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Our 2021 Christmas Eve and Christmas Day Dinner Menu.
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Crispy Tomato Herb Cheese Pan Pizza, a simple, delicious pizza made in a skillet, baked in a super hot oven, that comes out soft, extra cheesy, and with crispy edges. Similar to a deep dish pizza, just not as thick. The herb mix mix on top gives this pizza even more flavor. It’s classic, but different. Every last bite of this pizza is delicious and leaves you wanting more. It’s savory, a touch spicy, and perfect for serving as an appetizer or dinner.
When the family is town, I make all their favorites, and pizza is, of course, one of everyone’s favorite. I can’t deny, cooking for so many people almost every night is a lot. The key is to cook dishes that everyone will eat and enjoy.
Pizza is so awesome because you can customize the toppings or simply go classic with cheese and pepperoni. There’s not a lot of people who don’t enjoy a good slice of pizza!
This pizza isn’t my usual thin crust. It’s just a little thicker with crispy edges and a soft cheesy middle.
The key is to cook this in a skillet in the oven at a high temp. The skillet heats the edges leaving crispy cheese all around the pizza, it is so delicious. Kind of a cross between a thin crust and a Detroit style pizza.
Here are the details
Start preheating your oven to 450° as soon as you decide you’re making pizza. You want to get the oven nice and hot.
At the same time, place your ball of pizza dough on an oiled skillet, preferably cast-iron, but you can use any oven safe skillet. Now let it rest, the longer you can let the dough sit on the skillet the better. Thirty minutes will do the trick, but if you have the time, shoot for anywhere up to two hours. This allows the dough time to get puffy, create wonderful air pockets, and develop more flavor too.
For the toppings, I wanted to create two pizzas. One more classic, that everyone in the family would enjoy. And then a mushroom pizza too.
I’m sharing the classic, but with my updates, that I think make it even better.
I use a homemade mix of Italian seasonings and garlic, which is KEY. The seasonings add so much flavor and really make the pizza better than the average.
Add a bit of cheese, then the sauce, and more cheese. I love to top with pepperoni, but that’s totally optional.
Bake in the upper position of the oven and in 20 minutes you’ll have amazing pizza and your kitchen will smell incredible. But most importantly, you’ll have a delicious pizza to enjoy for dinner with the fam.
As soon as the pizza comes out of the oven. Slice it, top with extra cheese and maybe some herbs, then eat. So very cheesy, herby, and just delicious!
My family, all my brothers included, said this was one of my best pizzas. And guys, the boys don’t mess around when it comes to pizza.
Looking for other simple winter dishes? Here are my favorites:
One Pot Spicy Pesto Cheese Baked Rigatoni
Sheet Pan Buffalo Chicken Pizza
My Family’s Favorite Pesto Pasta Bolognese
Lastly, if you make this Crispy Tomato Herb Cheese Pan 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 tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Crispy Tomato Herb Cheese Pan Pizza
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 498 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 pound pizza dough, homemade or store-bought
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 2 teaspoons dried rosemary
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed fennel seed
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1-2 cloves garlic, chopped
- extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling
- 1 cup shredded provolone cheese
- 1/2 cup shredded whole milk mozzarella
- 1/2 cup marinara sauce
- 3 ounces pepperoni, sliced (optional)
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan or asiago cheese
Instructions
- 1. Position the oven rack in the upper 1/3 of the oven. Preheat the oven to 450° F. for at least 30 minutes before baking. 2. Place the ball of pizza dough in a lightly greased 10-11 inch cast iron or oven-safe skillet. Drizzle olive oil on top of the dough. Use your fingertips to push the dough out to almost the edge of the skillet. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for at least 30 minutes, or up to 2 hours, if time allows.3. In a small bowl, combine the basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary, fennel, and red pepper flakes. Add the garlic. 4. To assemble. Drizzle the dough lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle a spoonful of the herbs over the dough. Add a handful of cheese, then drizzle over the marinara sauce, don't spread the sauce. Top with the remaining cheese, then pepperoni and a sprinkle of the herb mix, you don't need all the herbs, use them to your taste. 5. Bake on the upper rack for 10 minutes. Then rotate the pizza and bake another 10 minutes or until the crust is crispy on the edges. Top with additional parmesan. ENJOY!
Notes
Skillet baking method adapted from King Arthur Flour.
