end up binge eating and or developing unhealthy eating habits. Again, I get that everyone one’s different, but I think you should eat what makes you feel your best. For me, that lots of greens and vegetables, colorful fruits, healthy grains, and yes, cheese too. Sorry, no liquid diets for 3 days for me!
Who’s with me? I polled on Instagram and 99.5% of you are with me so far. GREAT. So let’s talk pizza!
As I said, this pizza was inspired by my very soon to be sister-in-law, Lyndsie (the wedding is in September). She not only loves pizza, but loves a good arugula salad, complete with artichokes, fresh herbs, and a lemon vinaigrette. When I was brainstorming pizza ideas, I thought why not combine that combo into a pesto pizza with burrata and arugula on top.
It sounded too good, so here we are today. The pizza with salad on top.
I topped homemade pizza dough (it’s whole wheat…so healthier, right?!) with a generous amount of basil pesto, green olives, a little baby spinach, and marinated artichokes. Then I threw it into the pizza oven and baked it until the crust was crisp on the outside, but soft and chewy in the center.
As soon as it comes out of the oven, add the burrata. Allow the cheese to sit atop the pizza for a few minutes to melt. Oh so heavenly.
Now, since I know I will get asked this question, yes you can use another cheese like fresh mozzarella. But before you do, just check with your local grocery store to see if they carry burrata cheese. It’s commonly sold almost everywhere now, so I think most of you should be able to find it! And trust me, it’s soooo worth locating, because burrata cheese is like no other. Think mozzarella on the outside, but creamy ricotta on the inside. So good!
Moving beyond the cheese and onto the greens.
While the pizza is baking, mix up that lemony arugula topping. It’s a very simple mix of olive oil, lemon, fresh arugula, basil, dill, a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes – for heat, and toasted pine nuts for a little crunch.
It’s herby, with a lemony, peppery bite. Perfect atop a veggie filled burrata pizza pie.
And with that, I know it’s only Thursday, but Thursday night pizza is sounding pretty good to me.
If you make this pizza, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to also tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
More HBH Pesto Recipes:
- Pesto Potato Salad
- Spicy Pesto Pasta Alla Vodka
- Pesto Chicken Caesar Salad with Tomatoes and Burrata
Watch the How To Video:
Artichoke Pesto and Burrata Pizza with Lemony Arugula.
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound pizza dough, homemade or store-bought
- 1/3 cup basil pesto, homemade or store bought
- 1/2 cup green olives, roughly chopped
- 1 cup baby spinach, roughly chopped
- 1 jar (12 ounce) marinated artichokes drained and roughly chopped
- crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil plus more for drizzling
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest plus 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- kosher salt and black pepper
- crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 cups baby arugula
- 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh dill, roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
- 8 ounces burrata cheese, (about 2-3 balls)
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Grease a large baking sheet with olive oil.2. On a lightly floured surface, push/roll the pizza dough out until it is pretty thin (about a 10-12 inch circle). Transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheet. Spread the dough with pesto and top evenly with olives, spinach and artichokes. 3. Transfer to the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes or until the crust is golden.4. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, and a pinch each of salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper. Add the arugula, basil, dill, and pine nuts and toss to combine. 5. Remove the pizza from the oven and top with burrata. Allow the burrata to sit on the pizza and warm through, about 5 minutes. Top arugula. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
Made this for dinner tonight and it was so good! Ten outta ten!
Hey Liz,
Thanks a lot for giving the recipe a go, I am so delighted that it was enjoyed! Have a great week:) xTieghan
Wow! This pizza is our new favorite! Thank you so much for sharing your gift with us!
Hey Samantha,
Thanks a lot for giving the recipe a go, I am so delighted that it was enjoyed! Have a great week:) xTieghan
This was AMAZING! We added bacon and swapped goat cheese and shredded mozzarella for burrata (didn’t have burrata). Bomb pizza!