Made this pizza and it turned out amazing!!! No more delivery pizza!
Thank you
Hi JoAnn,
Awesome!! I am thrilled to hear this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! Happy Holidays!? xT
Hello,
Quick question about the dough. When using HBH’s pizza dough recipe for sheet pan, the dough is covered and left to rise in the bowl for about two hours after mixing. For this recipe, is it recommended to let the dough rise in the cast iron after mixing, or is the dough left to rise twice – first in the bowl and then again in the cast iron? Thank you for the help! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Hey Alicia,
If you are using the dough recipe from HBH Super Simple, you can follow that recipe as is and then continue following this recipe as is and allow it to rise in the cast iron. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Feliz Navidad Tieghan! From Nashville! Thank you for the recipe! Never made pizza dough and from now on, it’s from scratch at my home 🙂 no more store bought lol. Now mine came out more like deep dish so any advice would be great to make it flatter (perhaps on a sheet pan?). Muchas gracias! ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Hi Nohra,
I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for giving it a try! Happy Holidays! xT
Merry Christmas Tieghan! I’m so thankful for this recipe, I made your crust from a previous recipe and it’s so delicious, crunchy and tasty! Making the second batch now with procciuto, then I will top with aurgula and spicy honey. Thank you!
Hi Nadia,
Thank you so much for making this recipe, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Merry Christmas!?? xT
I used my go-to dough recipe and made the toppings from this recipe and wow!
My mom and I had this for our Christmas Eve dinner, and it was a hit. I can’t wait to have the leftovers today. This will definitely be a fan favorite for pizza night in my house.
Hi Tracy,
Thank you so much for making this recipe, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Merry Christmas!?? xT
PURE awesomeness, the flavors! And So, so, SO easy. 🙂
Thank you for always giving my family something to rave about…and keep coming back for! <3
Hi Dee,
Thank you so much for making this recipe, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Merry Christmas!?? xT
Made the pizza tonight and it’s hands down the best homemade pizza ever! Crust was crunchy, pizza had a ton of flavor thanks to the spices and using my new 13” cast iron for this was perfect! Will be making this a staple for dinners.
Hi Jennifer,
Happy Holidays! Thank you so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!?? xTieghan
Ahhhhhhhmazing! And super easy! Thanks for another 5-star recipe!
Hi Kristy,
Happy Holidays! Thank you so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!?? xTieghan
Hi Tieghan, this pizza looks to die for! Can you share the brand of pepperoni you use? Thank you!
Hi Maggy,
I like to get mine from Whole Foods, Boar’s Head is a great option! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
What kind of cheese is the yellow kind in photo?
Hi Debra,
I used some cheddar:) Please let me know if you give the recipe a try! xT
I had all the ingredients for this already in my house including a 2 lb pkg of homemade frozen pizza dough. I de-thawed and halved the frozen dough and baked two pizzas. I did not have two 10-11 inch cast iron skillets so I baked the pizzas in glass pie plates (something I learned long ago from Sarah Carey, of Martha Stewart’s Everyday Food). The pizzas were delicious (actually only one was eaten and the other will be eaten in a night or two for leftover night). I will definitely make this pizza again! Next time I might try a cast iron skillet to see if I truly notice a difference.
Ich habe das Rezept gelesen und finde es super, habe nur ein kleines Verständnisproblem, was ist mit “Pizza drehen” gemeint und dann weitere 10 Minuten backen. Einfach Pfanne drehen, oder, nicht die Pizza umdrehen so, dass dann oben unten ist.
Einfach die Pfanne drehen. 🙂 Ich habe es in Tiegan’s Instagram Video gesehen.
Hi Cathy,
Wonderful! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for giving it a try! Happy Holidays!?? xTieghan
This pizza is heaven!!
Miki x
https://www.littletasteofbeauty.com/
Thank you!!
Any recommended pizza crust recipes?
Hi Holly,
I have a pizza dough recipe in the HBH Super Simply cookbook. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
This came just in time! We are planning to do homemade pizzas for Christmas Day as a fun family activity & something different. Can’t wait to try!
I hope you love the recipes Alex! xTieghan
I haven’t made this yet but plan to. Just wanted to say I just discovered you recently and your recipes are sooo good. Thank you! I’m making your baked gruyere in puff pastry for Christmas!
Thank you so much Janet! I hope you love the recipe! xT