Hey Davi,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try. I am so glad that it was enjoyed!! xTieghan
I’ve never seen beer used in the pizza though. Why do you use this? What does it do? Also is there a recipe posted for that somewhere? Love your website and your cookbooks!
Hey Lisa,
Adding beer to pizza dough really improves the flavor of the dough! That specific recipe is in the HBH Super Simple cookbook. I hope you love the recipe! xTieghan
This was so good It was a nice change from the pizza I normally do which is yours also the one with cherry tomatoes thyme garlic salt and fig jam. Love that one also Another winning recipe ?
Hey Marie,
I am thrilled that you enjoyed the recipe, thanks for making it! I hope you have an awesome weekend:) xTieghan
Fantastic! I made it tonight when I got home from work at 6. Pizza dough made ahead of time, and it came together really quick. It was raves all around the table. They were skeptical about the lemony arugula but tried it and are believers!
Hey Suzy,
I am so glad you enjoyed the pizza, thanks so much for making the recipe! xTieghan
I can see that I’m a little late to this party, but just…wow! So delicious, tangy and fresh. We absolutely loved this dish. Thanks for sharing!!
Hi Michelle,
I am so thrilled that you enjoyed the recipe, thanks so much for giving it a try! Happy New Year! xTieghan
I made this last night and to say it was a HUGE HIT is an understatement! The flavors worked so well together, it was heaven in each mouthful.The only change I made was using Trader Joes flat bread bases, because it was mid-week and we were short on time. I rubbed the edges with olive oil and followed the remainder of the recipe to the letter. You are so incredibly talented. We love your recipes! Thankyou!
Thank you so much Katherine! I am really glad this recipe turned out so well for you! xTieghan
Absolutely Delisshhh and tasty. Made it twice and the family LOVED it.
Thank you so much Marleine! I am really glad you enjoyed this recipe! xTieghan
Made this last night and it was AMAZING! Love all the veggies!
Thank you so much Emma!! xTieghan
Seriously the best pizza ever! I make pizza on the grill every Saturday night. My husband said it’s the best pizza he has ever had and I have to agree. It’s fresh, lemony, briney, and surprisingly light. I did leave off dill because I didn’t have any on hand. Store didn’t have either. My only negative is the prep time. Of course, I make my own pizza dough and pesto, chopping the toppings, prepping the arugula, cleanup. I try to prep and cleanup as I go. It’s really worth the time and no need to make a salad on the side. It’s on the pizza! This is all you need. Any tips to make it easier and quick is welcomed.
Thank you so much Anna Maria! I am so glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
I made this pizza last night and it was incredible!! I even overdid it a little on the lemon but it still tasted amazing! And it was honestly SO easy to make which I loved. I can’t wait to eat my leftover slices:) thanks for the recipe!
Thank you Caroline! xTieghan
This is my go to Sunday night pizza, simply incredible!
Thank you so much Cortney! That is so great to hear! xTieghan
This pizza (and dough) is AMAZING!!! My wife has been following you on Instagram for quite some time and finally came across this recipe and wanted to try it. I was hesitant, but agreed (it was for a cheat meal dinner after a 6-week workout/food challenge, so this was a big decision at the time!). This has changed my perspective on pizza forever… and I’ve eaten a whole bunch of what I thought was great pizza over the years. Since that first test run, we have made this recipe at least 5 times. We do a double batch of dough each time and I make a more traditional style pizza to accompany this recipe. Also, I cook the pizzas on a traeger. If you have not tried that, I highly recommend it, it definitely gives it a little something extra over cooking in the oven. Aside from that, we have tried many of your recipes and are always amazed at how perfect they are. Thank you!!!!!
Thank you so much for trying this one, Randy! I hope you and your wife continue to enjoy my recipes!! Also, I totally need to get a traeger haha! xTieghan
This doesn’t say when to add the lemon oil dressing?? After the pizza comes out of the oven and before the burrata or after the burrata??
Hi Elizabeth,
This is covered in step 4. You will then top the pizza with this after it comes out of the oven. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan